J.Lo dances her way to Manila Nov. 26!

It’s confirmed: Jennifer Lopez is officially Manila-bound for a one-night concert at the SM Mall Of Asia (MOA) Arena on Nov. 26 as part of the J.Lo Dance Again World Tour which kicked off only a few months ago in Panama. The tour is a promotional juggernaut for J.Lo’s Dance Again…The Hits album which is an anthology of her chartbusters, released through Epic Records.

Fresh from her stint as celebrity judge of the just-concluded American Idol, J.Lo should feel right at home in the Philippines because, as she admitted during her fourth interview with this writer in Beverly Hills a few weeks ago, at that time for the movie What To Expect When You’re Expecting, “I have a soft spot for Filipinos.”

You see, her second (ex) husband, Cris Judd is half-Filipino. Cris used to be a member of a dance group which performed as J.Lo’s back-up. Her third (also ex) husband, March Anthony also has a Filipino connection in a way because his ex-(first)-wife Dayanara Torres (1993 Miss Universe) is the girlfriend of CamSur (fourth district) congressional aspirant Aga Muhlach whose wife, Charlene Gonzalez, is herself a Miss U (Top 6) finalist in 1994 when the pageant was held here, won by India’s Sushmita Sen.

Like a true-blue Latina, J.Lo is warm and friendly and very “connecting.” I’ve seen it for myself during our four interviews, starting in late ‘90s in New York for her movie The Cell (with Vince Vaughn), then in Hong Kong two years later for her album promo and twice in Beverly Hills for The Back-Up Plan (with Australian actor Alex O’Loughlin) and, only last June, for What To Expect.

 When I handed her copies of my interviews with her, she broke into a wide smile and chirped, “Hi! Nice to see you again!” (Of course, I really doubt if she remembered me but for sure she was warm and friendly as usual. No airs, no put-on.)

During her MOA Arena show, J.Lo will be wearing costumes created by Lebanese designer Zuhair Murad. Manila is one of the six Asian stopovers of the tour after its stints in Europe and Central/South America. The Manila leg is a live event of Hi-Definition Radio, Incorporated, the company behind Radio High 105.9/FM, Brittany Corporation and Music Management International (MMI).

(Note: Concert tickets will be available soon via SM Tickets [call 470-2222] or log on at www.smtickets.com.)

Miss U pageant in Dec. definitely!

2012 Miss Philippines Universe Janine Mari Tugonon

“There will definitely be a Miss Universe Pageant before the year ends,” confirmed reigning Miss Universe Philippines 2012 Janine Mari Tugonon in a brief interview during the recent send-off presscon for Elaine Kay Moll who is representing the country in the 2012 Miss Supranational contest on Sept. 14 in Warsaw, Poland.

There are persistent rumors that the Miss U pageant may not be held this year, since there has so far no formal announcement about the pageant’s venue and date from the organizers. Traditionally, it is held in May, then moved to July then to August in 2009 and 2010, and in September last year. This year’s pageant might be held in December.

Janine is now busy training which includes the pasarella, (pageant walk) hair and make-up sessions, and regular workouts at the gym.

“The delay in the pageant is a blessing in disguise since it gives me ample time to prepare,” added Janine. “I will do my best and hopefully continue our country’s winning streak in the pageant.”

In 2010, Venus Raj placed fourth runner-up and last year, Shamcey Supsup third runner-up. — Reported by Funfare ‘beauty experts’ Felix Manuel, Joey Cezeare Gery Yumping and Francis Calubaquib