Sweet Sixteen

"If I were a bird," said Bea Alonzo in a previous Conversation, "I’d be a dove. I’m a peace-loving person. Di ba God used a dove to check if the big flood had subsided during the time of Noah?"

And if she were a flower, Bea added, she’d be a rose because "it can convey a lot of meanings, most of them about love." And she’d be heavy-drama if she were a movie ("I don’t like comedy that much"), Gabriela Silang if she were a hero(ine) – "Because ang tapang-tapang niya" – or St. Anne if she were a saint ("The high school where I used to study") or New York if she were a city ("It doesn’t sleep daw and I’m curious what it means") or pasta if she were a food or Porsche if she were a piece of clothing (the brand she’s an endorser of) or white if she were a color because, she smiles, "It symbolizes purity."

And, may I add, of her wholesome, spotless, ice-creamy and marshmallow-like image.

But make no mistake about it. "I’m not a saint," insisted Bea, "hindi ako santa-santita. I also get angry," although it would take forever to cramp her style and bring out the "devil" in her. "I’m cool by nature," she smiled, "and I don’t easily blow my top."

She’s a world apart from Katrina, the character five years her senior she played in the just-concluded ABS-CBN soap Kay Tagal Kang Hinintay, opposite the equally-"sweet/wholesome" John Lloyd Cruz with whom she doesn’t have any romantic ties and yet their loveteam clicked with the fans who flocked to her and John Lloyd’s first big-screen team-up, Star Cinema’s smash-hit "feel young/feel good" romance drama-comedy My First Romance (a twinbill which also topbilled the loveteam of John Prats and Heart Evangelista).

Bea is that beautifully refreshing face you see in giant billboards around the metropolis, endorsing the Porsche line of clothing, so pretty is she in those billboards that motorists, I’m sure, don’t mind being stuck in a horrendous traffic jam as long as that face is there staring back at them, not smiling but simply staring with innocence dripping like icing on a Black Forest Cake.

How can such a seemingly vulnerable girl shield herself from the sticks and stones, the intrigues and controversies, and all the other hazards inherent in such a very public profession as being an actress? How can she keep her cool and her poise while everybody around her is in a tizzy? How can she "insulate" herself from the maddening pace of the lions’ den that’s showbiz?

"I’m basically calm," says Bea. "I guess even if the house is burning, I won’t panic. I’ll take my time, take a quick shower, dress up properly, fix my face and my hair, before I finally walk – not run – out of the house."

Bea turned "sweet sixteen" last Oct. 17 (a true-blue Libra). Let’s see what’s on the mind of a girl just a breath away from "girlhood" and a few sighs away from "womanhood."

What was your birthday wish?

"That I would stay long in showbiz and I’d get more offers."

Are you as sweet as you seem to be?

"I guess so. What you see is what you get."

You’re so poised. What could upset you and make you lose your temper?

"When my family is dragged into controversies."

Has it ever happened?

(Knocking on wood) "So far, none. Sana hindi mangyari."

What are your other pet peeves?

"People who are matapobre; people who look down on other people. ’Yung mga nanlalait ng ibang tao."

What have been the changes in your life since you joined showbiz?

"A lot. Now, I can’t go out anytime I want to. Before, I attended regular school. Now, I’m enrolled in the DECS Home Study program. Siempre, I wasn’t able to attend the JS prom."

You’ve been in showbiz for two years now. Have you achieved all the goals you set for yourself?

"So far? Yes. I really dreamed to be a drama actress and to be included in the cast of a soap. I realized that dream in Kay Tagal Kang Hinintay. I wanted to be in a movie and I realized that in My First Romance. I also wanted to support my brother through school and now I’m doing just that. His name is James, my only brother. He turned 12 last Oct. 21."

What are your goals in the next two years – and beyond?

"That I’ll be nominated again. Sana, I can do more dramatic roles on TV and in movies."

Katrina (in Kay Tagal) is 21, much older than you are. How were you able to portray that character convincingly?

"I had an acting coach. Our director (Laurenti Dyogi) was very good; talagang inaalalayan kami. I also observed how 21-year-old girls acted; tinitingnan ko ang mannerisms nila."

What do you have in common with Katrina?

"Like me, when it comes to family, she can sacrifice everything, including love. She also has determination. When she wants something, she makes sure she’ll get it. I’m like that. I set a goal for myself and I work hard to reach it."

And how are you different naman from Katrina?

"She’s palaban, a fighter, very outspoken. Me, I don’t fight back; ayoko nang tarayan. I’m the quiet type. When I’m mad, I keep quiet and retreat to my room. I suffer in silence. I don’t talk back."

Your loveteam with John Lloyd is very popular, very successful, even if the fans know that there’s nothing romantic between the two of you. Why so?

"I guess we were teamed up at the right time. The audience siguro wanted a new loveteam and we came at the right time."

