Eat Bulaga Moves to APT Studio This Saturday

‘Eat Bulaga’ is officially on the move.

On Saturday, December 1, ‘Eat Bulaga’ announced that it will move to the new APT Studio in Cainta, Rizal next week. The first episode at the new studio will take place this Saturday, December 8.

Located at Marcos Highway in Cainta, APT Studio is a few minutes’ drive from Robinsons Metro East, Sta. Lucia East Grand Mall, SM City Masinag and Ayala Feliz Mall. The studio is beside the College of San Benildo-Rizal’s elementary and high school departments and is in front of the Town and Country Executive Village gate.

The APT Studio is a brainchild of ‘Eat Bulaga’ producer Tony Tuviera. It was built at a reported cost of over P 1.5 billion.

The studio is expected to hold a larger seating capacity compared to Broadway Centrum; the overall number of seats yet to be determined. It will also feature updated video and audio technology such as high-definition cameras.

Saturday’s episode of ‘Eat Bulaga’ at the new APT Studio will include most of the show’s current hosts. However, there is one notable mainstay that will not be a part of the festivities.

Senate President Tito Sotto, who previously announced his intent to leave ‘Eat Bulaga’ while in his current position, is not expected to attend. Still, even without one of the show’s founding fathers, expect the same old ‘isang libo’t isang tuwa’ at the new studio this Saturday.

In the meantime, ‘Eat Bulaga’ will hold five ‘taped-as-live’ episodes at Broadway Centrum from Monday up until Friday. This arrangement is made in order to allow TAPE Inc. and APT staff to smoothly move their operations to APT Studio within the next few days.

Erratum: The article “In 100 Words: Eat Bulaga Set to Move to a New Studio” erroneously stated that the APT Studio is located in Marikina, when in fact it is within the jurisdiction of Cainta, Rizal. 

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In 100 Words: Eat Bulaga Set to Move to a New Studio

The inevitable is about to happen.

‘Eat Bulaga’ announced Saturday that they are expected to move to a new studio anytime next month (dubbed ‘lipat bahay’ in the teasers). The new studio, aptly named the APT Studio (after ‘Eat Bulaga’ producer Tony Tuviera), is located at Marcos Highway in Marikina.

This will mark the fourth time that ‘Eat Bulaga’ moved to a different studio, and the first to be independently funded. The program previously occupied the following studios:

• Broadcast City Studios (1979-88; with RPN-9)
• Celebrity Sports Plaza (1988-89; with RPN-9)
• Dolphy Theater (1989-95; with ABS-CBN)
• Broadway Centrum (1995-2018; with GMA)

Broadway Centrum is expected to be demolished shortly after ‘Eat Bulaga”s move to the APT studio. It will be replaced by a high-rise condominium unit developed by Megaworld’s Empire East Holdings.

The Comeback Bossing: Vic Sotto and Maine Mendoza Star in Daddy’s Gurl

Remember when Vic Sotto used to star in various sitcoms almost every week for an eternity?

For over 30 years, the Philippines’ favorite ‘Bossing’ did just that. In fact, From the Tube chronicled the history of sitcoms starring Vic Sotto in a two-part series, beginning with ‘Okay Ka Fairy Ko’ all the way to ‘Hay, Bahay!’.

Unfortunately his last sitcom, ‘Hay, Bahay!’ proved to be a forgettable one as it did not last for more than a year and was essentially considered a flop. As a result, ‘Bossing’ decided to change course and hosted the late-night talk show ‘Bossing & Ai’ with Ai-Ai delas Alas which was also short-lived.

Now Vic Sotto is back at it again, this time with a new partner. Does Maine Mendoza still ring a bell to viewers?

The last time Maine was seen on a non-‘Eat Bulaga’ project was 2017’s ‘Destined to Be Yours’ alongside on-screen partner Alden Richards (this does not include a guest part in ‘Daig Kayo ng Lola Ko’). Fast forward to now and Maine is looking to redeem herself, this time in the world of comedy.

The project that Maine and ‘Bossing’ will take part of is ‘Daddy’s Gurl’ which will premiere this Saturday. And unlike Vic Sotto’s past sitcoms which were studio-based, ‘Daddy’s Gurl’ was shot on location in Manila and Batangas.

