‘I’d perform in school plays, I sang and danced in church, joined school contests … I even joined a Chinese singing contest once! Not for anything, I just loved to do it.’
(First part)
In our next two columns, we shall lend the space to theater royalty Gab Pangilinan. If the family name rings a bell, Gabriela Noelle S. Pangilinan is the daughter of Vicky (former Music and Magic member) and Joseph Pangilinan (of Kundirana); niece of megastar Sharon Cuneta and Sen. Kiko Pangilinan, and Angeli and Gary “Mr. Pure Energy” Valenciano, and Anthony and Maricel Laxa-Pangilinan; cousin of Paolo, Gab, Kiana Valenciano, KC Concepcion, Frankie and Donny Pangilinan who are all in showbusiness; and wife of the award-winning theater actor and musical director Myke Salomon.
She is set to have her very first major concert on February 14, at the BGC Arts Center, but before that, let us get to know her more, and find out why she is so worthy of our support.
Friends , here is Gab Pangilinan — in her own words.
Family background and growing up
“I’ve been singing and dancing (for fun!) since I was a toddler because everyone in my familysings and dances. My parents in particular. My dad was part of La Salle Greenhills’ Kundirana back in the day and my mom, though professionally a dentist, lived the band life for many years! It was when I was 7 years old that my mom enrolled me at Trumpets Playshop, a summer workshop for kids. After that summer, my life changed. I completely fell in love with musical theatre and I would beg my mom to sign me up every summer. I did this for 6 years straight. I think I was around 10 years old when I got my first paycheck as a performer, and I was only 11 when the workshop teachers said I should join the Teens class. I was completely bitten by the theatre bug, obsessed with musicals and I just wanted to be there. When I was 12, my older workshop classmates were all in college and they were all talking about being members of a musical theatre organization. I asked what org that was and what school they went to, and they said: Ateneo blueRep! From Ateneo! So at 12, I decided I wanted to go to Ateneo de Manila University for blueREP.
“At a young age though, I knew that my parents wanted me to finish schooling and to have what was then considered, a more ‘practical’ profession. I was allowed to do theater and to perform, but always just for fun. I’d perform in school plays, I sang and danced in church, joined school contests, dance competitions, battle of the bands – I even joined a Chinese singing contest once! Not for anything, I just loved to do it. For fun.”
Theater roots
“My first professional production was at 15, I was part of the ensemble of ‘High School Musical’ which was a huge deal for me as a teenager. It was there I also met lifelong friends, but it also heavily impacted my grades. I knew I had to put my professional theater dreams to rest and continue performing ‘just for fun.’ For college, I went Ateneo. I joined blueREP. My newbie production was directed by Missy Maramara and my alternate was Maronne Cruz. That was memorable to me. However, after that, I didn’t become the active blueREP member my 12-year-old self thought I would be. I wished I could perform more but that time, I felt I had to be more career-focused, and theater (I thought) was not an option for me. I thought I would end up in a marketing or advertising agency! My course was AB Communications and I was active in another org called Ateneo CODE (The same org as Mayor Vico! Sotto! Haha, trivia!), eventually becoming the vice president for HR.
“We could say, I was avoiding performing for theater because I thought I couldn’t pursue it but I found myself always coming back somehow. My internship was with Atlantis Theatrical, under Bobby Garcia and Chari Arespacochaga. My thesis was about theater and social media. I performed for a children’s party agency, Clowning Around, which had a lot of professional theater actors. But when I graduated from Ateneo, I thought it was time to get serious and I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do or be, so I went a completely different direction – I joined the corporate workforce and became a foreign exchange spot broker. I was a corporate girl for a year.
“It was in 2014, I was at the office and it was a slow day in the market. I was mindlessly scrolling and saw an ad on a Casting Call / Auditions Facebook group for auditions to my favorite musical, ‘Once on This Island.’ I thought I could audition just for fun and maybe see if I could do it outside of my office hours. When I got accepted, I called my sister crying because I got the ensemble part, and Ti Moune understudy. It felt like I woke up. Weeks after that, it was like God decided I was ready. Again at the office, I received a message from Abi Sulit asking if I was performing because PETA was looking for an alternate for an ensemble member for a musical called ‘Rak of Aegis.’ Again, I auditioned just to see where that would take me. And the rest is history.
“‘Rak of Aegis’ definitely changed my life. I had no idea what I was getting into, I didn’t know it was a hit musical, I didn’t know it was going to be a 3-month run. Two months in, I finally decided to pursue it, and it was in this production that I resigned from my corporate job.
“PETA welcomed me with open arms and I learned from the best. Maribel Legarda and Pamela Ovejas told me that when I first entered the theater for the auditions, I looked like Alice in Wonderland. I literally felt it because it was just so new and I felt that I was finally deciding to jump. Oh, and this is also where I first met my now husband, Myke Salomon. Yes! When I saw through ‘Rak of Aegis’ and ‘Once on This Island’ that a theater profession was possible for me, I stopped seeing theater as something just for fun. I went all in — I worked very hard (to the point of missing many special occasions, weddings, birthday parties, etc), I auditioned for everything, I took voice lessons and dance classes. I worked for different theater companies and I really decided it was something I wanted to do.
“‘Side Show,’ in 2018, was my first musical with Atlantis Theatrical. I auditioned for many productions of Atlantis for many years, as it was the company where I did my internship, but I never seemed to land a part. But when I finally got ‘Side Show,’ it made a huge impact on my career as a theater actor. It was the very first time I top billed a production. After years of doing ensemble and support roles, it was as Daisy Hilton that I felt people finally saw that I was ready to take on bigger roles and I will forever be grateful to Atlantis for taking that huge chance on me. When I got ‘Side Show,’ I couldn’t believe it, but the best advice I got was to do everything I can possibly do to become the role entrusted to me.
“‘Mula sa Buwan’ and ‘Ang Huling El Bimbo’ followed right after. And it goes without saying that when ‘Ang Huling El Bimbo’ streamed online during the pandemic, that was another milestone and checkpoint for me as a theater actor and though it has been 4 years, until today, I am still learning and navigating this post-pandemic world.”
(To be continued)
