The famous filipino playwrights
Francisco Balagtas y de la Cruz
was born on April 2, 1788 in Panginay, Bigaa, Bulacan and died on Feb 20, 1862 of pnuemonia. He was also known as Francisco Baltazar his best known work is Florante at Laura. Francisco Balagtas was the youngest of the four children of Juan Balagtas, a blacksmith, and Juana de la Cruz. He studied in a prochial school in Bigaa and later in Manila. During his childhood years. Francisci worked as houseboy in Tondo, Manila. Balagtas learned write from Jose de la cruz( huseng sisiw), one of the most famous poets of Tondo. It was dela Cruz himself who personally challenged Balagtas to improve his writing.
In 1835, Balagtas moved to Pandacan, where he met maria Asuncion Rivera who served as the muse for his future wors. She is referenced in Florante at Laura as "Celia" and "mer"
Balagtas is so greatly revered in the Philippines that the term for filipino debate in extemporaneous verse in named after him: Balagtasan and one of the greatest literary awards in the Philippines is also named after him
Severino R. Reyes
" Father of the tagalog Zarzuela"
A filipino Artist, dramatist and play wright, Reyes was highly acclaimed as one of the giants of tagalog literature.
In 1902, Reyes founded and directed the Grand Compania de Arzuela Tagala.
on June 14, 1902. the company staged his play Walang Sugat ( No Wounds), a drama set against the historical events in Bulacan during the philippine Revolution.
In 1923, Reyes co-founded the Liwayway, a Tagalog literary weekly which published a series of fairy tales titled Mga kwento ni Lola Basyang written by Reyes.
Severino R. Reyes died on September 15, 1942, when the Philippines was under the Japanese regime.
