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Mario Bautista, has been with the entertainment industry for more than 4 decades. He writes regular columns for People's Journal and Malaya.

Aug 29, 2018

Singer-Theatre Actress Kayla Rivera Back In Manila After An Absence Of Four Years To Do 'Side Show' That Starts Showing This Friday, August 31

KAYLA RIVERA joined showbiz when she left her home in Canada to become one of the contestants in “Star Power”, an ABS-CBN reality show in 2010. She emerged as 3rd runner up to Angeline Quinto. She quickly got a name for herself in local musical theatre and did one play after another like “In the Heights”, “The Addams Family” and “Carrie”.

Then in 2014, she suddenly left and decided to go back to Canada. What happened? The rumor was she got broken hearted after she and Tom Rodriguez broke up. Their romance bloomed when they were paired in the stage musical “Aladdin” at the Meralco where Tom played the title role and she was Princess Jasmine. Tom is now on with Carla Abellana and he swears his relationship with Kayla and Carla never overlapped.

But Kayla no longer wants to dwell on that and says the reason she left is she felt she’s not getting any younger. “I was already 23 then,” she says. “When I first moved to Manila, I was just a high school graduate. I felt it’s time for me to go back to school to get a college degree, so I enrolled at the University of Calgary in Alberta. I’m majoring in communication arts and economics. Now, one year na lang, matatapos ko na. While I was in Canada, I also worked as a receptionist and became a voice teacher. I’ve had many students, both young and old alike.”

Didn’t she miss acting in theater? “I did. I really did. That’s why when Atlantis called me up and this offer came to do ‘Side Show’, I agreed to do it right away. The show is about conjoined twins who rose to fame in the 1920s. They were called freaks, but at a young age, they were already trained musically. I’m Violet, the shy and more emotional one. My sister Daisy, played by Gab Pangilinan, is the more ambitious one. She really wants to be famous. We are joined on the hip. This is the first time I get to work with Gab and the other cast members, like Wency Cornejo, Arman Ferrer and David Ezra. Prior to this, I don’t really know all of them, but they’re all awesome. Gab and I are now so close like sisters and it’s really nice to be back.”

How about her lovelife? Does she have a new boyfriend? “Right now, none. Once I feel that this is not what I want for a lifetime partner, tinatapos ko na agad.”

“Side Show” starts showing this Friday at RCBC Theatre in Makati and will run until September 23. Also in the cast as the circus freaks are Christine Flores as the Bearded Lady, Ring Antonio as the Fortune Teller, Mica Fajardo as the Albino Lady, Alex Reyes as the Tattooed Girl, Jill Pena as Venus de Milo, Chesko Rodriguez as the Three-legged Man, Luis Marcelo as the Geek, Juancho Escoto as the Lizard Man, Vien King as Half-Man Half-Woman, and Tim Pavino as Dog Boy/Houdini. The show is perfect for the whole family.

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