Acclaimed Australian-Filipina artist Bhenji Ra reunites with her teacher and longtime collaborator, Sitti Airia Sangkula Askalani Obeso, a Tausug elder and cultural bearer, for an intimate, site-specific performance of pangalay at PICA. Live music by Pahad Lapidan Panayaman will accompany the performance throughout the gallery.

Rooted in the traditions of the Tausug and Sama peoples of the southern Philippines, pangalay is a pre-Islamic dance form renowned for its fluid, wave-like movements that mirror the rhythms of the ocean. Practiced globally by the Filipino diaspora, pangalay holds deep cultural significance, yet this performance offers a rare chance to experience it through the mastery of Obeso—who carries the legacy of her ancestors and continues to keep the dance alive.

Through their ongoing exchange, Ra deepens her connection to her Sulu matrilineage, while also exploring the inherent queerness within pangalay, which has historically embraced bantut (transgender) communities in the Sulu region. The intergenerational collaboration between Ra and Obeso celebrates resilience and tradition while also challenging assumptions about inclusivity in Indigenous and Muslim communities in a world shaped by colonisation.

This performance invites us to witness, reflect, and consider how we, too, can nurture and protect these cultural spaces.

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