‘Daddy’s Gurl’ will tell the story of Barak (Vic) and Stacy (Maine). In the sitcom, Stacy, a modern-day millennial living in a plush condominium unit, is visited by her father Barak, a promdi widower who decides to join her in Manila.

From there, the two will find themselves at odds over their contrasting styles of living. As Barak grapples with the reality of living in the city’s high-rise district, Stacy will look to feed her father into the social media age.

Confirmed to be a part of the sitcom are Wally Bayola, Oyo Sotto, Angelika dela Cruz, Kevin Santos, Jelson Bay, Jessa Chichirita, Chamyto and Benjie Paras. Chris Martinez will be the director and like all of Vic Sotto’s past sitcoms, his production company M-ZET Productions will co-produce the program alongside APT Entertainment and GMA Network.

‘Daddy’s Gurl’ should offer a different spin unlike previous Vic Sotto sitcoms. But it remains to be seen if this program will put ‘Bossing’ and Maine back on track.

For what it’s worth, ‘Daddy’s Gurl’ could be the last stand for Vic Sotto in the sitcom genre. One can only hope that it will be the beginning of a renaissance for this seemingly archaic comedy veteran.

And as for Maine Mendoza, good luck in silencing the doubters. Maybe comedy will suit her better.

‘Daddy’s Gurl’ airs every Saturday after ‘Pepito Manaloto’ on GMA.

Studio 7: GMA’s Primetime Version of ASAP

Call it a ‘new era’ for GMA.

On Sunday, GMA will embrace this culture change with a new variety show called ‘Studio 7’. The program, which airs every Sunday night, will highlight the network’s young but oftentimes underappreciated talent, plus some newcomers to go along with it.

‘Studio 7”s first two episodes will feature performances from the likes of Christian Bautista, Julie Anne San Jose, Mark Bautista, Gabbi Garcia, Rayver Cruz, Kyline Alcantara, Migo Adecer, Mikee Quintos, Kate Valdez, and twins Mavy and Cassy Legaspi. There will also be a comedic skit from DonEkla, composed of comedians Donita Nose and Tekla.

In addition, the finalists of ‘The Clash’, led by grand winner Golden Cañedo, will make an appearance. Golden will be joined on stage by Jong Madaliday, Garrett Bolden, Josh Adornado and Mirriam Manalo.

‘Studio 7’ will also feature interactive segments such as Trending (stories of viral, heartwarming and interesting personalities online), G na G (a challenge where the hosts must perform a task given by netizens), and On the Spot (a vocal showdown between the network’s top singers). And finally, audiences are encouraged to join in alongside the performers and interact during their performances.

For starters, GMA is once again working on a brand new variety show. However, there is one glaring omission on ‘Studio 7’ that piqued the audience’s interest.

When ‘Studio 7’ was announced to the public two weeks ago, Regine Velasquez was conspicuously absent. The erstwhile host of ‘The Clash’ officially became a free agent as soon as the show ended, but at the moment she remains undecided on her future plans.

It is also worth noting that ‘Studio 7’ will air on primetime every Sunday, in contrast to past GMA Sunday variety shows. Perhaps the network’s inability to defeat ‘ASAP’ (and subsequent yielding of the noontime slot to APT Entertainment for ‘Sunday PinaSaya’) that became the impetus for ‘Studio 7”s move to primetime.

Still, ‘Studio 7’ will have its hands full against ABS-CBN’s ‘The Kids’ Choice’ in its timeslot. While the latter has not been a favorite of viewers from the start, its decent ratings will still pose a test to ‘Studio 7”s resolve.

That said, getting a few victories should give ‘Studio 7’ and GMA’s young talent a sense of vindication. For now, though, the show is slated to air only 14 episodes, and if executives are satisfied perhaps it might run a little while longer.

‘Studio 7’ airs every Sunday after ‘Daig Kayo ng Lola Ko’ on GMA.

The Inevitable: Moving to ABS-CBN Might Rejuvenate Regine Velasquez’s Career

From Kapuso… to Kapamilya?

The future of Regine Velasquez’s career has been hanging in the balance over the past month. As Regine’s contract with GMA is set to expire, there were reports of her moving to ABS-CBN to join her husband Ogie Alcasid.

