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Martin and
Regine: Together at Last
by Vic Perez
12.1-15.02
LOS ANGELES—There is reason why Maxi-Media USA is proud to have been
able to clinch the deal to put together two of the Philippines’
biggest musical stars in one megaproject which will tour the US next
year. Not only are Martin Nievera and Regine Velasquez the biggest
draws in Manila’s concert scene, the two are among the busiest and
most in-demand showbiz personalities in the Philippines today. To
put them together in one show, let alone a seven-city tour of the
USA, is no mean feat.
The pictorial alone was in itself a nerve-wracking "mini-event" that
took many bookings, and cancellations and rescheduling to
accomplish. No, neither of the two stars were being "difficult" or
acting like primadonnas — their schedules were just too conflicting,
it was almost impossible to put them together in one place at the
same time.
Just to give you an idea how busy these two stars are:
Martin is currently in the thick of preparations for his traditional
Christmas concert produced by Maxi-Media. This year, he is
coincidentally celebrating 20 years in show business, so he aptly
titled his show, CHASING TIME : The XX’mas Concert (Celebrating 20
Years of Martin Nievera). The show follows on the heels of his
28-show series at Onstage Greenbelt (two shows shy of his 30-night
record last year) also produced by Maxi-Media. The series had its
final repeat in mid-November. A first, by the way for any local
artist who performed 3 full-length concerts in a span of 24 hours
(he did a concert in Dagupan City the night prior, drove back to
Manila, performed a matinee at Onstage the following day then did
his last show two hours later — all in front of SRO crowds). There,
indeed, is reason why he remains to be "The Concert King". Martin
has only recently released a new album also called "Chasing Time",
which already went on Gold based on advanced orders alone. He is
busy promoting his new CD, touring major cities in the Philippines.
He was able to squeeze-in a concert in Singapore, and a trip to
London to promote his concert there next year. Add to this, his
nightly talk show on ABS-CBN and one would wonder where Martin gets
his energy to sustain himself.
Regine on the other hand, has just started her own series Onstage
Greenbelt for Maxi-Media. "Songbird Sings", a mini retrospective of
her own hits and recorded songs is currently the hottest concert
ticket of the season, with SOLD-out performances every Friday and
Saturday until the end of December. She also recently performed in
Beijing along with other international artists and our very own Gary
Valenciano and Donita Rose, in a benefit concert for the UNICEF.
In between these engagements, she is busy recording her next CD for
Viva Records, reportedly, a very special compilation of movie
themesongs, shooting an MTV, producing an album for a new,
up-and-coming artist and preparing for her next film assignment,
which will reunite her with one of the country’s finest actors,
Christopher de Leon. On television, Regine still hosts her weekly
talent search "Star for A Night" and is one of the mainstays in SOP,
a Sunday musical variety show on GMA-7.
With this kind of schedules, one can understand why a simple
pictorial becomes a logistic challenge. But, persistence paid off
and the photoshoot finally happened. And once the two got together
in front of the camera and ace photographer Ronnie Salvacion started
clicking away, Martin and Regine had so much natural chemistry that
the photoshoot was a real breeze.
The two are extremely excited about their first-ever back-to-back
tour, and both are brimming with ideas for their show — so expect a
truly unforgettable performance when they get to the UCLA Pauley
Pavilion on April 5, 2002 For ticket inquiries, please call Vic
Perez (323) 447-9786 or Maximedia USA (818) 549-9955 or (818)
549-0072.
source:Balita
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