And surely enough, they were not disappointed at all, but far from it, for it was an evening of beautiful music and endearing songs.
To set the spirit of the holiday season early in the evening, the property’s president Patrick Gregorio, together with the Voice of Cebu Youth Choir, led everyone in singing the Christmas carol Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.
This was followed by Cebu’s pride and joy the Peace Philharmonic Philippines performing a medley of old-time favorite canciones de navidad.
The featured artists, talented soprano Maria Rachelle Gerodias and tenor Lemuel dela Cruz, interpreted opera arias, classic love songs and Broadway and West End musical hits much to the delight of the audience.
For her opening number, the versatile Gerodias, a charmer of a lady, sang the aria "Quando m’en vo" from Puccini’s La Boheme. This was followed by Micaela’s Aria from Bizet’s Carmen. The kundiman Sa Kabukiran, written by Cebuano composer Manuel Velez, received the loudest cheer from the appreciative audience. The balcony scene from West Side Story, a modern classic by Leonard Bernstein, was among the crowd’s favorites. The finale number was the traditional carol O Holy Night, performed with all its warranted solemnity.
Joining the celebrations were Cebu City First Lady Margot Osmeña, with only child Miguel who flew in from the States for the holidays, socialites who champion worthy causes Lorna Quisumbing and Chikie Locsin, lover of cultural events Sue Gray, columnist-with-a-message Delia Jurado, hoteliers Francisco and Norma Borromeo and National Power Corporation top brass Asisclo Gonzaga and his wife Naty.
Dinner was exquisite, thanks to the hard-to-beat team of hands-on workaholic food and beverage director Marco Protacio and executive chef par excellence Dietmar Ditrich. Service was impeccable.
More importantly, it was an evening of generous fund- raising for the benefit of the St. Expeditius Foundation who helps indigent children of the San Vicente Memorial Hospital.