Sam Concepcion flying high at 10

Sam Concepcion is celebrating his tenth year in the business, counting the first time he appeared in his first ever musical titled The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe which was staged at the Meralco Theater. He feels it just fitting that he is marking his tenth year in the performing business via another interesting project – doing the musical "Peter Pan" which is being staged in Manila for the first time thru the joint effort of Repertory Philippines and STAGES, Inc. (which manages his career).

"I want to do something in theater to mark my anniversary, going full circle that is," said Sam at the celebration held Sunday at Jollibee (The Fort branch) where the singer-performer (dressed in his Peter Pan costume) had fun with the kids and the members of the media who were invited to the event. "I want to culminate my ten years by also doing a musical. I never thought I’d reach this far. I am more than blessed with what I have experienced in the last ten years."

Sam says he is embarking on more things in his career now. He wants to achieve bigger things even as he adds that there are more things that he needs to go through to further his career. He hopes to do more albums, compose songs, do TV shows (he is in Good Vibes) and more movies (he was in Way Back Home). "I want to try different things to hone my craft further," he said.

Will there be a shift like doing something daring (in terms of roles) without necessarily dropping his wholesome image?

"Of course, I have to constantly reinvent myself as I grow older. I know I need to also mature in terms of the roles that I would have to do or the kind of music that I used to do. There has to be change and I recognize that."

Talking about Peter Pan, he says it’s dream come true to have gotten the part, especially since this is the first time that this production is being done in the Philippines. It’s first production that Repertory and STAGES are working together and the producers even imported equipment abroad for the flying scenes.

"We are opening in two weeks (September 30) and we are just working to keep the show tight. We have rehearsed the flying scenes and nakalipad na po ako sa rehearsal," Sam revealed. "That’s what we always rehearse because it’s hard. There has to be coordination with me and the people who are handling the flying machine. Our flight instructor from Vegas, who also brought with him the flying machine, trained us first before the machines on our own."

Did he get scared in doing the flying scenes? "Not really but there were quite a few flying scenes at medyo mataas din ang nilipad ko in the stage area," he said. He has invited his co-stars in "Good Vibes" to watch Peter Pan.

* * *

Ligo na U, Lapit Na Me, one of the box-office hits in the 2011 Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival, will be finally shown commercially starting September 28. It will be released by Regal Films.

The movie, which stars Cinemalaya 2011 best actor winner Edgar Allan Guzman and sexy actress Mercedes Cabral, was well-received by the audience who trooped to the CCP last July. That audience included Regal Films matriarch Lily Monteverde who liked what she saw and decided to help the indie film by distributing it.

She also signed up Edgar Allan as a Regal baby, warming the heart of the last Mr. Pogi winner of Eat Baluga in 2006, who had been waiting in the wings for the big break.

We learned that Eros Atalia, the author of Ligo na U, Lapit Na Me, is finishing the sequel to his Palanca award-winning novel, which might be released by December. The novel will also be produced into a movie and will still feature Edgar Allan and Mercedes as the starstruck lovers.

We are hoping and praying that the public will give Ligo Na U, Lapit Na Me full support when it opens its regular run on September 28. Let us support Filipino movies.

* * *

"We’re all excited to move out," goes Bianca Manalo’s fierce statement on "Happy Yipee Yehey!" (HYY), which was affirmed by her co-host Toni Gonzaga. But the actresses clarified that they’re moving out, not into a new home but into a bigger and better studio which happened on Saturday.

The transfer of the noontime show’s studio to a bigger one also marks the launching of the much-awaited contests that challenges outstanding Filipino talents, the "Miss KB" and "Batang Genius."

"Miss KB" is a beauty pageant that uplifts and showcases the talent of Filipina housemaids while "Batang Genius" is a battle of the brains among Grade 5 and Grade 6 students.