If not for youtube, I would not have learned that Celine Dion invited our very own Charice Pempengco to sing with her on her concert at the Madison Square Garden as I seldom watch Oprah and TV Patrol on TFC. I got misty-eyed when I watched Celine inviting Charice to sing with her. I have a soft spot on my heart towards people who have humble beginnings and are given the chance of their lives to prove their worth. And thus, for 3 days I have pondered upon whether the concert will be worth the amount I was going to spend for the ticket. I finally decided to buy a loge ticket (same price as a floor level ticket) last Saturday.
I was excited about it. I had to swap my mass schedule with another priest so that I can go to the venue earlier last Monday night. It was my first time to watch a concert at the Madison Square Garden. An old lady was seated on my left and four young Filipino Nurses who just arrived here in the US this year were seated towards my right. The old lady told me that she came to see the “little girl” in Oprah’s show sing duet with Celine. I told her that I came for the same purpose and I proudly said that I am from the Philippines. When Celine sang “Because you love me”, she stopped and introduced Charice as a young girl from the Philippines who had a painful past on account of her parents’ marital problem, who as a kid joined almost every singing contest in her hometown and as someone who sang her songs perfectly and whose voice can blow the roof of Madison Square Garden. And then she called Charice who was seated with her mother next to Celine’s husband to join her in the stage and continue the song with her. She asked Charice what she feels being given the opportunity to perform before thousands of people in one of the world’s greatest concert venues. Charice said that she is nervous but Celine said that she felt the same when she was singing at the age of 12 and that she (Charice) should think that the audience are all her brothers and sisters. And when they sang together, Celine said that the song is dedicated to Charice's mother. We were in tears as Charice belted the high notes of the song. After the duet, the audience gave her a standing ovation and clapped for about 2 minutes. I was mesmerized, got misty-eyed once more and had goose bumps. Celine asked Charice if she will also invite her when she holds her own concert at MSG in the future, Charice giggled and they hugged each other. Celine said that she love her and she can't wait till Charice performs on her own concert at MSG.
Thank you Celine for giving Charice a chance to showcase her talent! Thank you Charice for giving inspiration to millions of Filipinos amidst the quagmire of problems in our country!
You made us proud to be Filipinos!
The two-hour concert was worth every penny I spent for the ticket. It was Celine Dion's first concert in New York in 10 years. My only regret is that I did not bring my camera (not even my point and shoot) as I scrupulously followed what was written in the ticket- “no camera/video recorder allowed”. To my consternation, I saw a lot of people who brought their cameras and the Indian lady seated in front of me even took a video of the entire concert!
The photos below were taken through my phone's cam (please bear with the poor quality).
1 comment:
I've been following Charice since seeing her Star King video on You Tube last year. Grown men (and women) cry when she sings. I don't know how she does it. Charice somehow taps into deep emotions and people are moved by her performances.
She is much more than an entertainer. She's a muse, a musical intuitive, a healer. I have read posts where people feel transformed by the power of her voice. I hope she will go far and obtain her wildest dreamsand aspirations.
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