Alvin Collantes: Bibingka – Sophiensæle | Independent Theater in Berlin

Alvin Collantes:
Bibingka

A person stands in profile on a dark stage, backlit by blue light and haze. The silhouette stands out clearly against the background, with long hair flowing backward and high platform shoes visible.
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With Bibingka, Alvin Collantes brings their drag persona – named after a resilient Filipino rice cake – to the big stage to question who is being entertained, and at what cost. The dance solo, or perhaps a tender duet between the artist and their alter ego, looks into the emotional and physical labor of Filipino migrants working in service and entertainment across the so-called West.

In Bibingka, drag becomes a means of survival, joy becomes work, and the artist stands as both spectacle and vessel. The piece navigates the intricate ties between queerness and Catholic influence in Filipino consciousness, as well as the tension between Kapwa – shared identity – and Western individualism.

When the high heels come off – what remains?

Evening information

Please note that details may change by the day of the event. Therefore, if you find out after you have purchased your ticket that the performance is no longer accessible to you, you can contact us for a ticket return at ticketing@sophiensaele.com or 030 27 89 00 45 until 5 business days after the event (Monday through Friday between 10am and 6pm).

Language

  • Spoken English, Tagalog (much of the text is spoken)

Light

  • There are periods of prolonged darkness.
  • Towards the end of the play, there is a long, piercing bass tone accompanied by flickering lights.

Sound

  • Stage fog is used.
  • Towards the end of the play, there is a long, piercing bass tone accompanied by flickering lights.

Other

  • There is audience interaction. The performer goes into the audience and addresses individual audience members directly.

Early boarding

There will be early boarding. The meeting point is in the foyer next to the bar.

Tickets

  • Reservations can be made via the ticket telephone at 030 283 52 66, Monday to Friday from 4pm-6pm
  • Via the online ticket shop
  • At the box office

You can also find more information about accessibility at the house here.

Concept, choreography, performance: Alvin Collantes
Artistic advisor: Rubén Nsue
Light design: Haesoo Eshu Jung
Dramaturgical support: Nima Séne and Leander Ripchinsky
Media: Gaia Bernabe-Belvis
Special thanks: Eisa Jocson, Anna Wagner and Francesca Casauay
This piece is dedicated to the Filipino migrant entertainers and diasporic creative community in Berlin, the queers and drag queens of the Berlin nightlife and my parents, Bong & Queenie.

A production by Alvin Collantes in co-production with Sophiensæle and  Künster*innenhaus Mousonturm. With the kind support of Goethe Institut Philippinen. The 35th Tanztage Berlin is a production of Sophiensæle. Funded by the Senate Department for Culture and Social Cohesion. With the kind support of Tanzfabrik Berlin e.V., Theaterhaus Berlin and HZT Berlin. Media partners: Berlin Art Link, Missy Magazine, Rausgegangen, Siegessäule, taz.

Alvin Collantes is a Queer Filipino performance artist. Their interdisciplinary practice merges improvisation, performance art, decolonial perspectives, the art of drag, and queer dancefloor histories as both archival and embodied sites for resistance and transformation. Alvin is currently a participant of Goethe-Institut Philippinen Performance Ecologies and Dealing in Distance Festival and has their work exhibited in Schwules Museum.

  • The silhouette of a person stands facing forward on stage, hands resting on the hips. Purple light on the floor outlines the contours of the legs and high shoes.
    © Mayra Wallraff
  • A person wearing a light-colored corset dress and high platform heels dances on a dark stage. Blue light illuminates the floor as the person performs an elegant movement with bent arms and a slightly twisted posture.
    © Mayra Wallraff
  • A person stands alone at the center of a dark stage under a single red spotlight. The red light creates a dramatic atmosphere and emphasizes the person’s upright posture.
    © Mayra Wallraff
  • A person arches the upper body backward and stretches one arm high upward. Red light falls diagonally from above, highlighting the tense body line against the black background.
    © Mayra Wallraff
  • A person moves sideways through the dark stage space, with one arm and one leg extended far outward. The lighting is minimal, allowing the body to emerge only partially from the darkness.
    © Mayra Wallraff
  • A person is positioned upside down on the stage floor, legs extended vertically upward. Red light and haze create an intense, physically focused scene.
    © Mayra Wallraff
  • A person wearing a light-colored corset dress looks upward, the upper body shimmering in warm stage light. Jewelry and long gloves are visible while the background remains completely black.
    © Mayra Wallraff
  • A person lies sideways on a reflective surface, their face covered in colorful light projections. Rhinestones on the glove sparkle as the face reflects clearly in the glossy surface.
    © Gaia Bernabe-Belvis