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THE MESSAGE. BRINGING INTO FOCUS FILIPINO PRESENCE IN AUSTRALIA
www.kalatas.com.au | Volume 6 Number 1 | OCTOBER 2015
ENTERTAINMENT
Melbourne
X Factor Balladeer serenades
Top 12
at Halo-halo Festival 2015
THE king of modern harana
Miguel Castro flew back recently to
perform at Melbourne’s Halo-halo
Festival, a showcase of various
original Filipino artistry interpreted
on stage by Filo actors and singers
in a musical theatre production.
He’s got the whole Fil-Aussie
community cheering for him.
Cyrus Villanueva landed in the
top 12 of the highly competitive
X Factor Australia Season 7.
Cyrus is in the ‘Under 25 Boys’
category and he surely wowed
the mentors and judges in his
latest performance last month.
Cyrus is based in Wollongong.
He counts Ed Sheeran, Stevie
Wonder and Michael Buble as his
favourite artists. He has been to
the Philippines before and he says
he loves the country and hopes to
one day do a show there.
Castro performed the first part of the show
with his solo song numbers, rendition of the
songs: Ika'y Lupang Hinirang Perlas Ng Silangan and Kailan Ka Magiging Akin, and an
Apo Hiking Society medley in the two-hour
show that paid tribute to Filipino music, history and culture.
Performers at the theatre show included
the talented Filipino Harmonico headed by its
musical director Rolando Limun. The event
was managed and produced by Sandok Production.
Singer-actor and paper muralist Castro performed the
first part of the show with his solo song numbers at
Melbourne’s Halo-halo Festival. Photo: Jen Jazz
The curtain call of the Filo actors and singers who
performed the various original Filipino artistry interpreted on stage by in the musical theatre production
Photo: Jen Jazz
Marcus Rivera Concert
For the love of Opera and Kundiman
by Michelle Baltazar
Filipino-Australian artist Marcus Rivera
may have travelled around the country
touring for Opera Australia but he has
always dreamed of performing music close
to his heart: kundiman.
Kundiman, or Philippine folk songs, has
become a lost art, especially for Filipinos
who have long migrated to Australia. But he
is hoping to revive that passion at his “All of
Me” concert to be held at the Greater Western
Sydney Performing Arts Centre in Plumpton
next month.
“I remember listening to Sylvia La Torre
(the ‘Queen of Kundiman’) and compared it
to the classical Opera songs I have performed
and thought, ‘Wow, our traditional Philippine
music is right up there in terms of complexity
and class!’”
After completing his studies at the Sydney
Conservatorium of Music and the Australian
Institute of Music, Marcus honed his vocal skills
in cabaret, jazz, pop, opera and classical music.
But as those who have seen him perform
at numerous community events can attest,
he really comes to his own as a counter-tenor
singer (male vocal range that is equivalent
to the female ‘soprano’) and he promises to
include that in his repertoire.
“I get requested to sing the Italian soprano
aria ‘O Mio, Babbino Caro’ all the time. It’s a
beautiful song but I might mix it up on the
night and have a few surprises in store for the
audience.”
Then there is his musical theatre
background. Last year, Marcus finished the
national tour of ‘The King & I’ where he was
the understudy and performed the principal
role of The Kralahome (Prime Minister).
Several years ago, he took centre stage in
the demanding role of ‘The Engineer’ in the
Cameron Mackintosh production of ‘Miss
Saigon’ in Australia.
“It was funny. I received a request on
Facebook to sing ‘Why God, Why?’ from
Miss Saigon. I think it is the musical that truly
highlighted the Filipino talent around the
world. Who knows? I might try an BF