So Much Love for Nora Aunor
by Ernie Pecho Daily Globe, May 20, 1991
So much love flowed from the hearts of more than 25,000 people who watched Saturday's Handog ni Guy at the Araneta Coliseum, the first-ever live concert of Nora Aunor in her 25 years in showbiz.
It was but proper that all the performers in the two-hour show, led by the phenomenal belle from Iriga, reciprocated by giving their very best for the already easy-to-please crowd.
That fulfillment of a long-time promise by La Aunor to stage a live concert of such magnitude was more than enough to make her fans ecstatic - to part with their hard earned money and fill up the Big Dome from the farthest row of the bleachers down to the most expensive seats at the patrons section.
No one seemed to mind the band's discrepancies, nor the faulty sound system which would normally elicit sneers from trained ears. The multitudes inside the coliseum were very happy with Nora's mere presence, and seeing her back on her feet yet again.
Nora Aunor gave her very best every song. Such a display of genuine affection from her fans overwhelmed her, but Guy managed to carry on with the show until the touching finale, when she performed Florante's "Handog."
The fans were already overjoyed when she opened with "People," one of the songs she sang in "Tawag ng Tanghalan", her first step to fame and glory.
Her "Yesterday When I Was Young" suite brought backed happy memories, when Aunor was just a simple, little singing darling. She sang the nostalgic airs of "Moonlight in Vermont," "True Picture," and "Moonlight Becomes You," the song which won her the top prize in the Tawag grand finals.
During costume changes (she had four beautiful gowns by Badong Bernal for the show), guest performers were featured. The Powerplay bands rap tribute to Nora (led by musical director Mon Faustino, who arranged all of Nora's numbers-except for the dramatic "What Now My Love" arranged by Richard Merck) and their updated versions of "Annie Batungbakal" and Bongga Ka, Day" were among the high points of the show.
Nora did a medley of OPMs including the Zsa Zsa Padilla original "Hiram" and the theme song from Sharon Cuneta's and Robin Padilla's record-breaking blockbuster, "Maging Sino Ka Man." Sharon herself jumped and wildly applauded while Nora was singing the Rey Valera composition.
The concert gained its peak point when Gary Valenciano took center stage with Nora. His ultra charged renditions of Natutulog Ba ang Diyos" and "Di Bale Na Lang" transmitted high energy to the crowds. Everyone danced and sang.
What brought the house down, though. was Gary V's duet with La Aunor. Their combined charisma electrified the house as they performed "Estudyante Blues" "Laki sa Layaw" "Pabonggahan" medley.
A surprised part of the show was the appearance of Edgar Mortiz, Richard Merck, Juan Rodrigo and Nora's fellow show biz personalities onstage doing a chorus of "That's What Friends Are For." In this portion, Sharon Cuneta, Fe delos Reyes, Rowell Santiago, Ike Lozada and even the Lobangco Sisters, Rachel and Lani participated. Of course, German Moreno, the producer of the show, was there too.
Before Nora did the final medley of tunes which included "Handog," her daughter Lotlot de Leon went onstage. The scene that followed was almost a reenactment of a footage from any of Aunor's many award-winning films, except that we could sense the sincerity in Lotlot's words.
Nora's daughter repeatedly said "I love you," adding "I am very happy na napakaraming nagmamahal sa inyo ngayon. Ang dasal ko lang sana ay walang hinging kapalit sa inyo ang pagmamahal na binibigay nila."
Then Nora's balae, Pilita Corrales, (with whom she had a long standing word war), entered the frame. They kissed and made up in front of the thousands of cheering fans.
Pilita congratulated Nora and said: "Dapat talaga matagal ka nang nag-concert, Guy, because I believe you are the best."
The crowd was rather amused as Nora kept on calling the Queen of Song as "Tita Pilita" instead of balae.
As a first-timer on the concert stage, Nora Aunor passed the test with flying colors. In spite of the seemingly unsurmountable stress and strain of such a challenge, Nora's vocal brilliance shone in such numbers as "What Now My Love" the "This is My Life-Greatest Performance-I Will Survive" medley, and "Wind Beneath my Wings."
The Golden Brown Girl has a lot more to give. She knows she must continue her mission in life to entertain the masses, no matter what.
"Kakanta ako hanggang gusto ninyo, aarte ako hanggang gusto ninyo," Nora Aunor pledged.
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