Tessa Prieto Valdes

The much-anticipated return of WICKED did not fail to generate the buzz and crowd it was expected to. The throng that trooped to The Theatre at Solaire on February 8 was proof that this hit Broadway musical indeed has a Manila cult following, some of whom wickedly garbed in celebratory costumes, most flamboyant of which was Tessa Prieto-Valdes, a regular on big musical opening nights.

Coming directly from a multi record-breaking tour of the UK and Ireland, Stephen Schwartz' WICKED plays in Manila for the second time as part of a major international tour. Gala night was held last Wednesday, February 8, 2017.

18 months after it opened in Melbourne, the original Australian production of Cameron Mackintosh's reimagined edition of the 30-year-old megamusical LES MISERABLES officially opened at Queensland Performing Arts Centre's (QPAC) largest venue, the 2,000 seat Lyric Theatre, last November 13.

Celebrity socialite and occasional theater actress Tessa Rufino-Prieto Valdes, alongside WICKED Australasian tour stars Jemma Rix (Elphaba), Suzie Mathers (Glinda), Steve Danielsen (Fiyero), and Jay Laga'aia (The Wizard), hosted a live benefit auction at the end of WICKED'S matinee performance on Friday, January 31, at the Cultural Center of the Philippines' (CCP) main theatre.

Composers Noel Cabangon and Jed Balsamo, and book writer Layeta Bucoy's new musical "Sandosenang Sapatos" (12 Pairs of Shoes), based on Dr. Luis Gatmaitan's Palanca Award-winning children's story of the same name, premieres Saturday, July 13, at the Cultural Center of the Philippines' Tanghalang Huseng Batute.