Franco and Ayen's Yela turns 18

MANILA, Philippines - “Young, eloquent, lovely, admirable.”

Those words, described by a close friend, sum up the acronym for lovely debutante Yela, the daughter of singers Franco Laurel and Ayen Munji. Growing up in an “amazing” household, like what one of her friends called it, Yela is someone who is “approachable and down-to-earth.” Not surprising for the young lady who was obviously raised well by her prominent parents.

Yela, short for Mariella, had a coming-out party when she turned 18 recently. Masquerade was the theme of the night, executed by budding young designer Em Barretto, who adorned the Rigodon Ballroom of Peninsula Manila with huge masks and multi-colored ceiling drapes.

Yela sauntered into the ballroom without any tinge of stress or tension typical of most debutantes. A spitting image of her mom, Yela was radiant not in a traditional ball gown, but in an elegant spaghetti-strapped chiffon magenta creation by Joji Lloren. Yela’s makeup was by Juan Sarte III and her hair which was fixed in a neat bun, was done by Danny Katalbas of Emphasis Salon.
Instead of table hopping for the posterity shots, Yela got to sit on centerstage and the guests in every table were requested to pose with her. Prior to that, she also got to enjoy dinner unhurriedly with her close friends in one table, where she had a spotlight to herself. The beautiful blooms that make the table centerpieces were arranged by Antonio Garcia of Mabolo Flowers.

The tables had place cards of Yela’s favorites — TV series 90210 and Heroes, Broadway musical Wicked, designer brands Chanel and Jimmy Choo, places like Japan, New York and Los Angeles, European cities like Rome, Paris and London, Six Flags theme park, Tom Hanks’ Forrest Gump, Nicholas Sparks’ The Notebook, ice cream brand Haagen Dazs, beauty shop Sephora, hip-hop and R&B music, Starbucks coffee.

Perhaps, Yela identifies with Gossip Girl characters Serena van der Woodsen and Blair Waldorf, who are both pretty, smart, active and free-spirited, that’s why the two protagonists also made it to her list of favorites.

There were no traditional 18 roses or candles, but Yela waltzed with her grandfather, veteran musician Emy Munji, her dad Franco and her good-looking younger brother Hassan.

It wasn’t a star-studded affair, considering the celebrity status of Yela’s parents. Obviously, only closest friends of Franco and Ayen were invited to the party. There were Gigi Posadas, Sheila Francisco, Roden Araneta, Tonipet Gaba, Samantha Chavez and hubby Rino Que.

Sam Concepcion, who is a good friend of Yela’s, also mingled with the guests and serenaded her with a song number. Raymond Lauchengco graciously hosted the program.

Yela, who is finishing her senior year this June in an international school, has yet to follow in the footsteps of her parents. Undoubtedly, she also has the talent to boot, although harnessed privately. In her 18th birthday party, she displayed her terpsichorean skills and did a dance number with her girl friends, choreographed by Cecile Martinez, Tin Tin Limjap and Ching Pagaduan.

She also delighted the guests with her song number, accompanied by her proud Lolo Emy Munji. At one point, Sam serenaded Yela with a romantic ballad. Musical director for the night was Mark Lopez.
Midway into Yela’s party, a waiter dropped a stack of plates. When it was also time for the debutante to blow the candles in her five-tiered, funky birthday cake by Heny Sison, there was a “conflagration,” as Raymond called it. A paper mask design on the cake caught fire while the candle was being lit, causing the mask to burn, but the tiny flame was easily put out.

Save for that minor hazards, the party went well as planned. The sit-down menu had smoked salmon and tanguingue tartar, cream of pumpkin soup with toasted cashew nuts, strawberry sherbet, ballentine of chicken with dried mango, parma ham, herbs, crushed potato and veggies. Capping the sumptuous dinner menu were sweet concoctions of chocolate marquise and panna cotta with strawberry compote.

After dinner, an audio-visual presentation with Yela’s beautiful photos, taken by Raymund Isaac, kicked off the night’s program. There were also amusing interviews with Yela’s family and close friends, who only had nice words and praises for her.

Yela is apparently a well-loved friend, relative and family member. She was the star that night and her famous parents — Franco and Ayen — simply took the sidelines, allowing Yela to shine. Whether or not she pursues a professional musical career still remains to be seen. But Yela definitely has the talent that only needs to be honed.