Can't get enough of Cory

MANILA, Philippines - If it will take the Aquino family, to quote Kris Aquino, a lifetime to get over their matriarch, former president Cory Aquino, the Filipinos themselves refuse to be far behind. It will take a long time for us to forget the leader who brought People Power to the forefront, not only for the Philippines but the world as well.

Case in point. When Isay Alvarez posted a note in her Facebook account to say that plans are afoot to revive the musicale that dramatizes Cory’s life (with Isay playing the late president), the response floored her.

“So many people called me! Someone from Cebu wanted to produce the show. I also got inquiries from Cavite, Davao, and from as far as Toronto,” recalls Isay.

How can she have the heart to say no, even if Isay is already neck-deep in work — for Ang4 and for Spotlight, the school on performing arts she put up with husband Robert Seña?

Duty calls, not just because this Miss Saigon alumna, is to the stage born. More importantly, Isay feels she owes it to the youth, who weren’t a glint in their parents’ eyes when EDSA I happened.

For them, Isay would reprise her Cory role over and over. Never mind if she has to sing and cry alternately while making sure her voice is distinct; the words in her song, crystal-clear.

“I will do it because the spirit of EDSA must not die,” Isay states.

So she’s taking up voice lessons again under Camille Lopez for Cory, The Musical, to be restaged on Sunday, Aug. 30, 3 and 8 p.m. at AFP Theater, Quezon City.

If Miss Saigon (where she played Gigi) was great, this one is even greater, says Isay. Make no mistake — playing Cory is the role of a lifetime, and Isay knows this more than anyone else.

When people stop and call her Cory, Isay is tickled pink. When Cory passed away and “everybody wanted to talk to me,” Isay was on Cloud Nine.

It’s one of those moments you wish you could freeze-frame forever, something you would love to tell your children and future grandchildren over and over.

Why, some people have already commented how much Isay looks like the late beloved president already.

Isay shows you her unpainted, neatly trimmed fingernails and says, “That’s the Cory look,” her voice tinged with pride.

Lourdes “Bing” Pimentel, wife of Sen. Aquilino “Nene” Pimentel Jr., is just as proud of the musicale which carries her own compositions about love of country, prayer, sacrifice and other virtues the late president stood for.

“Tita Cory herself came to watch in what turned out to be her last public appearance,” recalls Pimentel. The late president wasn’t sure her health would allow her to see the musicale till the end. She might not even finish the first part, Cory told Pimentel.

But Cory must have enjoyed herself. Somewhere along the way, she changed her mind. She not only stayed. She finished watching the musicale, and didn’t take any bathroom break at all.

That confirmed what Pimentel has been thinking all along. Instead of sending Cory a basket of fruits as get-well gift, mounting a musicale in her honor is a lot better.

Now that people are clamoring for a repeat of the show all over the country, Pimentel can’t help but feel humbled.

“The music I write and the show I produce are but instruments,” she relates. “The musical is the people’s gift to Cory. It shows how much they love her. And that love is something money can’t buy.”

The next challenge is fixing Isay — and the rest of the cast’s schedule — for succeeding shows. A movable, portable set is a must since the show will go on tour — especially in campuses where students can watch.

Then there’s the need of getting an understudy for Isay, who also shifts to comedy as part of Ang4 (also composed of Dyords Javier, Pinky Marquez and Bo Cerrudo).

Isay may be a veteran like no other. But she also needs rest.

Now, will anyone fill in Isay’s shoes and do the same service she’s doing for the country as Cory in the musicale?

It’s hard, but rewarding. Let’s hope someone will step up to the plate and be worthy of saying, “Yes, I portrayed the country’s beloved lady president.”

As Cory, Isay — and her understudy — is playing a hero people look up to not just today, but for years to come. They are showing the young how a hero thinks and acts. In so doing, they are not just playing a role, they’re leaving a legacy, a pattern for future generations to follow.

It’s a tall order. Isay is ready, not just as an actress, but as a Filipino who loves her country and knows that the Cory fever must keep on burning, no matter what.