Ogie Alcasid on It’s Showtime comeback, unscripted moment at Sharon-Gabby concert
Ogie Alcasid revealed what happened behind the scenes of It’s Showtime’s comeback after a 12-day suspension.
The veteran singer-songwriter and It’s Showtime mainstay said they found the first day back on the show touching because of the energetic welcome of the audiences.
“Actually, nakaka-emotional kasi grabe yung energy nung madlang people. Pero dahil finals din ng (segment) Mini Miss U, ngarag din kami nung araw na ‘yun. Alam mo ‘yun, gusto naming makipag-kwentuhan, eh nauubos din yung oras. It was… ang sarap din na nakabalik kami. Kami pati ang madlang people (were happy). Sobra nilang na-miss yung presence namin. Tapos kami, obviously, na-miss din namin mag-live,” said Ogie.
To recall, the ABS-CBN noontime program recently served a suspension order from the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB). This action was prompted by complaints related to the Isip Bata segment involving co-hosts and real-life couple Vice Ganda and Ion Perez.
When Ogie was asked if they became more cautious after the suspension, he responded, “Medyo mas conscious siguro kami. Ang hirap kaya ng ma-suspend for 12 days.”
The 12-day break, however, provided an opportunity for the hosts to connect and bond. “We went to Hong Kong for a three-day vacation. Some stayed for two nights and overnight, like Kim and Anne. Teddy, I think, had four days. Vice even went to Bangkok,” shared Ogie.
“Ang ganda-ganda ng bonding namin dun. Parang kinailangan din namin yun, sa isa’t isa, na magkaroon ng team-building, hingahan, you know. (The bonding we had there was really beautiful. It’s like we needed it, for each other, to have some team-building, a breather, you know.)
“Because of course, ‘pag nasa trabaho ka hindi naman kami nakakapag-usap talaga ng matagalan. Kaya minsan even after work, kumakain sa labas para makapag-usap and then dun na nagbubunga yung mga jokes. (Because when you’re at work, we don’t really get to have long conversations. So sometimes, even after work, we dine out to chat, and that’s when all the jokes start flowing.) So it feels good to be back.”
He said their HK escapades will be shown in his and It’s Showtime co-host Vhong Navarro’s soon-to-be-launched podcast Let’s VhoGie.
“We’ll be launching this in November. We already have four episodes. In December, we’ll create a reaction video for the things we did in Hong Kong. So that’s also part of it... because Vhong and I always chat about it in the dressing room, our conversations and laughter, we thought, why not turn it into a podcast. So it finally happened.”
Meanwhile, following his special appearance at the Dear Heart reunion concert of former reel and real-life partners Sharon Cuneta and Gabby Concepcion, it’s worth-noting how Ogie and wife Regine Velasquez brought humor and laughter to a mainly nostalgic and emotional event.
In a specific segment, the OPM power couple were responsible for asking questions to the ex-love team, with the aim of making fans smile.
Ogie admitted that it was a bit tricky to manage this part because they wanted to be fun without going overboard.
Interestingly, the most “fan service” question was something Ogie came up with on the spot. He recalled, “The director approached me, Tito Ogie, can you ensure that the (segment) is organized because that part is crucial. Yes, it was important for people to understand that we want to bring out the ‘kilig,’ but ‘wag naman OA, yung natural lang. I’ll admit that my question about whether you still love each other, I ad-libbed it, hahaha! Sorry po.”
Ogie posed the question to Sharon and Gabby, “Mahal niyo pa ba ang isa’t isa?” with the instruction that if it’s a yes, they should stand up, and if it’s a no, they should remain seated. To this, Sharon objected, saying there are different levels of love.
But Gabby stood up and said, “I’m here at this level.”
Fans were obviously thrilled and surprised with the answer, and so did Ogie, whose question was not part of the script.
“Pinag-iisipan ko talaga… kasi nung binabasa ko yung questions, parang ang safe ba. Gusto syempre pakiligin yung tao and alam naman ng tao kung ano yung totoo. So, nung tumayo na si Gabby, syempre nagsisigawan na, so hinagis ko yung upuan.”
He was even more surprised to see a video clip of his hilarious chair-throwing moment all over TikTok.
“So the next days sa TikTok, yun yung laman ng TikTok. Nag-va-viral ata yung portion na yun. Nakakatuwa kasi kinikilig yung mga tao.”
Ogie, nevertheless, stressed that it was all for the sake of fun. “I guess we were able to accomplish what we were supposed to do… para kaming Maritess dun, na fan na gusto namin marinig yung gusto naming marinig all for the sake of fun,” he said.
“Wala naman kaming halong (malice).”
As for the “chair-throwing” reaction, he clarified it was not scripted. In fact, he just got inspired by Regine.
“Sinimulan ni Regine yon. Hinagis niya rin. Sabi ko uy wag mo ihagis kasi wala naman tayong bayad hahaha! Pero ako natapon ko talaga. Ang ganda kasi si Sharon was game at lalo naman si Gabby. Wala talaga sa script yung part na yun,” he said, reiterating, “Ano lang yun ha for the sake of fun at tsaka kasi as a fan, gusto niyo marinig yung ganun.”
“Yung kilig namin ni Regine, hindi arte yun, totoo talaga yun.”
Meanwhile, asked about the most touching and heartfelt portion for him, he said it was when Sharon and Gabby’s only daughter KC was called up onstage to join her parents.
“Of course, the one with KC. It’s not easy to navigate (that situation of having separated parents). I mean, I know that. In the end, we’re all a big family,” said Ogie.
The STAR and other media got to interview Ogie during the presscon for Poppert Bernadas, the singer and musical theater actor under his talent management company, Alcasid Total Entertainment and Artist Management.
Poppert is preparing for his solo concert Who Put the Pop in Poppert? at the Music Museum on Nov. 11. Featuring a repertoire of Shirley Bassey, Tom Jones, George Michael hits, the show will be directed by Floy Quintos under the musical direction of Marlon Barnuevo. Tickets for the show are now available via Ticket2Me.
Poppert was part of Team Sarah in the 2015 season of The Voice of the Philippines and the cast of the hit musical Rak of Aegis. Ogie got to know him as part of the Ryan Cayabyab Singers.
Sharing his plans for Poppert, Ogie, who also manages classical performer Clara Maigue, said, “He’s also a songwriter, napakahusay niya sumulat ng kanta so we’re trying to release more songs for him, his own compositions.
“Basta tuloy-tuloy lang yung pag-kanta. Hopefully, this concert will open more avenues for him para makilala pa siya. Napagaling talaga nito and I think, maganda na may mga bagong singers na katulad niya na ganyan, belter, power singer kung tawagin. I’m very, very proud of him.”
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