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Naty Crame-Rogers dedicated her life to the cause of PH theater

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Leah C. Salterio

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style="display:flex;flex-direction:column;flex-grow:1;justify-content:center;margin-bottom:24px"><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:4px;flex-grow:0;height:14px;margin-bottom:6px;width:224px"> </div><div style="background-color:#F4F4F4;border-radius:4px;flex-grow:0;height:14px;width:144px"> </div></div><div style="color:#c9c8cd;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:17px;margin-bottom:0;margin-top:8px;overflow:hidden;padding:8px 0 7px;text-align:center;text-overflow:ellipsis;white-space:nowrap"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CKwaK5InMvI/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style="color:#c9c8cd;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-style:normal;font-weight:normal;line-height:17px;text-decoration:none" target="_blank">A post shared by Bam Bam Tiongson (@bamsqrd)</a></div></div></blockquote><div><script async="" src="https://www.instagram.com/embed.js" type="text/javascript"></script></div><p>Natividad “Naty” Crame-Rogers has been described as a legendary and multi-awarded actress and director. But she was much more than that. She was also a drama teacher, writer, producer and researcher, who dedicated her lifetime to the cause of Philippine theater.</p><p>Back in 2014, when asked by industry-friends who sought her out in a gathering to share how it is to grow old with wisdom, she quoted the character of Polonius in William Shakespeare’s “Hamlet”: “Live, love and laugh.”</p><p>She also added Polonius’ line to his son, Laertes: “To thine own self, be true,” </p><p>That line was apparently kept true by Crame-Rogers, who embraced art and life strictly together throughout her existence. “It cannot be arts only,” she emphasized to her friends. “It’s got to be arts and life together.”</p><p>The pioneering theater stalwart, best remembered for the iconic movie &quot;A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino,&quot; passed away on Monday at 10 p.m. at a Pasig City hospital due to complications of old age. She was 98.</p><p>The eldest of five daughters, Crame-Rogers was born on December 23, 1922 to a well-to-do family. Her father was Don Ramon Crame, a jazz player from whom the daughter got her inclination towards the arts. Her father played for the Tirso Cruz Band at the Manila Hotel and was also tagged as the “Douglas Fairbanks, Sr. of the Philippines.” Fairbanks was an American actor known for his swashbuckling roles on the big screen. Crame-Rogers’ mother, meanwhile, Expectation Cabezas, was a real disciplinarian in the family.</p><p>Crame-Rogers was the granddaughter of Brigadier General Rafael Crame, the first chief of the Philippine Constabulary after whom Camp Crame was named. He rose to prominence by leading successful campaigns of the Philippine Constabulary against several criminal gangs.</p><div><strong>&#x27;A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino&#x27;</strong></div><p>Crame-Rogers was the first actress to play the role of Paula Marasigan in National Artist for Film Lamberto Avellana’s 1965 screen adaptation of Nick Joaquin’s literary play, “A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino,” with Daisy Avellana as Candida.</p><p>Avellana, also honored as National Artist for Theater and Film, bagged the best actress trophy from the Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) for her portrayal, while Crame-Rogers earned a nomination as best actress in a supporting role. </p><p>The role of Paula was later played onstage by Zsa Zsa Padilla in the 1997 stage version of “Larawan,” with Celeste Legaspi as Candida. The Tagalog adaptation was presented by Musical Theater Philippines at the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP), with lyrics by National Artist for Theater and Literature Rolando Tinio and music by National Artist for Music Ryan Cayabyab.</p><p>Much later, in 2017, “Larawan&quot; was turned into an award-winning musical film, with Joanna Ampil as Candida and Rachel Alejandro as Paula. Ampil bagged the best actress award from the Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF), as “Larawan” was an official entry in the festival.</p><p>In 2012, Crame-Rogers, then 90 years old, played Candida one last time in Philippine Drama Company’s Sala Theater staging of “A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino,” as part of the company’s 27th season. As PDC-Sala Theater founder, Crame-Rogers also directed the production. The plays were staged at the Aming Tahanan Sala Theater in Kapitolyo, Pasig City. </p><p>She also played the role of Juliet’s nurse in “Romeo and Juliet,” translated by Tinio for Teatro Pilipino. It initially disappointed her not to get the lead female role, yet Crame-Rogers nonetheless gave her best in the role, keeping in mind there were no small roles, only small actors.