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From sun up to sundown, the revelry went on, with colorful masks all over the place, the air hinting of the city’s pride—chicken inasal.

Photographic.

This year’s Masskara Festival exhibited all shades of vibrancy as Bacoleños and tourists alike gathered in celebration of Bacolod’s largest fete. From sun up to sundown, the revelry went on, with colorful masks all over the place, the air hinting of the city’s pride—chicken inasal.

Glad to have witnessed and participated in the said festival are some of the Kapuso Network’s primetime stars who starred in crowd-drawing events mounted by GMA Regional TV.

Last October 17, a crowd estimated at 5,000 flocked to the Main Atrium of SM City Bacolod to see their favorite Strawberry Lane stars. It was an event fulfilling both for the fans and artists alike.

Singer-actress Sheryl Cruz serenaded the audience with her latest album’s carrier single, Mananatili. Seeing Sheryl for the first time, a long-time fan burst into tears and was actually shaking when the actress called her on stage to sing to her.

A teenage girl, meanwhile, was ecstatic when Jake asked her to join him. She even gave Jake a flower and showered the teen actor with kisses.

Cheers and giddiness filled the venue when Jake Vargas sang for on-screen partner Bea Binene. They were also joined by Sunshine Dizon and Kim Rodriguez who facilitated a game and sang, respectively.



The next day, October 18, the festival reached its peak and more or less 7,000 people partied their way to the People’s House (formerly New Government Center) to witness Bet ng Bayan’s Western Visayas Regional Showdown.

The Bacoleños were welcomed by no less than Asia’s Songbird, Regine Velasquez-Alcasid, who opened the exciting event with lively Masskara dancers.

Excited about the show and its promise of ushering in new talents, Regine said, “It’s been really wonderful. Ang dami na nilang [contestants] pinagdaanan kasi maraming stages ‘to eh, may provincial finals, ngayon nasa regionals na tayo and then after regionals magkakaroon na ng semi-finals and then [grand] finals. If you watch it from the beginning, you will see your contestants growing, especially kung magaling at nanalo siya parati.”

With her that night was co-host Alden Richards, who was equally thrilled with his first hosting stint.

“I really told GMA Artist Center po if they could give me a hosting job, if possible. Hindi ko naman po in-expect na ganito kalaki, ang laki naman agad, agad-agad, Bet ng Bayan nga po with Ms. Regine Velasquez-Alcasid. Ang sarap pong mag-host kasi it’s another angle for me,” he said.

Western Visayas’ regional bets for the singing, dancing, and novelty act categories impressed the panel of judges composed of Pop Diva and Ilongga Kuh Ledesma, renowned musician Louie Ocampo, and well-loved Bacoleño, Eat Bulaga Dabarkads Allan K.

Hiram na Alaala’s Kris Bernal, Rocco Nacino and Lauren Young starred in a Kapuso Meet and Greet following the Bet ng Bayan regional showdown. All three delighted their fans with performances that had the audience energized for the Charter Day Countdown that immediately followed.

“We owe this year’s successful and well-attended Masskara Festival activities to the people of Bacolod who have been very supportive of the Network through the years. It is this same loyalty that drives us to come up with more relevant and enjoyable shows for our Kapusos in the regions.
Truly, Masskara 2014 is one colorful event, made even vibrant by the strong ties we keep with the Bacoleños,” shared GMA Network’s Head for Regional Strategy and Business Development (RSBD) Division and Assistant Vice President for Regional TV Oliver Amoroso.



To know more about the latest on the Network's regional events, follow GMA Regional TV on Twitter via www.twitter.com/GMARegionalTV and on Instagram via www.instagram.com/GMARegionalTV.