Why Cherie & Roni broke up

Yes, it’s true: Cherie Gil and Roni Rogoff have parted ways — after 20 years!

Funfare learned that they actually have been contemplating on going their separate ways as early as two years ago but reached a final decision only last June when Cherie turned 45.

So what, so to speak, broke the camel’s back?

“Geography,” said Cherie.

She and Roni were married in a simple (“Almost secret,” said Cherie) ceremony in 1994 in the Philippines.

They tried living together in various parts of the world (five years in Venice, etc., or wherever Roni was performing), with Roni even agreeing to live for a while in the Philippines, but they just couldn’t seem to agree “geographically.”

“We started to move in opposite directions,” said Cherie, “and drifted apart.”

No, there’s no third party involved.

“Not on my part,” said Cherie, half in jest.

Their two children, Bianca, 12, and Raphael, 10, are with Roni in Israel where they are studying in an American school. Cherie’s other son, Jay, 21, is with her; while Renee, Roni’s daughter with ex-wife Ping Valencia, is on her own in New York.

“I can visit the children anytime I want to,” clarified Cherie.

Has her decision to return to showbiz anything to do with the break-up?

“No, none at all,” said Cherie. “Roni has no objection as far as my showbiz career is concerned.”

Meanwhile, Cherie keeps herself busy. She’s in the cast of Pieta, an ABS-CBN teleserye based on the Carlo J. Caparas movie, and playing Maria Callas in the play Master Class (slated Oct. 17, 18, 23, 24 and 25 at the RCBC Theater, Makati City).

“Roni and I remain friends,” stressed Cherie. “We parted amicably.”

Rita’s precious little book

I just got a copy of Rita Avila’s precious little book titled 8 Ways to Comfort with Grace written in memory of her and husband (TV director) Erick Reyes’ son Elia Jesu who lived for only three weeks (Nov. 10 to Dec. 2, 2006).

Here’s a summary of the “8 ways”:

• The First Way — Fewer words are better appreciated...

•The Second Way — Be reminded that clichés do not give comfort...

•The Third Way — Be selfless, be mindful...be thoughtful...

•The Fourth Way — The sweetest gesture is touch and no words at all...

•The Fifth Way — Offer any little help that you can give...

•The Sixth Way — If scared to view the body, stay close with the family...

•The Seventh Way — Allow the grieving person to act as she pleases...

•The Eighth Way — If you cannot face the grief of others with grace, better not...

(Note: The book, cute enough to fit in your breast pocket, is available at St. Paul’s Booktstores in SM Malls, Gateway, Ali Mall, St. Paul Street and Don Bosco [Makati City], and World of Feng Shui. For whole-sale order, call landline 896-6771.)

Did Lani, Regine try to upstage each other?

Did Lani Misalucha and Regine Velasquez really try to “outshine” or steal scenes from each other during their recent concert in New York?

Here’s the real score, according to Funfare’s Big Apple correspondent Edmund Silvestre:

Asia’s Songbird Regine Velasquez and Asia’s Nightingale Lani Misalucha’s The Main Event concert at New Jersey’s Newark Symphony Hall last Sept. 20 delivered what could be the best Filipino concert ever staged in the US East Coast, bar none.

There were no pyrotechnics, no lavish set, no flying trapeze. Just the raw talent of two astonishing artists backed by impressive sound and lighting systems, and a brilliant band led by veteran musicians Lorie Ilustre and Cesar Aguas.

For almost three hours, Regine and Lani — both renowned for their extensive vocal ranges — took thestage like goddesses (in their ravishing gowns) sent from the heavens to regale mortals.

None of the two, it seeemed, intentionally upstaged the other. But it was obvious that they were both on guard, each making sure the other wouldn’t pull a trick on the other.

During a back-to-back of original Filipino songs, Regine belted Narito Ako with much gusto, which Lani followed up with a soulful Bukas Na Lang Kita Mamahalin. Not to be outdone, Regine came up with a powerful rendition of Ikaw Ang Lahat Sa Akin, which Lani challenged with a magnificent rendition of Ikaw Lang Ang Mamahalin. Both got long and rolling applause from an awed crowd.

From the opening salvo — a choreographed rendition of a medley from the film Dreamgirls and followed by Beyoncé and Shakira’s Beautiful Liar — to their encore of ‘70s disco hits (I Will Survive, Enough Is Enough, Raining Men), Regine and Lani managed to sustain high energy level throughout this concert produced by Calla Lilly Entertainment Production.

They elicited guffaws as they traded banter — unscripted, the two claimed — about Regine’s “inexperience” in relationships, Ogie Alcasid’s height, the Reycards (“Sino sa atin si Carding?” Regine asked), Zsa Zsa Padilla and Armida Siguion-Reyna’s styles of singing, and even about their own powerful vocal ranges.

Halfway through the show, special guest Christopher de Leon came out to wild cheers. True to Regine’s intro, Christopher is not only a great dramatic actor, but also a great singer. Well, not that great but good enough to hold his own in the presence of Regine and Lani. After his two solos, the dashing actor — still a babe magnet after all these years — joined the two divas in a beautiful and nostalgic number, Umagang Kay Ganda. Their voices blended well that gave Christopher a shining moment on stage.

Lani and Regine had an equal footing — almost! — in their New Jersey showdown until Lani pulled a bravura performance of Nessun Dorma, an Italian aria that became her killer signature song even in Las Vegas that could leave all her competition in the dust.

It was so breathtaking that even Regine’s splendid rendition of On The Wings of Love was no match. Lani’s Nessun Dorma was a tour de force that deserves a spot at New York’s Metropolitan Opera, or perhaps a duet with tenor Andrea Bocelli. Not a far fetched idea considering that Lani has already performed on stage with Josh Groban.

With Nessun Dorma, the Nightingale soared higher than the Songbird.

(E-mail reactions at [email protected] or at [email protected])