Starry-eyed over ‘Star for A Night’
By Arlene Paredes
2bU! Correspondent
I WAS 22 when I became a fan for the first time. It all started when “Star for a Night” (now defunct) began airing on Channel 13 five years ago.
One lazy weekend when I was channel surfing, I saw this one pale and thin guy with a soothing baritone voice and lovely chinito eyes singing “Love Always Finds a Way.”
Right off the bat, I noticed his eyes were cute. Also, he really knew how to project to the camera and take his audience on a journey by singing with the right emotions. It was really entertaining to see a budding singer doing what he was passionate about, and doing it so well.
I thought if this guy was really a natural just like he seemed to be, then he has a place in show business. (I later learned that he had been singing for parties and was even part of a “boy band” in Cagayan De Oro City.)
I stayed tuned to find out if he would win, and he did. He emerged as the “Star” for that night. As for me, I found myself campaigning for Mark Bautista during the grand finals of “Star for a Night” months later.
Later on, I joined an e-group created by some girl from Southern Manila who would become one of my most cherished friends. I even designed a website for Mark! At the time, you couldn’t find much information about “Mark Bautista” on Google. I couldn’t even find more than one photo of him online.
Mark himself gave me some pictures for his website. But that’s getting way ahead of the story.
The girl from Southern Manila is Tina Cruz. She found my Mark Bautista entry in my blog and told Mark about the article I wrote.
Apparently, Mark read it and was flattered. He left a message in my blog and even left his mobile number. Naturally, I called him. The instant I heard that low, sexy voice on the phone, I knew my life as a fan had reached a milestone. We later met in person and were text buddies for a while.
Tina was the one who walked me in much further into the world of fans. I did manage to cross the threshold somehow, on a special occasion—my birthday in 2003. Tina texted Mark about my birthday; then Mark texted to greet me, and told me he was going to a show in Tagaytay, which was just 20 to 30 minutes away from our apartment in Dasmariñas, Cavite. Politely, I asked if he could come over and join me, Tina, and some other friends.
Of course I was expecting him to beg off. After all, celebrities always had excuses for invitations like mine.
But his reply was: “Puwede daan na lang kami ’pag pauwi na? Mga 6 p.m. kasi ’yung show eh.”
My heart skipped a beat. Did Mark just say that he was coming over for my birthday?
He actually came and met some of my friends. It was a small and simple dinner, so my late mother was a bit embarrassed (and very amused) that I had the nerve to invite a celebrity over.
My mother didn’t know any young stars, not anyone outside the Vilma-Nora generation, but she knew Mark Bautista because of me. Still, she seemed unconvinced that a young celebrity was in her home. So she asked him to sing a few lines, a capella, of course, and he gamely did.
Mark sang a few lines of “Because of You.” Seeing my mother smile the way she did was priceless. After Mark sang, my mother became more embarrassed. She wouldn’t even kiss Mark when he attempted to buzz her before leaving, saying she was sweaty from all the cooking. Mark kissed her on one cheek, anyway.
The next morning, the entire neighborhood already knew that the singing voice they had overheard the previous night was Mark Bautista’s, thanks to my starstruck mother.
When I became a trainee at ABS-CBN, I kept in touch with Mark. Tina and I saw the final taping of “Sarah The Teen Princess” and were later invited to, and joined the cast’s farewell party.
It’s been years since Tina and I last watched a concert. We got busy with our lives and eventually realized that being a fan had an expiration date for us. But we still keep in touch. Mark, after all, has never kept his distance.
As far as Tina and I are concerned, we are so damn proud that the young balladeer we admired during a weekly singing competition has gone this far, and our being fans has left a lasting souvenir—our cosmic bonding. The experience of being a fan was worth all the time and money spent on concerts, because fanhood bonded Tina and me.
At some point, we all have to let loose and be a little less ordinary. I was a fan and I definitely enjoyed being one.
E-mail the author at crypticmess@gmail.com
