‘Kathleen Clare means pure and bright, but Kakki means energy, vigor, and animated in Japanese, which she has embodied ever since.’
Imagine a child named Kathleen Clare Teodoro, the first child in her family, raised by a single mom in a busy household full of siblings. There were 11 of them, 9 women and 2 men, with about 5 to 6 living under one roof. They all moved to Manila from Tacloban, Leyte, to study and work, mostly on scholarships from UP. Her mother, Dolores Johanna Teodoro, was a UP Diliman Business Administration scholar. Being the first and only child for a while, Kakki had everyone’s care and attention, feeling very loved but not spoiled, despite her father not being around and the family not being wealthy. Her mom and older siblings had to help her lola raise the younger ones after her lolo passed away. Kakki Teodoro has since become an awarded thespian, sought-after actress, and excellent host.
Growing up, Kakki was a Disney kid who would watch VHS tapes of “The Little Mermaid” on repeat every afternoon after school. “Sometimes it would be ‘Cinderella’ or ‘Sleeping Beauty,’ but mostly ‘The Little Mermaid.’ Whenever ‘Part of Your World’ played, I was the soloist mermaid! Ha ha! I was never shy and was always encouraged to dance and sing, and I loved doing that with my titos and titas. My first non-Disney song was ‘Loving You’ by Minnie Riperton. I also remember wanting to join ‘Little Miss Philippines’ but never auditioned.”
Kakki dreamt of becoming a newscaster like Korina Sanchez and Loren Legarda, telling her mom she would study Mass Comm at UP when she was in Grade 4.
“I remember two things in grade school that might have planted the early seeds for me as an actor. First, when my classmates asked where my dad was, I made up a story that he was Japanese. His real name is Chris Funa (he is pure Filipino), but it sounded Japanese, and my nickname, Kakki, also sounded Japanese.”
Kakki named herself because she couldn’t say Kathleen as a toddler. Kathleen Clare means pure and bright, but Kakki means energy, vigor, and animated in Japanese, which she has embodied ever since.
Another time that prepared her for acting was when she pretended not to know her mom at work-related events. “My mom did not fully disclose she was a single mother at her company. At that time, maybe companies were not as supportive of this set-up … so in my pre-teen years, whenever I would need to join her in the hotel or convention for a conference, I would be on my own roaming around or just enjoying the room by myself watching Cable TV, and sometimes, pretend she is not my mom if we need to be out in public. And I actually enjoyed that performance!”
After dabbling in acting and singing in school, she moved on to professional theater. Here are some projects she considers career and life-defining:
“High School Musical” (HSM) (BlueRep and Stages/Trumpets): “My experience with HSM became my transition to performing ‘High School Musical Live’ in Hong Kong Disneyland. I opened the show in 2008 and was the lead female singer until 2009, performing every day in front of the Castle. This Disney kid was living the dream!”
“Zsa Zsa Zaturnah” (2011): “I was part of the ensemble and then an Amazonista cover. I auditioned for Queen Femina with Ateneo Blue Repertory in 2023 and played the role with a lot of passion.”
“Kung Paano Ako Naging Leading Lady” (2015). “I learned na sa reading pa lang ibigay ko na talaga ang lahat dahil with original musicals, you co-create the show! My role from a PA system (boses lang dapat) became as full-blown robot kasi pabibo ako! Ha Ha! This character was not in the play or comic book, but was added in the musical by director Chris Martinez because he saw the opportunity to bring this role to life. First ko marealize na – Wow! Pwede pala ‘yun? – and also again, just enjoy the process and keep creating because sometimes you get to create a character and grow into a role in the process.”
“Himala Isang Musikal” (2018 and 2019). “Simula nang napanood ko ang concert nito sa PETA, naging dream role ko na ang Nimia. Ang buong experience ko sa ‘Himala,’ mula sa mabusisi na auditions at matinding rehearsals kasama si Sir Vincent de Jesus, ang aming direktor na si Ed Lacson at ang mga kasama ko sa cast na sina Aicelle Santos at Neomi Gonzales at ang buong Cupang ang isa sa pinakamahirap, pinakamasarap, pinaka-meaningful, pinaka-rewarding na experience ko sa buong buhay kobilang aktor. Ito ang pinakapaborito kong musikal. Ito ang pinakapaborito kong role sa isang musikal. Mahal na mahal ko si Nimia. Nakabaon na siya sa pagkatao ko. And I would do this show again in a heartbeat. Nakakuha kami ng madaming awards sa show na ito, at ako ay nakakuha din ng nominasyon bilang Best Female Performance in a Featured Role, but again this musical was already the reward for all of us. (The film version of the musical is an official entry to the 50th Metro Manila Film Festival to be directed by Pepe Diokno.)
“Ang Huling El Bimbo” (2018). “I love being part of the original cast because I really enjoy co-creating a show, even if it will be difficult. Yes, it was really hard, yet it was also very rewarding. I only did not join the 2nd or 3rd staging of this but when I saw the shows, I can still see all the scenes and choices we made were kept, and that makes me feel good.
My learnings from doing this show have also informed me as an professional actor regarding my personal process, my limitations, my boundaries, and what I can do as a future theater producer.”
“Every Brilliant Thing” (2019, 2020, 2023). “The plot-twist of my career, which earned me my first Gawad Buhay Award. I was only supposed be an associate producer, because this show is about mental health, a personal advocacy of mine, and when they needed a cover and eventual alternate, I said yes to the opportunity, had three days to learn and rehearse this one-woman interactive show and perform it in front of an audience. Will always be grateful for Jenny Jamora for seeing me, and for allowing me to grow in this role along with Teresa Herrera, because I honestly never saw myself in this role, and now I cannot imagine life without this brilliant show. I would be happy to do this year after year, to new spaces and audiences and to keep sharing this advocacy to many Filipinos.”
“Pingkian” (2024): “When Jenny Jamora invites you to be part of a show, just say yes! It’s the best learning experience. Creating this original musical about a Filipino hero was an amazing opportunity.”
“Senior High” as Principal Perino (2023): “I’m grateful to Sir Deo Edrinal for choosing me for this role. It was a magical experience for my first TV series, with a great cast, directors, and team.”
