The laughter and the tears

Avid fans of Live A.I.D.S. – the smash comedy hit developed by the UP Samahan ng Mga Mag-aaral sa Komunikasyon (Samaskom) – are awed by the amount of creativity and passion put into the show by Samaskomers, UP students and alumni who stage the show annually.

The group churns out sterling performances in comedy, music and dance year after year – and has been the launching pad of many of today’s hotshots in advertising, media and creative arts.

Underneath the laughter and guffaws of the audience lie sweat, blood, tears (and, yes, failing grades) shed by its members. Someone told me you cannot really understand this feeling until you become a Samaskomer and you join Live A.I.D.S. in celebration of one’s membership.

Among its alumni are Giselle Sanchez and Tuesday Vargas and the infamous Ate Glow; Wency Cornejo and Raymond Lauchengco; theater actor RS Francisco; prima ballerina Melanie Motus; Jeffrey Jeturian, Lauren Dyogi, Jerry Sineneng and Connie Macatuno; broadcasters Lei Alviz, Tina Panganiban-Perez and Riki Kwek; and my good friend Kim Atienza.

They – along with countless media practitioners, musicians, directors, artist managers, creative directors, script and news writers who call themselves Samaskom alumni (now numbering about 800) – went through the same pains and unique bonding that bring all Samaskomers together.

For 20 years – long before the proliferation of comedy bars and satirical comedy shows on TV – UP Samaskom has been staging Live A.I.D.S. It was in 1985 when a group of creative Samaskomers conceptualized and originated a show using minimal funds and manpower of the organization. The show was a rousing success.

Today, Live A.I.D.S. is the most-awaited event in UP Diliman, perhaps second only in popularity to the traditional Christmas lantern parade. For those who have seen one, there’s no turning back. Every show is different. Every show is a must-see.

What makes Live A.I.D.S. truly unique is that it is written, choreographed, produced, directed and staged solely by members of the organization. People flock to UP Diliman’s Abelardo Theater every year to watch Live A.I.D.S. for its unique formula that seamlessly fuses music, dance and comedy into one fantastic show.

After 19 knock-out presentations, Samaskom outdid itself with its 20th show, which was such a huge hit that a repeat was staged last month.

People behind this year’s production have put together the Best of the Best of Live A.I.D.S. This year’s production also boasted of awesome production numbers with original music and choreography by resident and alumni members of the organization.

With Live A.I.D.S., Samaskom has gained prominence in and outside the UP campus for providing its audience quality entertainment, extravagant dance and song numbers and a "cerebral" type of comedy.

I have been told Samaskom’s brand of comedy has made loyal fans out of the likes of Ricky Lee, Carlitos Siguion-Reyna, Maryo J. de los Reyes, Tessie Tomas, Jon Santos, Richard Gomez, Lani Misalucha, Maxene and Francis Magalona, among others.

These celebrities, along with thousands of others, yearly brave the jampacked Abelardo Theater to catch Live A.I.D.S. It is a show for everyone to enjoy. In fact, its three-night run every year has always been sold-out and classified as "standing room only." It’s unbelievable that people start falling in line as early as 1 p.m. just to get seats!

This year’s production gathered some of the stars Live A.I.D.S. has produced like Giselle Sanchez, Tuesday Vargas, Ate Glow, Wency Cornejo and RS Francisco.

An Exhibit In New York

It’s not very often that a Filipino artist gets the chance to have his art works exhibited in other countries.

Such honor was given to my fellow Waray, Armando Escobar Toleza or Ka Manding, who recently held an exhibit at the Philippine Center (5th Avenue, New York City) called Tugahan nga Ladawan San Isla San Samar (Enchanted Scenes and Images of Samar).

Funded by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts, Building Future Together, Inc. (a non-profit institution in the State of New York), the City Government of Calbayog and Calbayog Art Association, Inc., the exhibit featured Ka Manding’s 52 paintings, inspired by the beautiful sceneries of my beloved Samar.