What’s the age difference between you and John Lloyd?

"Four years. He’s 20."

What’s John Lloyd’s plus side?

"I hardly know him. He’s quiet. On the set, tahimik lang siya. E, tahimik din ako, so we didn’t really get to know each other very well. Between takes, he’d stay in one corner studying the script and I’d remain in my corner also studying the script."

No small talk? No chika-chika?

"None at all. It’s all work."

Everybody knows that John Lloyd has a girlfriend, none other than Ciara Sotto. Doesn’t Ciara get jealous of you?

"Hindi ko naramdaman. Besides, she doesn’t have any reason to get jealous of me. Wala siyang dapat ipagselos; she has nothing to worry about."

Have your paths ever crossed?

"Sometimes."

What do you do?

"We greet each other. We say, ‘Hi!’ to each other."

You haven’t had any boyfriend. What if, just if, John Lloyd courts you?

"E, committed na siya, so I don’t think he’ll ever try."

What if, just if, he breaks up with Ciara and he thinks of courting you?

"Ayokong isipin. But John Lloyd will make an ideal boyfriend for any girl. He’s a good guy, e."

What’s your idea of a "perfect" man?

"Maybe, he should be a gentleman like John Lloyd; he must have the face of Aga Muhlach, the brains of John Lloyd, the body of Marc Nelson or Shane West."

How do you tell your suitors that you’re too young and not ready to go steady?

"From the start, I tell them na hindi pa ako ready. Kung ready na ako at nandiyan pa sila, I might give it a serious thought."

What sort of childhood/upbringing did you have?

"Simple lang. I grew up with my (maternal) grandmother. Yes, I’m a Lola’s Girl."

Your mom and your dad met abroad, didn’t they?

"Yeah. In Hong Kong. My Dad is British. I’m half-British and half-Filipina (her mom, Mary Anne Renollo, is Filipina). My real name is quite long and hard to spell – Fhylbert Angellie Fagestrom. Some people think that I’m the daughter of Chinggoy Alonso. Bea Alonzo is only my screen name. Alonzo with a ‘z’ and not with an ‘s’ unlike that of Chinggoy. My parents separated when I was small and I didn’t really have a chance to know my father well. I have a stepfather and he treats me like his own daughter. My brother and I were brought up on positive values. If we want something, we have to work for it."

Did you have any other dream aside from being an actress?

"Someday, I want to put up a school for children."

Why, do you want to be a teacher?

"Not really a teacher. Gusto ko lang mag-manage ng sarili kong school. I love children – sobra!"

You can be a beauty queen (5’7" and still growing). Would you like to be one?

"Actually, when I was 13, I joined the Miss Pasig contest. The one who asked me to join told the organizers that I was 15. I ended up first runner-up. That was where I was discovered for showbiz, actually."

How did you get into (the ABS-CBN) Talent Center?

"I auditioned, along with hundreds of others. Thank God, I passed. I was launched as member of Star Circle Batch 10. I auditioned for Kay Tagal and, thank God, I passed."

What did you do during the audition?

"They just looked at me and then they were shown the videotape of a monologue I did during the Star Circle audition. Ganoon lang."

You’ve been so busy. What do you do during your free time?

"I invite my friends over to my house at nagko-computer lang kami. Or we do some cooking."

No "gimik-gimik"?

"No. My mom won’t allow me – yet."

Is your mother strict?

"When it comes to going out, yes, she is. Otherwise, maluwag naman siya. When I go out, usually to go to work, it’s my Mom who accompanies me."

What are your weaknesses?

"I’m a cellphone addict. Everytime a new model comes out, parang gusto ko magpalit ng cellphone. Now, I’m saving for a Nokia 6600. I’m not fond of clothes, not the expensive ones anyway. Most of my clothes are provided by Porsche. I like the fabric and the styles. Bagay na bagay sa akin. When I shop, I usually buy a lot of ‘tops,’ mga blouses you know."

What about music? What do you prefer?

"R&B. Cool, di ba? My favorite song is I’m Real by J.Lo. Para bang that song was written for me."

Books?

"Romantic novels, like A Walk to Remember. But I’d rather read magazines, especially those with lots of pictures. Give me a coloring book at happy na ako. Like a coloring book, my life is full of colors."

Favorite actress?

"Julia Roberts. I’ve watched all her movies. I love everything about her. Maganda na, mahusay pang artista. She looks so carefree, parang walang problema sa buhay."

Do you have any pet?

"None. If ever, I’d have one, it wouldn’t be a dog. I have a phobia for dogs. When I was a kid, I was bitten twice by a dog. If you want to scare me, bring a dog close to me and I’ll freeze – or I’ll scream!"

Any role model?

"My lola. She’s a strong woman and she took good care of me while my Mom was working in Hong Kong."

How would you describe Bea Alonzo in three words?

"Understanding... Loving... Strong."

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