Costanilla: Send children's choir to Calungsod canonization
CHORUS. Through this column, I am appealing to all kind-hearted individuals to help the members of the multi-awarded Mandaue Children and Youth Chorus fly to Rome in October—not as tourists but as the official choir during the canonization of Blessed Pedro Calungsod, a Cebuano/Visayan missionary...
Costanilla: Entertaining priests
DURABLE. When the Cebu Clergy Performing Artists started singing as an entertainment quartet, little did they know that they would go this far—10 years in the music scene.
Costanilla: Singing priests
INSTITUTIONALIZE. We are glad that the Cebu Provincial Board will soon approve the move to institutionalize the local tourism program called Suroy-Suroy Sugbo, a brainchild of Gov. Gwen Garcia, even after she shall have left the Capitol next year when her term ends. After all, tourism promotion...
Costanilla: Kawasan and massacre movies
COURAGE. As an advocate of local tourism, I am glad that those illegal structures within the 20-meter easement zone of Kawasan Falls in Matutinao, Badian have finally been demolished on orders of Gov. Gwen Garcia. We admire the woman leader’s courage and political will to order the destruction...
Costanilla:Bloody encounter in Mactan
MOVIE. Next week, April 27 to be exact, we shall mark the 491st anniversary of the bloody encounter between local chieftain Lapu-Lapu and Portuguese invader Ferdinand Magellan on the shores of Mactan. And we have been waiting for a movie on such historic event, although it doesn’t have to be...
Costanilla: Directors and musicals
SHOW. I remember that it was a few years back when the internationally acclaimed stage director Benjie Diola did Kadaugan sa Maktan to commemorate the bloody encounter between Lapu-Lapu and Portuguese discoverer Ferdinand Magellan on the shores of Mactan in 1521. Diola was commissioned by...
Costanilla: Lucio Tan to make biopic
FILM. When former Rep. Tony Cuenco guested at the weekly Tapok-Tapok media forum that yours truly hosted, he r evealed very interesting information which is actually very close to my heart, something that I’m so passionate about—the eventual revival of the Cebuano/Visayan film industry....
Costanilla: Movie without cuts
IMPRESSIVE. I should say that young Cebuano filmmaker Remton Zuasola’s indie movie titled Ang Damgo ni Eleuteria, which I finally saw during the recent Cinema One Film Festival, is a highly impressive work of art. His style of directing it is just amazing, considering the fact that the entire...
Costanilla: Memorable musical event
UNDERSTATEMENT. To say that Engelbert Humperdinck’s show here last week was fantastic is an understatement for he gave a truly delightful presentation, a show that to me should be classified as one of this year’s memorable musical events in Cebu.
Costanilla: Calungsod and unpaid judges
MOVIE. We are behind the plan of Cebu Gov. Gwen Garcia and Ilocos Norte Gov. Imee Marcos to jointly produce a movie on the life of Blessed Pedro Calungsod, who will soon be beatified in Rome. Sounds exciting to us considering that, as historians tell us, the martyred youth was from Ginatilan,...
Costanilla: Cebuano teledrama to start
MOVIES. My very good friend Dandin Ranillo, one of veteran actress Gloria Sevilla’s sons, happily e-mailed that he is inching closer to his dream of making commercial Cebuano/Visayan movies again. “Barring any roadblocks, I’m set to shoot in April this year. I might also have the support of...
Costanilla: Cebuano poetry contest
POETRY. It is indeed commendable on the part of this local broadcast station to institutionalize an important cultural activity as a yearly competition.
Station dyLA-AM 909 Khz has been organizing what is now known as the “Indigay sa Pagtagik ug Gugmahang Balak,” the purpose of which is...
Costanilla: Lucky rain
IT WAS another memorable moment for local composers, lyricists and performers when the 32nd Cebu Popular Music Festival went onstage last Jan. 13 at the New Cebu Coliseum.
Costanilla: Angel carried ‘Sinulog Idol’
SHE sang the Carrie Underwood hit Angels Brought Me Here for the first round of the grand finals of this year’s Sinulog Idol singing competition organized by the Sinulog Foundation Inc. but managed by Soundtraxx Production Studio.
Costanilla: Elvis and Sinulog Idol
BELIEVE it or not, Elvis Presley, the king of rock ‘n roll, will sing—live and in person—in my television program Sam Enchanted Evening tomorrow, Tuesday, 10-11 p.m., over INTV/Cebu Catholic Television Network channel 47. And yes, I myself will accompany him on the piano.
Costanilla: Cybersex in skit
IT WAS a show like no other, a truly entertaining presentation that only its performers could amazingly and wonderfully stage. I am referring to all Provincial Board members who did a hilarious comical skit on Gov. Gwen Garcia’s no-nonsense drive against cybersex crime during the annual Capitol...
Costanilla: Reviving Visayan film industry
US-based composer/singer Dandin Ranillo is flying in to Cebu next month to start preparing for a very ambitious undertaking here, which is to produce a number of Visayan movies which are a remake of those black-and-white flicks done by his mom, the veteran actress Gloria Sevilla, and her several...
Costanilla: Caves and immortal songs
A VISIT last week to the municipality of Tudela in the Camotes group of islands gave me and seven other Cebu City residents the chance to drop by the Bukilat cave, one of the town’s tourist destinations. With me were radioman Max “Daloydoy” Andrino, singers Susan Bacasmas and Boyet Lim, magician...
Costanilla: Casting coup at 'Oscars night
TO SAY that “Fashion & Rhythm: A Night at the Oscars” was a fantastic and magnificent event is an understatement. I can only say that the program, staged two weeks ago at Marco Polo Plaza Cebu, should be considered the most colorful and most successful fund-raising presentation in Cebu this...
Costanilla: A Singaporean escapade
I JUST got back from a four-day Singaporean escapade together with singing businesswoman Hildigrace Montesclaros a.k.a. Ate Ging, production assistant and guest singer Tess Diez and videographer Boy Marquez. Ate Ging is the woman behind Helping Hands Marketing, the distributor of Bio-Troff...
Costanilla: Cebu Chamber singers beat 900 rivals in choral fest
THE hard work, the great effort, the sweat and tears as well as the gargantuan task of the extensive nightly training paid off after the Cebu Chamber Singers (CCS) won the top prize in this year’s Busan International Choral Festival in Korea two weeks ago.
I gathered from lawyer Gingging...
Costanilla: Talents in our midst
THERE'S an upcoming event that the general public should not miss, if only for its “casting coup” as well as the aim which is to raise funds for several projects of Zonta Club of Cebu 1. The civic club has the full support of the Consular Corps of Cebu, Smart and Marco Polo Plaza Hotel, which is...
Costanilla: Cebuano talent shines in ‘Halad’
THIS year’s 5th Halad sa Kabataan music festival was another proof that this province has a surplus of very talented children who could excel in the entertainment world. I can even say that these children could easily give their Manila counterparts a run for their money in the arena of vocal...
Costanilla: A chance to shine with ‘Idol’
I AM privileged to get involved again as emcee of the annual search for the Sinulog Idol, one of the major events in next year’s Sinulog festivities. I am strongly supporting it for the simple reason that the search is actually the springboard for young people to try their luck in fulfilling...
Costanilla: Meaningful birthday celebration
WHEN Bro. Nonito Limchua marked his 69th birth anniversary last Thursday, he didn’t expect to be treated to a wonderful surprise party courtesy of his ever supportive wife Diana and the entire staff and personnel of Cebu Catholic Television Network (CCTN) which he heads. Tatay Dodong, as he is...