</p><p>She was a two-time National Artist nominee, although she never became one.</p><div><strong>Philippine Airlines</strong></div><p>In 1946, she was one of the six international flight attendants, the first batch, chosen out of more than 600 applicants for Philippine Airlines (PAL). At the time, she recalled it was like applying for a “beauty and brains contest.”</p><p>Working for PAL was a well-paid and glamorous job. “Every PAL arrival on the island was like a social event,” she recalled in an earlier interview. “People would wait at the airport to see the planes and admire the flight attendants.”</p><p>The airport then was at Nielsen’s in Makati, where the planes took off bound for Kai Tak in Hong Kong. Crame-Rogers also went on board the long-haul flight to San Francisco, that took three days, with lay-overs in Guam and Honolulu.</p><p>In every flight, Crame-Rogers carried with her a rosary, which she bought in her pilgrimage to Lourdes in Toulouse, France, as well as a gold medal of St. Benedict, a precious gift she treasured from her best friend.</p><p>Among all the cities she visited, Crame-Rogers best like Paris, her “great favorite.” She also well remembered Bali in Indonesia, Palo Alto in California, Agra in India, Stratford-Upon-Avon in England and Bangkok in Thailand.</p><p>It was while doing her job as a PAL flight attendant where Crame-Rogers met the young and good-looking half-American pilot, Lt. Col. Jose “Joe” Rogers, then on loan from the Philippine Air Force (PAF) to PAL. She fell in love with Rogers and later married him. Since being single was a strict requirement in her company, she had to resign from her job.</p><p>However, Crame-Rogers had to give up her work in Manila, albeit only for five years, to join her husband in Bangkok, Thailand, where he served as the country’s representative to the Southeast Asian Treaty Organization (SEATO).</p><div><strong>Loyal St. Scholastican</strong></div><p>Born in Cavite, Crame-Rogers was educated at St. Scholastica’s College, where she later served as director of the Children and Teachers Theater. As she remained a loyal St. Scholastican, the school presented her with the Pax Award, in recognition of her valuable contribution to the upliftment of her country.</p><p>When Pearl Harbor was bombed in 1941, Crame-Rogers was a student at the University of the Philippines (UP) taking up Philosophy and Letters. She later went to the United States, where she completed English as a Second Language Program at the UCLA, earned a masteral degree in Speech and Drama Education from Stanford University and even became a Fulbright scholar.</p><p>When she returned to the Philippines, Crame-Rogers completed her doctorate from the University of Sto. Tomas (UST). She later became the founding chairman of the Drama-Speech and Theater Department of the Philippine Normal College. However, the call of the stage became strong that Crame-Rogers became active in doing plays and acting onstage. Eventually, she successfully carved a name for herself as a theater actress.</p><p>Crame-Rogers’ also portrayed Leonor Rivera, Jose Rizal’s true love, in “The Love of Leonor Rivera,” one of the many plays of National Artist for Theater Severino Montano, who became her mentor.</p><p>Crame-Rogers was recognized for organizing traditional and alternative theater groups. She received the Natatanging Gawad Buhay Lifetime Achievement Award from Philstage (Philippine Legitimate Stage and Artists Group) in 2013. She was wheeled into the stage to receive her award, but gave her acceptance speech in all humility and delivered her speech in all clarity</p><p>In 2016, her biography, “Naty Crame-Rogers: A Life in Theater,” was released. The 70-page book was written by Amadis Ma. Guerrero, a nephew of playwright-director Wilfrido Ma. Guerrero, who gave Crame-Rogers’ her theater debut in “Wanted: A Chaperone,” staged at the UP in the 1940s. </p><p>Amazingly, even as a nonagenarian, Crame-Rogers had a successful pacemaker operation and also managed her diabetes for a long time.</p><div><strong>Related video:</strong></div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/pC1zzOWbIhQ?enablejsapi=1" width="560"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div>

<p>Natividad “Naty” Crame-Rogers has been described as a legendary and multi-awarded actress and director. </p>

Natividad “Naty” Crame-Rogers has been described as a legendary and multi-awarded actress and director.