Chrisma Paula P. Rojo of Malajog in “Bahandi san Kailadman,” winner of Best in Festival Costume. (Photo from Miss Hadang Facebook page)
CALBAYOG CITY — Before a single crown was awarded, the Miss Hadang Festival Queen 2026 candidates transformed the stage into a living canvas, telling the story of Calbayog in fabric, feathers, and beadwork.
At the pre-pageant night held at the CACO Theater on September 1, 2026, the 20 candidates presented festival costumes built on Hadang themes and local craftsmanship, one of the most anticipated segments of the annual search. The pieces drew from the city's ritual roots, its patroness, its waters, and its livelihood, each one designed to be read as much as seen.
The segment's highest award, Best in Festival Costume, went to Chrisma Paula P. Rojo of Malajog for “Bahandi san Kailadman,” which brought her barangay's coral reefs to the stage as inherited treasure, carrying a plea alongside the celebration: what the sea has handed down, the city must protect.
The Ritual and Its Figures
The “hadang,” the old Waray ritual of offerings from which the festival takes its name, ran through the night's strongest concepts.
Aira Mae D. De Guzman of Payahan wore “Padugo” by Deonard Mabeza and Rey Jan Roño, the ritual blood offering rendered in beadwork, each red bead on the fully beaded base reading as a drop of blood, with a sculpted pig headdress completing the visceral reference.
Aira Mae D. De Guzman of Payahan in “Padugo.” (Photo from Miss Hadang Facebook page)
Phoebe Heart D. Casiracan of San Policarpo presented “Salud Calbayog: Handog sa Hadang,” pairing Pintados-style patterns recalling the marked warriors of early Samar with a red pot carrying the gifts set before the spirits.
Phoebe Heart D. Casiracan of San Policarpo in “Salud Calbayog: Handog sa Hadang.” (Photo from Miss Hadang Facebook page)
The babaylan, the spiritual leader of pre-colonial Visayan communities, appeared three times. Via Dinessa P. Obong of Carmen wore “Bulawan nga Kabilin: The Golden Legacy of the Babaylan” by Eron Amador and Toto Doinog, a figure at worship before a golden Tree of Life.
Via Dinessa P. Obong of Carmen in “Bulawan nga Kabilin: The Golden Legacy of the Babaylan.” (Photo from Miss Hadang Facebook page)
Cindy Claire L. Pantillo of the CKC Alumni Association took a darker register with “Babaylan san Sarakiki Hadang Festival,” crimson and gold under a towering headdress fitted with skull motifs and candles.
Cindy Claire L. Pantillo of the CKC Alumni Association in “Babaylan san Sarakiki Hadang Festival.” (Photo from Miss Hadang Facebook page)
Nesthy Sherane C. Mabini of Obrero closed the trio with “Babaylan” by Jayne Plasabas, grounded in indigenous textures and natural materials.
Nesthy Sherane C. Mabini of Obrero in “Babaylan.” (Photo from Miss Hadang Facebook page)
Alongside them stood the healer: Zyma Gail M. Festin of Calbayog City National High School wore “Tambalan san Kabilin,” honoring the keeper of ancestral healing and its rites against sickness and misfortune.
Zyma Gail M. Festin of Calbayog City National High School in “Tambalan san Kabilin.” (Photo from Miss Hadang Facebook page)
The Rooster, Ever Present
No figure recurs in the festival's imagery like the rooster, whose movements shaped the Sarakiki dance and whose offering completes the hadang.
Weneifel R. Villanueva of Capoocan wore it in full as “Hadang san Ugis,” an all-white rooster whose color reflects the purity of the alay, the sacred offering.
Weneifel R. Villanueva of Capoocan in “Hadang san Ugis.” (Photo from Miss Hadang Facebook page)
Ashley Nicole Titoy of the Rawis SK Council presented “Oni: The Spirit of Hadang” by Toto Doinog and Rommel Rivera, the white chicken reimagined in feathers and gold.
Ashley Nicole Titoy of the Rawis SK Council in “Oni: The Spirit of Hadang.” (Photo from Miss Hadang Facebook page)
Vinnia M. Samonte of the SPNHS Alumni Association wore “The Rooster's Pride,” the bird's plumage recreated in bold color as a statement of cultural confidence.
Vinnia M. Samonte of the SPNHS Alumni Association in “The Rooster's Pride.” (Photo from Miss Hadang Facebook page)
Faith and the Patroness
With the festival closing on the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, two costumes turned to the city's faith.
Esther L. Braid of CADSEV wore “The Divine Beauty of Nativity” by Joven Lim, a tribute in white, silver, and soft gold to Our Lady of the Nativity, its lace and feathers shaped into wing-like sleeves beneath a celestial crown.
