A Spoon-ful of Janice

Not once, but two times.

Appearing as guest in Janice de Belen’s Spoon, a delicious combination of food and talk show, is always a pleasure. Their Net 25 staff is the most courteous, polite and accommodating. There is no pressure because the episode doesn’t have to rate (and yet it is viewed by a lot of people) and there is absolutely no stress during the shoot (no raised voices unlike in most other sets).

It is also a privilege to come out in Spoon because you are in good company. It features mostly the who’s who in various fields. Their pride I guess is the fact that they’ve convinced Eddie Garcia and the usually elusive Dolphy to cook in the show.

It’s just too bad that you only get to guest once in Spoon even if you still have other recipes to share with viewers. I appeared there in June 2009 and to my regret that was the time I just flew in from abroad and was having a terrible case of jet lag. I felt I could have given some more in terms of energy.

I secretly wished and prayed to make a comeback — and that happened very recently. Spoon called me up to host segments of Janice’s birthday episode (to be aired tomorrow, Nov. 7) because it’s her special day (actually on Nov. 9) and the celebrator isn’t supposed to work. It turned out to be a treat for me, too, because as usual it was a relaxing and pleasurable experience — thanks to the show’s staff who are always on standby for anything you need.

The day before, the Spoon staff told me they were going to e-mail the script. But sorry, I told them, I don’t have a Wi-Fi in the house and I go to McDonald’s for that (it’s open 24 hours) or stand outside a dental clinic nearby (thanks Dr. Joanna Cabasada for sharing your Wi-Fi) to be able to send this column to The Philippine STAR and check my e-mail.

But my Startalk stint had long taught me how to absorb instructions in a matter of seconds before airing and so I guess I could learn the script when I get to the Spoon set.

Basically, I just had to ask Janice some tough questions and I didn’t have problems with that. Her brain had always been a challenge to me. I’ve known her since we were both very young and yet we never became close friends. However, the respect and fondness is always there. She will always have a special place in my heart even if I don’t have her cellphone number. We can go on like this and I know that till the end I will not do anything to hurt her.

As expected, Janice answered my questions intelligently. We even had a debate over the issue of our society having too many chefs (that is my perception). She stumbled only over one question: Which is more flattering to hear — to be called Chef Janice or Best Actress Janice?

Obviously, her heart is torn between acting and the culinary arts. I won’t tell you her answer because: 1) So that you’d tune in tomorrow; and 2) I honestly don’t remember her choice (I must be having advanced senior moments).

If I were to choose for her, I’d say go for the culinary arts. Why? Because she had already long proven her worth as an actress. Even as a child star in Flor de Luna, she had always been respected as a performer.

When she was in her teens, I recall Nestor Torre telling me how he once watched Janice in the TV soap Jesse (with her in the title role) and she had to grieve over the death of a loved one in an episode. There were no hysterics. Janice went through the motions of the death scene quietly — and this was in an era way before under-acting was introduced to local performers.

In my list, among her best performances as an adult actress were those in Rosenda and Fatima Buen. But she excels in any role you give her. Just the other night, I was watching on Cinema One her episode in Shake, Rattle & Roll III. Silly is the plot of the story assigned to her (as the sister of Gina Alajar who is supposed to be dead, but is kept alive by cultists). However, trust her to rise above any ludicrous material. She still gave the role her all and saved the episode.

Last year, she also starred in Last Viewing — as a mother who ends up cremating her long-lost daughter. It is now her best performance ever.

In my opinion, Janice can retire from showbiz tomorrow and the public will still remember her decades from now for being one of our finest actresses. She had already made her mark and that can never be erased.

This is the reason why I would suggest to her to concentrate on the culinary where people address her now as Chef Janice (she finished culinary school under the tutelage of the master Gene Gonzalez).

While I’d appreciate seeing her more often on screen, I know it’s a career that will always be there and will always welcome her any time. That’s how respected she is in the acting field.

The culinary profession, however, should offer her more challenges at this point and I know she’d love to conquer that.

Of course, in the end, the choice is still hers. Unfortunately, both areas are selfish and demanding masters and she may have difficulty dividing her time. And knowing how passionate Janice is over any undertaking, she may only have to choose one.

I cannot speak for the culinary arts since it is an area that is alien to me. But I have faith that the entertainment profession will always have room for a brilliant performer like Janice — any time she’d like to come back. That’s how important she is regarded as an actress in Philippine show business. 

This is a dream scenario that plays in my mind right now: Inside a cinema I am riveted to another Janice de Belen masterful performance in an important film, while watching and at the same time munching and relishing take-home food from a restaurant that she had successfully set up.

I trust that she’ll be able to combine culinary and cinematic heaven one day.