Concert proves why Sharon and Regine are ‘Iconic’

June 30 ------ “Iconic,” the sold-out concert topbilled by Megastar Sharon Cuneta and Asia’s Songbird Regine Velasquez at Resorts World Manila (RWM) is as much a heartwarming trip down memory lane as it is a celebration of the Filipino performers’ prodigious skill, artistic sensitivity and top-notch musicality.

First staged at the Big Dome three years ago, the two-night show, mounted to jump-start the songstresses’ nine-city US tour—has been retrofitted from a slam-bang spectacle at the Big Dome to a more intimate affair at RWM’s Marriott Grand Ballroom worthy of its performers’ legacy as true-blue OPM legends. The concert boasts an inspired lineup, with Regine kicking off the opening duet of Sharon’s hits with a sublime rendition of “Pangarap na Bituin,” a signature song culled from the Megastar’s 1984 film, “Bukas Luluhod ang Mga Tala.” The tune, coupled with the Songbird’s “You are My Song” was a heartwarming memento of the years in the mid-’80s and late ’90s when Sharon and Regine were respectively lording it over as local Tinseltown’s premier singer-actresses. In those days, Sharon and Regine were each fielding one theme song-enhanced blockbuster movie after another, like “Bituing Walang Ningning,” “Sana’y Wala Nang Wakas” and “Dapat Ka Bang Mahalin?” and “Dahil May Isang Ikaw” and “Do Re Mi”. There was as much entertainment as nostalgia as Sharon and Regine took turns singing heartwarming stanzas from the former’s gorgeously pieced together early hits, “Mr. DJ,” “High School,” “P.S. I Love You” and “Dear Heart”—which easily transported us back to our youth.

Regine has remained the country’s best singer, bar none—as Sharon herself declared. Truth is, Regine at her worst is still someone whose power and seamlessly inventive runs no local singer can even dream of. So, it’s always a tall order for anybody to share the stage with her. Regine is often noticed generously “holding back” and judiciously adjusting to her duet partner, however, Sharon is no Megastar for no reason. Acknowledging an early struggle with her voice, the movie queen, who’s known for always wearing her heart on her sleeve, hasn’t sung in front of a live audience in more than two years. But Sharon still brought with her a treasure trove of experiences, groundbreaking accomplishments and a measure of “mega”-sized mystique that make her shows extra special. While it’s true that Regine’s technique and mastery of her voice are beyond match, Sharon herself has stacked up a very long string of hits courtesy of a singing style that brings out the heart and soul of any song she sings. “Sagad hanggang buto,” as both critics and her admiring fans say.

Sharon’s voice is just the type that needs some warming up—as the show soon demonstrated. Later in the concert, Sharon turned Regine’s “Sana Maulit Muli” and Ben&Ben’s “Leaves” on their heads and made them uniquely her own. Regine also didn’t disappoint in her numbers, delivering a haunting new iteration for “Dadalhin” or a crackerjack version of “‘Di Ka Nag-iisa”. Getting the two singers to perform together in a touring show is no mean feat because, while theirs are distinctive voices that don’t always blend, listening to them—individually or together—is never not compelling. Adding magic to the stellar proceedings is the participation of their special guest, Asia’s Queen of Songs Pilita Corrales who, at 84, could still reach the money notes on the glorious “Sa Ugoy ng Duyan” and her hit song “A Million Thanks to You.”

Sharon and Regine sang the songs that helped catapult them to singing superstardom, shuttling with ease from one beloved hit to another: “I-Swing Mo Ako,” “Sana’y Maghintay ang Walang Hanggan,” “Maging Sino Ka Man,” “Pangako sa ‘Yo,” “Sana’y Wala Nang Wakas,” “Bituing Walang Ningning” and “Ikaw”, and “Urong Sulong,” “Araw Gabi,” “Tuwing Umuulan at Kapiling Ka”. Beyond the warm and fuzzy feeling of nostalgia from those songs, the audience was treated to the duo’s covers of more contemporary hits from the popular likes of Moira dela Torre, The Juans, The Eraserheads and Kamikazee. The last song led to a discussion of how Sharon and Regine brought their versions of Darna to life—in the 1986 and 2003 movie adaptations of “Captain Barbell,” respectively. The upcoming touring show seems guaranteed a successful run ahead—not just because of the superstar singers starring in it, but also because of the unifying power of their shared music. As if on cue, the Megastar, just before she and Regine launched into the concert’s catchy encore numbers, pleaded with the crowd that it was time to stop the bickering brought about by the country’s deeply polarizing political situation. Sharon pointed out, “The elections are over—it’s time for all of us to come together.”

Source: inquirer.net