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Those rumors escalated further when Regine unexpectedly showed up at the ABS-CBN Ball Saturday night despite making an appearance on ‘The Clash’ for its final weekend (Saturday’s episode was pre-taped while Sunday’s episode was aired live). With all things considered, is Regine of no use to GMA and would be better off joining ABS-CBN?

First things first, let’s look back at recent history. Back in 2015, Regine was a host and performer on ‘Sunday All-Stars’, but low ratings and changing timeslots forced GMA to give up the show and allow APT Entertainment to take over the Sunday noontime slot with ‘Sunday PinaSaya’.

Regine did not join ‘Sunday PinaSaya’ because of a perceived ‘lack of familiarity’ and from that point on her career with GMA stalled. Her two acting projects in ‘Poor Señorita’ and ‘Mulawin vs. Ravena’ failed to beat Coco Martin”s long-running series ‘Ang Probinsyano’, while a primetime variety show in ‘Full House Tonight’ ran for only four months.

While Regine remained visible as an on-air talent via the cooking show ‘Sarap Diva’, it was clear that her days with GMA are being numbered. The fact is, Regine is no longer that relevant as a Kapuso star with all those recent projects that did not work out.

It only got worse when her one-time co-performers on ‘SOP’ (namely Ogie Alcasid, Jaya, Kyla, Jay-R and Janno Gibbs) found a new outlet in former rival ‘ASAP’. With GMA lacking any capable recording artists to keep up with ABS-CBN’s, Regine finds herself helpless to cope with the dearth in talent.

Which is why moving to ABS-CBN might help rejuvenate her career. Not only will she expected to make appearances with her former ‘SOP’ brethren on ‘ASAP’, she will also have an opportunity to become a judge in one of ABS-CBN’s upcoming talent shows (rumor has it that she might join ‘The Voice’ as a judge).

More importantly, Regine’s love for performing will be rekindled within Kapamilya walls, especially during ‘ASAP’. That alone may be a long shot given the abundance of performers on ABS-CBN, but given Regine’s track record that may be too good to pass up.

Still, it will be up to Regine Velasquez to decide the next phase of her career. Let’s just hope that she chooses something that will be best for her.

Can AlDub Rule Primetime with Destined to Be Yours?

Alden Richards and Maine Mendoza’s biggest test lies ahead.

After spending over a year captivating viewers with their spontaneous ‘kilig’ and acting skills on ‘Eat Bulaga”s Kalyeserye, the popular love team now moves over to primetime for a new challenge. As a reward to their enduring success, GMA and APT Entertainment gave Alden and Maine a new project in hopes of conquering a new audience.

Enter ‘Destined to Be Yours’, the upcoming drama series which will air later tonight on GMA Telebabad. It will be Alden’s first lead primetime series since the ill-fated mini-drama ‘Ilustrado’, while it will be the first for the still-relative newcomer Maine.

In ‘Destined to Be Yours’, Benjie (Alden) is an up-and-coming architect who spearheads a construction project in the mountainous area of Pelangi. As fate would have it, he meets Sinag (Maine), a radio jock in the province, and the two soon fell in love with each other.

However, their philosophical differences would soon get in the way of their relationship. That said, it will be up to them to sort their issues and find true love within their hearts.

‘Destined to Be Yours’ will also star Janice de Belen, Boots Anson Roa, Lotlot de Leon, Gardo Versoza, Tommy Abuel, ina Feleo, Ronnie Henares, Sheena Halili, Dominic Roco, Juancho Trivino, RJ Padilla, and Koreen Medina. It will be directed by Irene Villamor.

While Alden and Maine have established themselves as a love team to be reckoned with, conquering primetime will not be easy for the two. The dominance of ABS-CBN’s Primetime Bida, in particular, has taken its toll on GMA Telebabad, and for the network, giving AlDub a teleserye of their own could be the block’s last chance at survival.

It will also be interesting to see if AlDub on primetime can win over netizens on social media. Considering how highly successful ABS-CBN is in drawing millions of tweets for their shows, GMA will definitely have their hands full trying to make an impact online with AlDub’s newest series.

As AlDub takes over GMA Telebabad, it remains to be seen if their overwhelming success on noontime will translate over to primetime. With high expectations mounting, GMA can only hope that Alden and Maine will deliver and reverse course for the seemingly moribund Telebabad block.

‘Destined to Be Yours’ airs weeknights after ‘Encantadia’ on GMA Telebabad.