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By Ricky T. Gallardo
The decision of singer-actress Toni Gonzaga and
bossa nova chanteuse Sitti to schedule their respective concerts
ahead of everyone else for the forthcoming Valentine season is a
good idea.
It’s a ‘one-night-only’ show for Toni,
scheduled on February 9 at the Aliw Theater while Sitti goes onstage
at the Music Museum for two consecutive nights on the same weekend.
For a change, Sitti and her advisers have
decided to mount a pop show instead of the usual bossa nova fare
that has become her signature repertoire. “I guess it’s about
time that people hear something new, and I feel that this show can
be a good jump-off point for me to explore new adventures when it
comes to my musicality,” she explains.
Sitti clarifies that she will definitely have a
segment that will feature songs that the public has gotten used to
hear her sing. “Syempre hindi pwedeng mawala ang bossa nova,”
she asserts. Adding that she has picked a few tracks from her latest
album under Warner Music including her personal favorite, “My Ever
Changing Moods.”
Sitti lets us in on some of the songs that have
made it to the list for her show next weekend. “I’ll do my
version of Nat King Cole’s ‘When I Fall In Love’ and I will
also attempt to sing fast OPM hits like Donna Cruz’s ‘Kapag
Tumibok Ang Puso’ and Ogie Alcasid’s ‘Dito Sa Puso Ko.’”
Whether she’ll show her dancing skills or not is something Sitti
wouldn’t tell us at this time. “I have to practice really
hard,” she says in jest.
Sitti has invited some guest performers in her
show: Richard Poon, Marissa Sanchez, Jeffrey Hidalgo and Jon Santos.
Meanwhile, Toni Gonzaga is a picture of a woman
in love when we met her for lunch recently. “Halata ba?” she
asks, more like an affirmation than mere questioning. Toni has been
nurturing a young, romantic relationship with music video and
television director Paul Soriano, a grandson of former matinee idol
Nestor de Villa. “We’re doing well,” she volunteers, adding,
“Although he won’t be the director for my show on February 9.”
“I try to separate the personal from the
professional,” she continues. “I guess it’s better that way.
You know how this business can sometimes be nasty and cruel. Yung
mga nagmamahalan, pinaghihiwalay; yung mga hindi naman bagay pilit
na pinagsasama.” Certainly spoken like someone who has made a lot
of compromises in her showbiz life.
Not many know that Toni is, first and foremost,
a singer before that soda commercial with matinee idol Piolo Pascual
catapulted her to instant celebrity status. Toni joined a singing
contest of GMA 7 years ago, and although she didn’t end up a
winner, it opened new doors for her.
“I have to admit I’m nervous because I’ve
never had anything as big as this as a singer. I have been hands-on
with the entire team led by my director GB Sampedro, from the
selection of songs to the littlest details,” she adds.
Inspired by her hit song, “Catch Me I’m
Falling,” Toni’s show is titled Catch Me…Toni Gonzaga, and she
will have Sam Milby and Vhong Navarro as her special guests.
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