The first few months of the pandemic were the hardest for Leloi Arcete, head of PR and the online unit of the Philippine Educational Theater Association . She had to juggle being a mother and attending to her household while trying to cope with the needs of Peta’s sudden pivot online due to the closure of the theater.
Hernandez was a good cook and friends had always been urging him to make his food available for ordering. “With less projects, he was forced to try it out as an alternative source of income. That was when Maestro’s Kitchen was born,” Arcete said.
One client bought a wreath for a friend who is bedridden and told Arcete that she wanted to make her friend smile. “For me, that’s huge—to be able to share joy, make someone smile, give hope and connect during this time of isolation. Getting a wreath and hanging it just creates a warm and festive feeling.”
For the past three years, she has been Peta’s resident elf, decorating the Peta Theater Center during Christmas. “I would stay up late for two to three evenings together with our Theater Center staff, hanging parol, and covering our lobby and hallways with ornaments and Christmas lights. Peta’s Christmas tree is so old that there’s barely any branches left and we have to stuff it with faux greens and large parol to make it look festive. I miss that.
In September, they also launched Peta’s Festival of Windows Online 2020, which showcased activities and performances about Filipinos’ triumph and survival. “Closing the Festival of Windows is the first online edition of the Peta Laboratory,” said Arcete.