When in Manila, Market! Market! and Bonifacio High Street are popular places where people like to visit on the weekends, especially on a chillaxed Sunday afternoon.
It was a cool, cloudy day. Families, groups of friends, couples and lone adventurers were walking outside around the plaza of Market! Market where a fountain lay in the middle.
It pretty much seemed like a normal day.
Except it wasn’t.
Last Sunday, on the first day of September, Project Awesome PH gathered several agents for their very first mission: FREEZE MOB! I, along with my trusty partner-in-crime, Francis, witnessed and took part of this grand and fun event.
Passersby take photos of the posers.
Project Awesome PH is the Philippine’s very first and only performance mob group based in Metro Manila. These mob pranks, which they call “missions”, are performed in public places by the mob participants, aptly called “agents”. Don’t get them wrong. This group’s aim is not to play practical jokes and pranks on people, but rather, to provide entertainment and let unsuspecting crowds and random people experience something different for a change.
This mob group pooled mission agents from their official website, and their Facebook page. I initially signed up to be a participant but when I found out that When in Manila was one of their media partners, I immediately jumped at the opportunity to ask to write about this eccentric event.
While Francis clicked and captured away the agents’ poses and the public’s surprised faces, I took part of the Freeze Mob. The first part of this mission was, as stated, in the middle plaza of Market! Market! Mall. All the agents were assigned to a Master Agent, who would then give a briefing to all participants on what’s in store. During the actual mob, it is also the Master Agents whom the mob participants would look to for their cue to freeze.
As the clock struck 5, it was time to stop. When agents were given the cue to freeze, we had to hold whatever pose we were doing for five minutes. I tried to hold still as much as possible but I had to dart my eyes around to see what the others looked like. There were agents whose hands were up or were doing some rather difficult poses, and I give props to these people for being able to muster such will power as to keep their blood-drained limbs frozen for five minutes.
This guy managed to power through the five minutes. High five!
Why does it feel like 5 hours? HAHA
Sir Rango’s cue to FREEZE.
Props for the props, ladies.
“Sir, ano po gagawin natin dito, may mga naka-freeze po dito?” Actual quote heard by Francis.
I couldn’t see their faces directly, but I knew some passersby were amused and surprised but this unexpected freeze mob. People were staring, pointing and taking photos of us. But then after the longest five minutes of my life, it was back to reality and all agents had unfrozen.
