Category Archive for: kultura

kultura

would you marry Robin Padilla?

a friend and twitter/facebook contact was asked this today. that he’s a boy apparently didn’t matter. right now of course, what we’re told is this: that what matters is love. Robin and Mariel have fallen in love and have gotten married, and as Tina Monzon-Palma attests, you can see it in their eyes.

and yes, we grant them love. that’s easy enough. do we grant them credibility? that is the question. and this is what the above question’s about.

so would i? marry Robin Padilla, i mean? well, i’d begin my answer with:

(1) that i understand his appeal, this bad boy action star dirty rugged image, the one that just works with his history as a bad boy, and the way his icon has been created/fashioned/rehabilitated/ revived so it may keep at being the quintessential Pinoy macho.

(2) which is connected to this: in the midst of metrosexuality as capital, his value as Pinoy macho has shot through the roof because there really is no one else like him. add to this the fact of a divorce from longterm wife Liezel, and tadah! binata na ulit si Robin. oh, the appeal of that! (yes, i’ve swooned elsewhere.)

but is he marrying material? interesting question. in truth it never seemed like Robin was married. ever. because when we imagine marriage, we imagine it in the sense that the husband doesn’t flirt on nationwide television with the women he’s paired with in movies and on tv. in the sense that he is loyal and a one-woman-man. in the sense that we don’t hear news of him getting it on with other girls while he’s married.

add to all this the layer of celebrity, the kind that has allowed them, the couple and their managers, to have a plan. this might be contrary to their press releases, but really, you can’t tell me that your wedding in India was a surprise even to you both, when all of it (including what I was wearing, nandon! Mariel squealed) is on the next issue of Starstudio Magazine. you cannot say that this is about a love that is private and only yours, when you were prepared for a photoshoot with obviously choreographed and staged poses at the Taj Mahal. i do not doubt that there’s love there, but also there’s celebrity. and there’s capital. there are obviously their careers, now bound together into one career that’s about the two of them.

the lowest point in all this of course, was the media’s bombardment of these images. i don’t care that the showbiz talkshows feature it again and again, or that it’s in the chikaminute segment on Saksi and showbiz news on TV Patrol. but to actually deem it as breaking news? in the midst of everything else that’s of national interest, goodness gracious, why o why?

realize that this isn’t about the public wanting to know about Robin and Mariel. it’s about news and public affairs departments deciding that this is important enough to give to the public right away.

anyone who knows me would know that i am all for love at first sight, for swift courtships and secret marriages. i am all for falling quickly and easily, because that does happen, and sometimes it does work. but to bombard us with this particular love, given the trappings it comes in? and to deem it as important and valuable as the aftermath of the hostage crisis, and P-Noy’s trip to the States.

ah, but undoubtedly the Robin and Mariel story meant ratings. the kind that P-Noy might not be getting? and in which case, good job media practitioner! good job on losing your credibility.

next time i want more relevant news, i’ll watch my showbiz talkshow.

kultura

the Charice challenge is on!

This isn’t so much about Charice Pempengco herself, as it is about an audience in this country that’s overly critical of her by default, that obviously doesn’t care much for her. And it has to be said that it’s class, social and otherwise, that allows for this double standard when it comes to national pride, which disallows Charice from being properly celebrated as a high point in Philippine popular culture history.

Even when she’s had the song “Pyramid” on the Billboard charts for a while now. Behind her she’s got David Foster, American icon, music producer and star, who has put her onstage with international superstars. She has Oprah Winfrey as manager and modern fairy godmother. She’s got Hollywood contracts for singing and acting, has done duets with Celine Dion and Andreas Bocelli, and will be in the second season of Glee.

You’d have to be in denial to think all these to be unimportant; you’d be wrong to think that just because there’s little of Charice on TV and in the papers, she isn’t as big a star as Oprah imagines. Because whether we like it or not, Charice’s international stardom doesn’t seem like a one-time deal. In fact, it looks like she’s in it for the long haul. The world has got Charice Mania to prove it. It’s also a response to you, critical Pinoy non-fan.

via GMANews online, the rest of it is here!

kultura

Cherie Gil, world class

<…> as with many women, Callas also just wanted love. And this apparently, was her failing. Seeing her teach this master class though, is a testament as well to her spirit. She was stereotype, yes, she was diva, as expected. But too, she’s a woman who knows not to rest on her laurels, and instead actually wants to share it. That soft spot is what’s startlingly overwhelming about her persona.

Cherie portrays Marie

One realizes two things in watching Master Class. First, that the struggles of woman, image and otherwise, public figure or private, are the same in many ways, and that as you empathize with Callas’ story, you realize how sisterhood lives, beyond death, across races, despite differences. Second, that you do not know a world class Filipino performance until you watch Cherie Gil do this play.

read all of it here!

kultura

hits and misses in ManilArt2010

note: a version of this was published in the Philippine Daily Inquirer, Arts and Books section, 20 September 2010.

After last year it was difficult not to look forward to ManilArt 2010. Last year meant drinks and music, a whole lot of camaraderie, a certain high to having such a huge event for Philippine art happen. This year, while the art was there in fantastic display, there seemed to be an amount of distance between art and people. Maybe there just wasn’t a lot of rock ‘n’ roll.

The distance of Manila Art

This year Manila Art was celebrated at the Mall of Asia, making it literally inaccessible. This year too, it went all out in creating a fancy opening night, which meant making it an ultra-formal affair, a nice dress and heels not good enough. The set-up of a red carpet and a ManilArt backdrop by the entrance of the conference hall is telling of who it is that Manila Art wanted to cater to. Obviously this is reason enough for many other people to stay away.

As there were many reasons to leave earlier than expected. One of which was the fact that food and drinks ran out (and yes, plates and utensils did too!), a far cry from last year’s Chef Laudico. And even if they didn’t run out, there weren’t a lot of trays going around, and staying within the gallery booths meant not getting any food at all. The food was fantastic mind you, but very few of us got to much of it. Oh and the heat! Between hunger and the failure of air conditioning, it was enough reason to leave. (more…)

kultura

senior moments, notwithstanding

Granted, I had paid for really good tickets, treating my mom to what I thought she would find enjoyable, as a matter of friendship (with Tita Mitch), as a matter of wit and humor, the kind that we both know is few and far between as far as contemporary Pinoy comedy is concerned. So on that tiny stage of Music Museum, on their Manila run (they’ve been touring the country, apparently), the Juicy Cat Dolls strutted their stuff. And there was a lot of good that was expected, some bad that was unexpected, plenty of laughter in between, all in all good enough. This ain’t a rave, but it’s still hopeful.

After all Mitch Valdes, Nanette Inventor and Pilita Corrales go onstage ready to make us laugh. They begin with an original song about being a Juicy Cat Doll, competing with the youngerand sexier women of this world, and putting their foot down: we are more intelligent, and that has to count for something. And boy, do they show us how!

the rest is here, via GMA News online.