Gary going ‘3D,’ too

Like Martin Nievera who’s marking his 30th anniversary in showbiz with a “3D” (D as in Decade) concert at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Sept. 13, his (ex?) arch rival Gary Valenciano is also going “3D” by celebrating with his own 30th-anniversary in the business with a series of shows (starting tonight) at Teatrino (Promenade in Greenhills, San Juan City, across from the Music Museum).

Fans of Mitch Albom (this one included) will be amused by Gary’s (or his producers’) idea of titling Gary’s concert series after Albom’s inspiring novel about a teacher dying of cancer and his free-flowing Tuesday conversations with a student — Tuesdays With Gary, with more playdates on Aug. 13, 20 and 27; and Sept. 3, 10, 17 and 24. Yes, that “extended” so as to accommodate Gary’s loyal fans and supporters through three decades.

According to this section’s contributor Chuck Gomez (a professor at La Salle) who’s drum-beating for the show, “Tuesdays with Gary is inspired by Gary’s early years as a performer when he used to have gigs at the popular entertainment venue of the ’80s, Tavern-On-The-Square, which was the favorite bar to perform in of some of today’s most accomplished musical performers like Martin Nievera, Kuh Ledesma, Verni Varga, Jacqui Magno, Lou Bonnevie, Zsa Zsa Padilla, Gino Padilla, Joey Albert and Randy Santiago, to name a few. The repertoire of the show will consist of Gary’s most requested numbers.”

He will likewise have two full sets with Awit Awards’ Best New Female/Best Female Recording Artist for 2008 and Philpop third placer Julianne doing a mid-set performance. Opening the show is the AKA JAM, one of the X Factor Philippines’ Top 10 finalists, a group Gary himself mentored for nearly two months.

“It’s been quite a while since I did a series of shows in a very small venue,” Gary was saying. “I’m excited to sing numbers that I used to perform 30 years ago. Of course, I will also sing my own OPM songs.” 

Incidentally, Gary has just renewed his contract with ABS-CBN where he co-hosts the Sunday show ASAP.

“I love ASAP and because it’s a music variety show of dozens of artists targeted to a mass-based audience, I don’t always get to sing the songs I have been preparing for the series. In Tuesdays with Gary, we’ll have a night to remember every week,” promised Gary.

(Tickets are priced at P2,000, P1,500, P1,000 and P500. Call Teatrino ticket booth [721-2949; 722-4532; or 722-4501 local 116], Music Museum ticket booth [721-0635 or 721-6726], TicketWorld [891-999; www.ticketworld.com.ph], and SMTickets [477-0222; www.smtickets.com]. Tuesdays with Gary is a production of Manila Genesis Entertainment & Management Inc. and GVPI for the benefit of Shining Light Foundation.)

Remember Bb. Pilipinas-U

Anna Lorraine Kier?

Thirty-six years ago, Anna Lorraine Kier, the beauty from the City of Pines, won Bb. Pilipinas-Universe.

“She was also named Miss Friendship,” recalled (again) Chuck Gomez, also a beauty enthusiast, “and she broke the so-called ‘jinx’ that when a candidate gets that special award, she loses her chance of winning the major title.”

The night she won left a distinct memory in Anna Lorraine’s mind.

“I felt goose bumps while entering the Manila Pen where we contestants were billeted,” recalled Anna Lorraine. “The lobby was lit up with warm smiles; there were many people to hug and shake hands with, and endless congratulatory messages. I was dead tired from the pre-contest preparation and the pageant itself, so I slept like a log. I especially remember the goose-feathered pillows and the silky smooth sheets. I woke up the next day a queen.”

What followed were modeling stints in shows by top designers at five-star hotels and then with her Tita Conchita Sunico’s exclusive Karilagan Cultural Arts, Inc. which usually mounted shows at the Metropolitan Theater where Sunico served as director.

In the early ’80s, Anna Lorraine acted in TV shows including Flordeluna, Chicks To Chicks, Iskul Bukol, Discorama and Business Line. Her last brush with showbiz came in 1986 via a short stint in a TV drama showcasing her hometown of Baguio. She’s fondly remembered as Virgie, young housewife to Al Tantay’s Mitch Cuentasclaras in the Channel 9 sitcom Duplex, topbilled by the late great Ading Fernando as Daddy Groovy. The show ran for five years, ending just as Anna Lorraine earned an AB Political Science degree.

Back to Baguio Anna Lorraine went. There, she manages ANNAffairs which organizes weddings, birthdays, debuts, anniversaries, launches and similar special events.

The latest word from Anna Lorraine, according to Chuck, is that she is raring to make a showbiz comeback.

“I can easily play mother roles,” said Anna Lorraine who is being managed by Manila Genesis Entertainment & Management, Inc. “I really miss acting.”

What’s up?

= Backroom Inc. is currently looking for new singers and comedians. Aspirants must be 18 to 30 years old, without an existing contract with any talent agency/management firm and Filipino citizens. They must submit their video materials/demo CD and resumé with photos (one tight shot and one whole body) at [email protected] or they can apply personally with the requirements Wednesdays and Fridays, 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., at Unit 207 CRM Building 2, #116 Kamias Road corner Kasing-Kasing Street, Quezon City. (For more inquiries, call Dale Magdangal at 9280717.)

 (E-mail reactions at [email protected]. You may also send your questions to [email protected]. For more updates, photos and videos visit www.philstar.com/funfare or follow me on www.twitter/therealrickylo.)