HAVE YOU EVER BASKED IN THE PRESENCE OF YOUR IDOL? If that idol happens to be Nick Joaquin, the creative writer, or Quijano de Manila, the journalist, have you been thrilled listening to his baritone voice or animated to sing along, almost imitating his tremolo? And when that idol becomes your friend with a similar passion for music, life turns into moments of checking out spots where music is all. Singing and dancing make the earth spin, and magic raises the curtain on Broadway.

The country’s best writers and cultural institutions paid homage this year to the 100th anniversary of the late National Artist Nick Joaquin. Ironically, had Joaquin been around, he might never have allowed the tributes and accolades given in his honor. Or maybe, he would, but at great discomfort. Said...

What if the diwata were not simply the mystical figures often depicted in contemporary imagination, but a way of reconnecting with an older understanding of the Filipino relationship with nature? This question takes center stage at “Hiwaga ng Diwata,” a solo exhibition by artist Ian Cartalaba currently on view at...