Casino's Got Talent

CEBU, Philippines - The craze today is showcasing talent. We have The Voice, Dancing with the Stars and American Idol which had Filipinos here and abroad glued to their television sets cheering for our very own Jessica Sanchez.

This phenomenon has reached our shores and in particular at the Casino Español de Cebu when it featured for the very first time in its 90 years history, a talent show that had 30 members and dependents showcasing their varied talents.

Fifteen-year-old Leigh Michelle Ramos opened the much-anticipated show with a moving interpretation of The Prayer from the animated film, Quest for Camelot. 

Talent number one was Bunny Pages, a successful businessman who exhibited his talent the entire evening as master of ceremonies. 

The talented, untapped performers until that evening included accomplished architect Tessie Javier who displayed her expertise in dancing the tango. Club director Paco Jarque and his lovely wife Monique did a fabulous duet of the Lady is a Tramp, while Miren Sofia Jordana and Mikael Maria Larrauri sang hits from popular Broadway musicals Les Miserables and Phantom of the Opera.

The husband and wife tandem of Tony and Lorna Quisumbing delighted the audience with their rendition of the classic Visayan song Usahay. Lorna also gracefully performed a Hawaiian dance.

Musically talented couple Rene and Joy Kintanar fascinated the attendees with their cello and piano pieces of the 1882 and 1888 composition Estrellita and Salut de Amore.

Opting to do solo numbers were Del Ordoñez, Jimmy Picornell and Sing Solon who simply mesmerized everyone with their powerful voices.

Not to be outdone were the Ouano twosome Monica and Jordan who did a pop jazz number while   multi-talented Ma Aurora Theresa Fernandez masterfully played the guitar and the piano. The youngest solo performer was Danielle Mae Louis Go who sang The Climb, the soundtrack of the film Hannah Montana.

The energetic kids composed of Toni, Ysabel, Luis and Raphael Moro, Sophia and Ariana Alo, and Rya, Zia and Uri Llaban, with ages ranging from 4 to 15 splendidly executed a hip hop dance number.

The quartet composed of past presidents Rico Gandionco and Glenn loop together with Vice president Nonoy Tirol and businessman Lau Rogero acknowledged the standing ovation with their interpretation of   My Way, sang in Spanish, and Somewhere from the popular Broadway musical West Side Story.

The highlight of the evening was the surprise number by the Casino Staff who did a fantastic medley of Original Pilipino Music with the likes of Rico J Puno, Freddie Aguilar, Pilita Corrales, Sampaguita, Celeste Legaspi, Basil Valdez, Sharon Cuneta and many others.

With the unprecedented success of Casino's Talent Show, anticipation and enthusiasm is high for the next show of undiscovered talents. (FREEMAN)