Gretchen resigns from air force to join showbiz
August 21, 2006FREEHAND
By: Mario Bautista
People’s Journal
PBB’S karate champ Gretchen Malalad has resigned from the Air Force to try her luck in showbiz. “I was officially discharged after three years of working with them,” she says.
She’s now one of the four regular teachers in “Pinoy Dream Academy”. She will be teaching physical fitness to the 16 PDA scholars. Jim Paredes has come from Sydney, Australia where he now lives to be the academy’s headmaster or principal. Moy Ortiz of the Company will be teaching music and voice lessons while Maribeth Bichara will teach them the various forms of dance. There will be extra teachers to handle other subjects like acting, public relations, etc.
“We chose Gretchen to teach fitness as she really teaches martial arts in the gym and taebo to the soldiers in Villamor Air Base,” says PDA director Lauren Dyogi.
“But I’ve suited the curriculum I prepared to the needs of the PDA students,” she adds. “More on cardio exercises para they have greater stamina for singing and dancing.”
After PBB, has she seen Aleck Bovick again? It will be remembered some nasty writers linked them while they were inside Bahay ni Kuya. “Oh yes. Four months na ang tiyan niya and she asked me to be the ninang of her baby. She’s very happy with Carlo Maceda.”
She’s now also training to compete as a karateka in the Asian Games. “But I’m really glad to be part of PDA. This weekend, we are meeting the 38 finalists as they perform in the final elimination round in Cebu. From 38, only 16 scholars will be chosen.”
Direk Lauren says they held auditions in various cities not only locally but also in Sydney, Dubai, Tokyo, San Francisco, and Milan, Italy. “Sa 38 finalists, 11 are from abroad, 12 from Metro Manila and 15 from the provinces. One contestant is a DH in the United Arab Emirates. Another one is half-Japanese, half-Filipino. Among the Eurasians, we notice na kahit sa Europe sila lumaki, they speak Tagalog fluently, unlike the ones who grew up in the U.S. na hindi marunong.”
Just like PBB, PDA is franchised by the European company, Endemol. “It’s known in other countries as Fame Academy or Star Academy. But unlike PBB, this one is less strict with the scholars. They can wear watches and we allow them contact with the outside world, although on a limited basis.
They will stay in the PBB house as their dorm, attend classes in the new PDA building we constructed for them adjacent to the PBB house, and perform live every Saturday night in a show at the huge concert hall we also built for them.
Our aim is for them to develop their skills while inside the academy. The contest proper starts on August 28 and will be aired nightly at ABS-CBN Primetime Bida. For two weeks, they’ll all just study. September 2, they’ll hold an exhibition concert to show what they’ve learned so far. Expulsion starts on September 9. Three jurors, who change each week, will choose four students for probation. The regular teachers will save one and the remaining students will save another one. Only two students will remain and it’s the text votes of the viewers that will determine which one will be expelled or saved. This will be repeated every week until only six students remain for the finals on December 6 that will be held at the Araneta Coliseum.”
The main hosts of PDA are Toni Gonzaga, Sam Milby, Bianca Gonzales, and Nikki Gil, with JC Cuadrado, Bettina Carlos and Sitti hosting the Studio 23 updates. Speaking of Sitti, she will be the featured artist at Dish ABS-CBN this Wednesday, August 23, presented with Crossover 105.
What does Sitti mean? “My mom is Muslim and Sitti means princess in our dialect,” she says.
Sitti is a UP graduate whose relaxed singing style is perfect for easy listening and her soothing voice is suited to the complex harmonies of the Brazilian music genre called bossa nova. She has released an album under Warner Music with 18 tracks and she’ll sing a lot of these at her Dish show. For tickets and great dining experience, call 413-0614.
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