Regine, Marian bond with Cebuanos

CEBU, Philippines - It was a week full of joyful noises, deafening cheers, and beautiful smiles as Kapuso Primetime Queen Marian Rivera and Asia’s Songbird Regine Velasquez-Alcasid took turns in delighting their Cebuano fans in back-to-back regional events held last August 11 and 15, respectively.

Two days after the much talked about live marriage proposal of actor Dingdong Dantes to his long-time girlfriend on national TV, Marian headed straight to the Queen City of the South and celebrated her 30th birthday with the Cebuanos via a Kapuso Fans’ Day held in SM City Consolacion.

Thinking of it as just a simple thanksgiving show for her supporters, Marian delightedly performed song and dance numbers for the audience, estimated at 6,000, but was caught off guard with the surprise appearance of one of her closest friends, Roxee B.The actress, who was obviously touched by the said gesture, couldn’t contain the happiness and suddenly broke into tears. Also joining her on that special day were her mom, grandmother, and good friend Erika Padilla who also served as the event’s host.

Setting amusement aside, Marian was also in Cebu to fulfill a mission. She opened a unique exhibit-auction dubbed “Marian Rivera Collections Exhibit” at The Northwing of SM City Cebu, which highlighted 30 head-turning dresses the iconic star has worn over the years.

Meanwhile, equally remarkable was the Kapuso Fans’ Day of Regine at The Northwing of SM City Cebu four days after Marian’s event. As early as 1 p.m. that day, many diehard fans were already queuing at the venue hoping to get a good seat for the evening’s show. The crowd broke into applause and cheers as they witnessed the exceptional talent of Regine who sang some of her signature songs like “Ako’y Iyong-Iyo,” “Dadalhin,” “On The Wings of Love,” and “Tuwing Umuulan,” to name a few.

Regine, who is set to host GMA Network’s talent-reality search “Bet ng Bayan” come October, also shared the stage with the talented Sing-ala-Regine and Divading contestants. And what a bit of good news for Cebuana Nashrene Ericka Casas, winner of Sing-ala-Regine contest, because the Songbird personally announced that she will already advance to the provincial level of the “Bet ng Bayan” leg in Cebu.

Given the warm reception shown by the Cebuanos, which registered a crowd estimate of 4,000, Regine could not help but be overwhelmed. (FREEMAN)