JERRY OLEA
Natawa si Catriona Gray nang uriratin tungkol sa recent tsismis na kesyo ikakasal na sila ni Sam Milby.
Read: Netizens ask: Is Catriona Gray engaged to boyfriend Sam Milby?
“Medyo nagulat ako kasi nakita ko yung mga article na married na ako daw.
“Ahhm, but I guess there’ll always be rumors naman,” sambit ni Catriona sa mediacon ng National Arts Month (NAM) nitong Pebrero 1, 2023, Miyerkules ng hapon, sa Metropolitan Theater ng Manila.
Napag-uusapan na ba nila ni Sam ang tungkol sa kasal?
Napangiti si Miss Universe 2018, “Oo naman. I think we’ve been together for long enough that we got to talk about it.”
Noong Pebrero 2020 pa kinuha ng National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) si Catriona bilang Art Ambassador sa taunang pagdiriwang ng NAM.
Lumahok si Catriona sa arts and cultural activities na KULTURA 101 with Catriona, “The Grand Reveal” featuring the Metropolitan Theater, Padayon: The NCCA Hour, at Quincentennial Commemorations in the Philippines.
Natutuwa siyempre si Catriona na balik face-to-face na ang mga kaganapan ng National Arts Month this year sa buong bansa — Luzon, Visayas, Mindanao, at National Capital Region.
May kani-kanyang paandar ang mga komite sa Architecture and Allied Arts, Cinema, Dance, Dramatic Arts, Literary Arts, Music, and Visual Arts.
“Ani ng Sining, Bunga ng Galing” ang tema ng NAM 2023.
Ang opening ceremony ay gaganapin sa Pebrero 12, Linggo, sa Rizal Park Open Air Auditorium.
Sabay-sabay ang aktibidades ng seven art forms sa araw na iyon.
2:00-4:00 p.m. ang walking tour and workshops on visual arts, action-song for theater, dance, indigenous music, short film using smartphone, and spoken words.
6:00-8:00 pm naman ang performances na tampok si Joey Ayala, Kalinga Music, spoken word poetry, film showing, classical guitar, rondalla, theater performance, at iba pa.
Promulgated by then President Corazon Aquino in 1991, Presidential Proclamation Number 683 declared February of every month as National Arts Month to celebrate the artistic excellence and pay tribute to the uniqueness and diversity of the Filipino heritage and culture.
Pahayag ni Catriona, “Arts was really one of the pathways that led me to fall even more in love with my country.
“It really opened up a pathway for me to know the Philippines as an identity and also to discover my own identity — what it means to be a Filipina.
“But as you all know, February is also known as Love Month. So I’m thinking of the correlations between the two.
“But of course alam, niyo ba, during Love Month, of course kung may significant other ka, you’re thinking of ways to show them how much you care about them, to tell them how you appreciate them, and to make them feel loved and seen.
“But I guess this Arts Month, this February, we can think of all the ways that the Philippine arts and culture is like a love letter to our own country.
“From the Filipinos, from our own countrymen to our countrymen. It’s wonderful to allow people internationally to see and appreciate and know our arts but what moreso of the wonderful act that is to allow our kababayans to fall even more in love sa ating bansa through our arts.
“Which is something that I can personally testify is very much possible and allows our love to grow and appreciation to grow that lasts for a lifetime.”
Nanawagan si Catriona na suportahan ng mga tao ang events ng National Arts Month.
Aniya, “It’s a hybrid. We have live events and online events. So if you want to bring your date to an event, why not to one of our National Arts Month events to experience or even to get to know better, just to showcase that Philippine arts really has a lot to offer.”
Para sa mga detalye ng events ng National Arts Month, bisitahin sa tuwi-tuwina ang social media accounts ng NCCA, parikular ang Facebook, Twitter at Instagram.
GORGY RULA
Maraming pinagkakaabalahan si Catriona.
Andiyan ang “Raise Your Flag” series para sa YouTube channel niya.
Andiyan din ang music and travels.
Tuluy-tuloy ang efforts niya sa NCCA.
“Really prioritizing Arts Month this month, allowing their events to get as much push as possible,” sabi ni Catriona, na dadalo sa ilang events ng NAM.
If ever, aling events ng NAM ang gusto niyang puntahan kasama ang boyfriend niyang si Sam?
“Well, busy yung schedule niya this month but if he had no schedule in theory, we’d love to go to one of the workshops,” tugon ni Catriona.
“Acting workshop is one of the events for Arts Month and I don’t know anything about acting pero alam ni Sam so it’s interesting, I suppose. Hi! Hi! Hi! Hi!”
Inamin ni Catriona na may offers sa kanyang sumubok mag-acting pero wala pang dumarating na angkop sa kanya.
“I mean, I think it’s also a space that I would really need to train in because I don’t consider myself an actress,” pagpapakumbaba ni Catriona.
“Am I open to the opportunity? Absolutely. But I know that I would have to prove my worth and being there and not just bank on being a former Miss Universe.”
Maliban kay Catriona, nagsalita sa NAM 2023 mediacon sina Oscar Casaysay (NCCA Executive Director), Marichu Tellano (NCCA Deputy Executive Director for Administration and Support Services), Victorino Mapa Manalo (NCCA Chair), Dr. Arvin Manuel Villalon (Commissioner, Subcommision on the Arts), Dr. Cathe Desiree S. Nadal (Head, National Committee on Architecture and Allied Arts), Butch Ibañez (Vice Head, National Committee on Cinema), Dr. Shirley Halili-Cruz (Head, National Committee on Dance), Niles Jordan Breis (Head, National Committee on Literary Arts), Kaye Oyek-Daya (Vice Head, National Committee on Visual Arts), at Edward Perez (Head, National Committee on Dramatic Arts).
Nagpakitang-gilas sa performances ang Sindaw Philippines, ang soprano na si Myramae Meneses, at si Bayang Barrios.
Ang hosts ng programa ay sina Kakki Teodoro at Jules Guiang.
Siyempre pa, ang daming nakipag-selfie kay Catriona.
Paglabas ni Catriona ng MET ay may nakaabang pa sa kanya para magpalitrato kasama iyong souvenirs na mga watawat at accessories sa welcome parade niya dati.
NOEL FERRER
And like a woman with many talents, kasama rin si Catriona sa Valentine shows na hinihintay ng mga followers nila ni Sam sa Newport Performing Arts Theater.
Seemingly, ang daming ginagawa ni Cat pero kayang-kaya niya iyan dahil sanay na siya sa multi-tasking and she does well sa mga pinapasukan niya.
All the best, Cat, thank you for always making us proud!!!