John and Priscilla: Soon to be parents

Priscilla Meirelles is six weeks pregnant, John Estrada happily announced in Happy Yipee Yehey where he is host. “We were at the hospital last week, nag pa-ultrasound ang asawa ko. Naiyak siya kasi may heartbeat na. Kitang kita mo na.” Priscilla is also showing baby bumps. “Wala na yong abs niya. Nagiging monay na siya. I am happy. Priscilla still wants to do workouts. She also wants to work but I told her dahan dahan lang.”

Priscilla is cool with her pregnancy. “Usually when you are on your first baby, you have plenty of quirks. Nahihilo ka, nasusuka ka. With her, medyo lambing lang siya. Babe can you get this please downstairs. Mga ganoon lang simple things.”

They have also been preparing for the big day. Priscilla has been collecting and reading books on pregnancy and babies. “Last night, coming home from my taping, she has another new book.”

In a few months, John and Priscilla will know if their first born is a boy or a girl. Priscilla is already excited about it and is now planning to paint and redecorate one of the rooms in their house. “Kukulayan daw niya yong isang kwarto namin sa baba. A day before, we were inside the mall and she was looking for cribs and mitten and socks, so I told her, okey, okey.”

Priscilla’s parents and John’s kids with Janice de Belen are all agog about the new addition to the family. “My children are so excited about their new sibling. Ang mga anak ko, they love babies. Masaya kaming lahat.”

John who has three girls and a boy with Janice, says he wishes for a boy, but, “Sobrang sweet ng mga anak kong babae, kaya parang nagbabago na ang isip ko. Pero whether boy or girl, masaya na ako.”

What’s the real score between Bianca and John?

Are Bianca Manalo and John Prats the next hot item? Reportedly they have been seen going out on dates and even crossed paths with John’s ex Rachelle Ann Go at a mall in Makati. Fueling reports that John and Bianca have something beautiful together was the tweet of Rachel that said, “Madami akong nakita sa Rockwell. Fun!” This was followed with another quote, “Oh what a small world.”

Suspicions that Bianca and John are dating intensified when friends noticed a bracelet given to her by John. “If you have seen an episode in Happy, Yipee Yehey, nag-start yon doon sa Ikaw ang Bida. One of the tasks of the contestant was to give 10 bracelets to 10 single people. So, I said, I am single at lagyan din ako. Biglang sinabi ni Pratty, ahh gusto mo sige. Nagulat ako. Pumunta sa studio at sinuot sa akin. Yun lang yon,” Bianca explained.

Bianca admits she has been going out with John but with friends. “We really go out kasama ang grupo. Kasama friends ko, kasama friends niya. We are happy and we are happy with each other’s company.”

Nyoy’s biggest challenge

Nyoy Volante returns to the musical theater stage in Atlantis Productions’ staging of the Tony Award winning musical In The Heights which runs from Sept. 2 to 18 at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza, Makati City.

Nyoy takes on his biggest role to date as Usnavi, the Washington Heights bodega owner who dreams of returning to the Dominican Republic, in the hit musical with a hip-hop, salsa, merengue and soul music infused score by Tony Award winner Lin-Manuel Miranda. He has performed with Atlantis Productions in shows such as The Rocky Horror Show, Dreamgirls, Hairspray, for which he received critical acclaim as Seaweed J. Stubbs, and, most recently, as Emmett in Legally Blonde. 

Nyoy says of his biggest challenge to date, “Without question, memorizing the lines is going to be my biggest challenge! Ang Dami!!!! And I’ve always been very poor in committing to my memory! Being word-perfect is definitely a challenge! But the material is so inspiring that I know I will get there.”

In The Heights tells the universal story of a vibrant community on the brink of change, full of hopes, dreams and pressures, where the biggest struggles can be deciding which traditions you take with you, and which ones you leave behind.   It is the winner of three Tony Awards including Best Musical.

Joining Nyoy is an all-star cast that includes Jackie Lou Blanco, Ima Castro, K-La Rivera, Tex Ordonez, Calvin Millado, Felix Rivera, Jay Glorioso and Jimmy Marquez among many others.  In The Heights is directed by Bobby Garcia.

The Manila premiere of In The Heights is presented in co-operation with The Philippine Star and Delta Airlines, as is made possible through a special licensing arrangement with Rodgers and Hammerstein Theatricals and Broadway Asia Entertainment. For tickets, call Atlantis Productions at 892-7078 or 840-1187.