February 1, 2025 - A new play by Canadian Filipino Abi Padilla promises a fun ride through what would usually be a sombre reminder of World War II. Called Grandma.Gangsta.Guerrilla., the play brings two young protagonists in search of their grandma Lola Basyang who has gone missing from her care home. In their journey, Nika and Jun-jun discover their grandma’s own history and stories of their homeland.
In an exclusive with Canadian Filipino Net (CFNet), Padilla revealed that it was her two grandmothers’ hesitation to share stories of their experiences during World War II that pushed her to do the research into the Japanese occupation of the Philippines, comfort women and the guerrilla movement called Hukbalahap (“Hukbo ng Bayan Laban sa Hapon” or People’s Anti-Japanese Army). In doing so, Padilla realized that although she has “always embraced my Filipino heritage because I grew up with it, I didn’t realize how much I still didn’t know about my homeland’s history.”
Padilla was in her 20s when the family moved to Canada. She had just graduated from the University of the Philippines’ dentistry program when she left the Philippines.
Grandma Gangsta Guerrilla Abi Padilla cred Emily Cooper Photography
“Upon reflecting on whether I still wanted to pursue that field, I realized I would rather pursue my childhood dreams as an actor and writer since I’m starting from scratch again," shared Padilla. Her limited theatre experience in the Philippines did not prevent her from auditioning at Langara College’s Studio 58 program and getting admitted into the program.
Grandma.Gangsta.Guerrilla. is Padilla’s first full-length play which developed from a shorter, 15-minute solo as part of a Studio 58 program course to a staged reading in February 2024 and finally into a full production with the inclusion of a key character Commander Lumen. Padilla told CFNet,
“This character is based on Commander Liwayway, one of the Filipino female guerrilla fighters. The final production draft addition was Lola Basyang’s friendship and camaraderie with Commander Lumen.”
On a personal note, Padilla relates to the story of the two children looking for their grandma. “I think this story resonates with me in the sense that I have to leave some of my loved ones back home to focus on my own dreams. As children of immigrants, I want us to honor the sacrifices of our ancestors but also be okay with the fact that we cannot save our loved ones all the time,” said Padilla.
Grandma.Gangsta.Guerrilla. will go live at the Shadbolt Centre for the Arts in Burnaby from February 6 to 8 at 7:30pm with a February 8 matinee at 2pm and at the Presentation House Theatre in North Vancouver from February 13 to 15 at 7:30pm with February 15 and 16 matinees at 2pm. Tickets are available at https://www.rubyslippers.ca/grandma-gangsta-guerrilla/
About the Author
Rachel Ramos-Reid started writing for magazines and newspapers when she was still a junior at the University of the Philippines’ Communication degree program majoring in Journalism. She continued to write in a public relations/corporate communications capacity in various private and government offices until moving out of the country in 1997 to work as Programme Officer for the arts and culture branch of the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO-SPAFA) in Bangkok, Thailand. At the end of her term, Rachel found herself immigrating to Canada in the year 2000 and again searching for new beginnings.
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