As 1 lives up to hype... and more!

MANILA, Philippines - The erratic weather the past two weeks, especially last Saturday, Sept. 19 tested the faith of the team behind As 1, including its stars Martin Nievera and Gary Valenciano.

Many times, people asked us about our contingency plan in case rain will pour that night since the concert was held at the gargantuan open-air concert grounds of SM Mall of Asia (MOA). Our contingency plan — prayers for each person involved in the concert — elicited a mixture of ridicule and support.

The heat was sweltering from morning to early noon at the MOA. The open ground was a furnace, and taxed everybody’s mind and body a lot. The weather shifted in mid-afternoon. The pouring rain made all of us a bit tense. Before fear of bad weather took over our hearts, Angeli Pangilinan-Valenciano and Ronnie Henares led the team in prayer. In less than 10 minutes, the spirits of the grateful As 1 team soared as the sky cleared. Martin and Gary started doing their run-through with the dancers and musicians at around 3 p.m.

The gates opened at 4:30 p.m. and the massive crowd started to enter the venue, filling it to capacity by 8 p.m. Celebrities like Sharon Cuneta, Sen. Kiko Pangilinan, Anthony Pangilinan, Ruffa Guttierez, Jericho Rosales, Toni Gonzaga, Nikki Gil, Shaina Magdayao, Karylle, Zsa Zsa Padilla, and Verni Varga came to witness what was expected to be the concert event of the year.

At 8:30 p.m., a gentle breeze enveloped the venue as Martin and Gary opened the show with the powerful, energetic On The Right Track and Hataw Na. It took the team, with Martin and Gary at the helm almost three months to conceptualize the repertoire which aimed to chronicle the two stars’ careers. Martin and Gary gave their fans and peers more than what was expected.

When they were performing the segment on the movie and TV theme songs they recorded, small raindrops trickled from the sky and thick clouds hovered over the venue. Lightning the south side of MOA.

I was with friends and Verni. We fell silent, then exchanged nervous laughter. Verni led me and my team in prayer. Everybody in the team was praying too because we did not know what will happen to the audience if rain pours.

Will they stay and watch the show? How about the handicapped in the audience – most of them senior citizens in wheelchairs? Where will we seat the celebrity guests?

Then a miracle happened: the sky cleared and a single star shone. The show ran its course and yes, it was magical and miraculous!

We were all pumped up with adrenaline after the show and we proceeded to Fish &. Co. for the after-concert party.

In mid-laughter and over light beer, Tita Angeli approached me and said Martin can’t make it to the party because he was rushed to Makati Medical Center due to exhaustion and dehydration. Gary was first to react and it was apparent that he was really affected about what happened to Martin.

We kept everything hush-hush and entertained our guests. As soon as everybody left, we all went to Makati Med to check on Martin. Gary, Tita Angeli, Ronnie and some of the concert staff arrived there first. Gary led the group in prayer for Martin’s speedy recovery. (It’s very interesting to note that it is actually Gary, a diabetic, who has a stronger tendency to suffer from fatigue but ironically it was Martin who got really exhausted). My staff and I followed and as we entered the hospital at around 2 a.m., we were surprised to see Pops Fernandez in the lobby.

Pops did not go to the concert because she had a previous engagement but when she found out about Martin’s condition, she rushed to the hospital to check on him. Their kids, Robin and Ram were there. So was Martin’s sister, Gina Godinez-Tabuena.

Because he was so concerned about the weather and pressures of the show, Martin did not eat anything last Saturday. The changing weather did not help either. It was hot in the morning, raining in the afternoon, and humid in the evening.

The lights onstage focused on him. The dressing room was air-conditioned. The doctors said Martin was dehydrated and exhausted. He was on IV when we arrived and doctors said he just has to finish the dextrose and replenish the liquids he lost. Then, he’s he’s free to go.

Pops, the kids, and the As 1 PR team stayed with Martin till 4 a.m. He was released from the hospital Sunday morning. Martin told me he’s set to go back to the US tomorrow.

It was indeed an evening of beautiful music with so many colorful highlights. But what I learned is that, at the end of the day, God is the star of any show and prayer is still the best contingency plan for any endeavor to succeed.