Three Laws That Govern Every Move in the Cry of Jelicuon

Festival context —Prop construction with carpentry and wielding, carrying risers and equipment, fight scenes, and performer lifts during the Cry of Jelicuon reenactment

S9FE-IIa-16Grade 9 · Quarter 2Explain Newton's Three Laws of Motion

Newton's First Law — The Inertia of the Riser

Every Cry of Jelicuon performance ends with a race against time: heavy bamboo risers must be cleared from the stage before the next school performs. Teachers push with all their strength — but the riser barely budges at first. This is Newton's First Law in action: an object at rest stays at rest unless acted upon by a net external force. The greater the mass of the riser, the greater its inertia — its resistance to any change in motion.

Comprehension Check

A 50 kg riser sits motionless. With no net force applied, it will .

Newton's Second Law — F = ma

Once the teachers push the riser, Newton's Second Law takes over: the acceleration of an object equals the net force divided by its mass (a = F/m). A harder push on the same riser produces more acceleration. The same push on a lighter prop costume produces far more acceleration — because mass is smaller. This is why male teachers push the heavy risers while female teachers carry lighter props: same force, very different results.

Cry of Jelicuon performers in wide planted lunges thrusting against the ground — **Opening Salvo footage (New Lucena)** — performers plant a wide stance and thrust against the floor. The harder the **push (F)**, the greater the **acceleration (a)** of the move — and by Newton's Third Law the ground pushes back on every planted foot with an equal, opposite force.

Newton's Third Law — The Stage Fights Back

Cry of Jelicuon reenactment performer in a combat stance — A reenactment performer braces in a combat stance. Every push between performers obeys Newton's **Third Law** — forces always come in equal and opposite pairs.

In the climactic battle scene, performers stomp powerfully on the wooden stage floor to launch themselves into dramatic jumps. What they feel is Newton's Third Law: for every action force, there is an equal and opposite reaction force. The performer pushes down on the floor (action); the floor pushes up on the performer with equal force (reaction). This reaction force is what propels them into the air.

Third Law During Rehearsal: Push-ups and Planks

Newton's Third Law is not limited to dramatic jumps — it operates throughout every rehearsal exercise. During planking, a performer's hands press downward into the floor while the floor simultaneously pushes upward with equal force, keeping the body suspended against gravity. Even though there is no movement, the action-reaction pair is fully active and essential. Similarly, during push-ups, the downward press of the arms produces an equal upward reaction from the floor that raises the body. These preparatory exercises train the very muscular forces that later power the war scene's leaps and kicks.

Comprehension Check

Newton's Third Law states that forces always come in action-reaction pairs.

Module Overview

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