Esther L. Braid of CADSEV in “The Divine Beauty of Nativity.” (Photo from Miss Hadang Facebook page)
Athea Jelaine P. Ortega of Christ the King College of Calbayog City, Inc. presented “Bulawan na Rosaryo: Usa nga Calbayog, Usa nga Pag-ampo” by Jeric Sayno, merging ritual and Marian devotion in a golden gown whose pleated skirt fans out like a rooster's courting plume, a rosary in hand presenting the walk itself as prayer.
Athea Jelaine P. Ortega of Christ the King College of Calbayog City, Inc. in “Bulawan na Rosaryo.” (Photo from Miss Hadang Facebook page)
Waters, Spirits, and Stories
Calbayog's landscape and lore filled the rest of the field.
Carla Jane M. Capacite of the Tarabucan Alumni Association wore “Lagaslas: A Cascade of Elegance” by Deonard Mabeza and Alex Hornbuckle, the City of Waterfalls held in crystal and sculptural acrylic.
Carla Jane M. Capacite of the Tarabucan Alumni Association in “Lagaslas: A Cascade of Elegance.” (Photo from Miss Hadang Facebook page)
Janina Franchesca A. Leones of the CCNHS Alumni Association presented “Kislap san Katubigan,” a water nymph of the city's rivers and falls in crystal-like streams and droplets.
Janina Franchesca A. Leones of the CCNHS Alumni Association in “Kislap san Katubigan.” (Photo from Miss Hadang Facebook page)
Micah Sheen Comilan of SPNHS—who would be crowned Miss Hadang Festival Queen 2026 two nights later—wore “Daay sa Dalakit” by Er Stephen Alvarado, built on the Waray belief in the dalakit as a tree where spirits dwell, its wearer crowned in gold and silver and wound in vines as a soul folded into its roots.
Micah Sheen Comilan of SPNHS in “Daay sa Dalakit.” (Photo from Miss Hadang Facebook page)
Sharmaine L. Porlares of Trinidad, the eventual 1st Runner-Up, wore “Diwata san Hadang: The Emerald Guardian” by Mugna by John Andy Bactol, part nature spirit and part warrior in emerald and gold.
Sharmaine L. Porlares of Trinidad in “Diwata san Hadang: The Emerald Guardian.” (Photo from Miss Hadang Facebook page)
Livelihood and City Pride
The remaining pieces looked to what Calbayog makes, rings, and builds.
Strawberry N. Pondang of East Awang opened the numbered order in “Tinapa” by Jayne Plasabas, a tribute to the smoked fish trade in woven details and golden-amber tones.
Strawberry N. Pondang of East Awang in “Tinapa.” (Photo from Miss Hadang Facebook page)
Ma. Alexa G. Galitan of Oquendo Poblacion wore “Kling san Kabilin: Bells of Heritage and Blessings” by Er Stephen Alvarado, hung with tiers of brass bells that ring with every step to ward off ill spirits.
Ma. Alexa G. Galitan of Oquendo Poblacion in “Kling san Kabilin: Bells of Heritage and Blessings.” (Photo from Miss Hadang Facebook page)
Allyson Faith M. Castillo of NwSSU carried the city itself in “Dayun Kamu sa Calbayog” by Deonard Mabeza, its architectural landmarks rising as a silver skyline over a skirt circling as a highway in motion.
Allyson Faith M. Castillo of NwSSU in “Dayun Kamu sa Calbayog.” (Photo from Miss Hadang Facebook page)
And Princess Dianne C. Orquin of the Payahan SK Council closed the field in “The Golden Heritage of Calbayog City” by Mugna by John Andy Bactol, the city's legacy rendered in full gold beneath a crown of radiating gilded rays.
Princess Dianne C. Orquin of the Payahan SK Council in “The Golden Heritage of Calbayog City.” (Photo from Miss Hadang Facebook page)
The Hands Behind the Work
The night was as much the designers' as the candidates'. Credited across the 20 pieces were Jayne Plasabas, Eron Amador, Toto Doinog, Er Stephen Alvarado, Mugna by John Andy Bactol, Joven Lim, Deonard Mabeza, Rey Jan Roño, Rommel Rivera, Alex Hornbuckle, and Jeric Sayno, several of them with multiple entries on the stage. Designers for some of the costumes were not announced in the official materials.
The festival costume segment is a scored portion of the Search for Miss Hadang Festival Queen, organized by the City Arts and Culture Office as part of the Hadang Festival, held every September leading to the Calbayog City Fiesta on September 8. (CJ/ABL)
