HER VERY GOOD YEAR
by James P. Ong, Metro, January 2003
SHARON Cuneta is leaning against the wall. She is wearing a black silky blouse and matching black pants while sitting on a chair in the studio of photographer Jun de Leon. From where she is she can see the hotel staff walking up and down the corridor. She can see de Leon's staff fixing equipment for the next pictorial. And, if she looks to her left, she can see two ladies from Bulgari sitting meekly on one side of the room. They are waiting for a pair of dangling white gold and diamond earrings that are still drooping from the megastar's ears. They are worth slightly less than a quarter of a million pesos.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Sharon coos, and walks towards the girls to return the gems on loan for the pictorial. The ladies say they don't mind, and that Sharon could, in fact, wear them as long as she wanted.
We have a special package just for you, one of them announces. A whispered negotiation ensues. Sharon says she'll try them on longer to see if they won't clamp down too tightly on her ears. Bulgari agrees that that would be the best arrangement. Sharon says she will have them returned by her driver the next day it she decides not to get them.
Earlier, during the about, Sharon was presented with the Bulgari set, and shecouldn't help but show her glee. "I have an obsession with jewelry," she says out loud, to no one in particular. "Is this going to be my next purchase? I deserve it, you know."
And how. In the lead up to her 25th anniversary in Philippine show biz this January, Sharon has probably achieved more than any other star in 2002 in terms of projects. Last August she held a two day sold out concert at the Araneta Coliseum dubbed The Mega Event where, apart from getting thousands of fans to attend, her other coup was performing with the San Miguel Philharmonic Orchestra with Ryan Cayabyab as conductor, and getting big names like Martin Nievera ("He has done more for me than any co-performer has") and Gary Valenciano to sing with her. She replicated the same feat in a similar concert later in Cebu City.
In the last quarter of the year, she was given the Dangal ng Musikang Pilipino Lifetime Awards at the 15th Awit Awards. A month after, she launched her first international album under BMG records in Singapore.
She was named Best Actress during the Manila Film Festival in June for her role in Viva Cinema's Magkapatid, as a busy doctor and mother whose close relationship with a younger sister (Judy Ann Santos) is put to the test when she loses her child because of that sister's negligence.
Sharon says this movie was significant for her not just because she got to work with Judy Ann, who is widely perceived to be her successor in terms of popularity, and with whom she still keeps in touch ("We call each other 'Sis'."), but also because she was paired, yet again, with actor Christopher de Leon. "We have done more movies together than anyone," she notes.
In the same month she was given a civic award by the City of Manila the Patnubay ng Sining at Kalinwigan for cinema. This meant more to Sharon than the other acting and singing citations, perhaps because the list of awardees was more varied but just as equally respected; her fellow recipients included the likes of Raul Locsin for architecture, Agnes Arellano for sculpture and the late Santiago Bose for new art form.
Sharon's many successes in all these years in showbiz make her want to give something back to the industry, perhaps as a producer or a star in a low budget, independent movie. "I have more freedom now as an actress. I can try out stuff, I don't have to stick to a formula. I do want to give a chance to new writers or film school graduates who have these great ideas."
On the home front, Sharon says one of the best things that happened to her in 2002 was going on a long overdue vacation with her immediate family and her mother and brother to Paris and then Bangkok, where she was when she heard the news of Rico Yan's death. "That's when I realized that, if I were to die, that was the perfect time. It was so happy being with my family and I felt so much at peace."
When everyone was busy shopping for gifts last December, Sharon was wrapping other things stuff from home as she prepared to move, temporarily, to a condominium unit. The sprawling Mandaluyong house where she lives with husband Senator Francisco Pangilinan and their children, two year old Frankie and 17 year old KC, will be undergoing renovation by architect Ramon Antonio.
When asked if she will allow her daughter with ex-husband Gabby Concepcion to live by herself when she turns 18 this year, Sharon gives a definite no. "We're Filipinos, and we have our own values. I don't know about other families. But, of course, if she says she wants to study abroad I will not deprive her of that chance it would be good for her to enjoy anonymity, to be just one of them." KC finishes Grade 12 at International School Manila this June.
Despite the difficulties she encounters in rearing celebrity children, however, topping Sharon's agenda in 2003 is having another baby. Or babies. "I don't mind twins, I don't even mind multiple twins. I just want a minime," she laughs.
That would give Sharon, who turns 36 this January, the best excuse to slow down, which she also wishes she could do soon, but "I have to earn money." She doesn't mean it in a fake, humble way, either. She says she is proud to say that she takes care of her mother ("It's an honor for me"). Her assets, she says, are tied up in solid investments, and she truly needs to earn cash. "Let's just say that my father didn't leave a will."
Lastly, one of Sharon's personal accomplishments is her weight maintenance. She says she's lost 60 lbs over two years, but refuses to say how much she weighs now. But this much she admits to: her only exercise is running the treadmill, so she relies on her diet to lose weight. "I have skinless chicken days, seafood days, a day of pork or lamb..." Well, it can be tough to be on top of the world.
