Not even the heavy rain and Metro Manila’s notorious traffic succeeded in stopping Zac Efron’s fans from flocking to the SM Mall of Asia Arena last Saturday for the Penshoppe Fan Conference 2012.

 

  Not even the heavy rain and Metro Manila’s notorious traffic succeeded in stopping Zac Efron’s fans from flocking to the SM Mall of Asia Arena last Saturday for the Penshoppe Fan Conference 2012.

 

The gigantic arena was filled with thousands of screaming fans of all ages, quite a number of whom carried either posters of Zac or cut-outs of letters that spelled out the actor’s name. 

 

The gates opened at exactly 6:00pm but the show didn’t start until 8:30.  The relative silence of the audience was broken when a five-minute countdown flashed on the stage’s large LED screens.  The screaming built up to a fever pitch all hell seemingly broke loose when the counter ticked down three...two...one. It was show time!

 

After the energy-filled performances of RnB King Jay-R and the all-female trio “La Diva,” the UP Pep Squad set the stage for the entrance of the main star by cheering to the beat of popular tracks from Zac Efron’s films including “We’re All In This Together” from “High School Musical,” which launched the 24-year old actor’s Hollywood career.

 

As soon as Zac came on stage, the screams inside the arena became deafening -- and Zac hadn’t even done anything more than wave and smile!  He came down the ramp and shook hands with those who were seated on either side of the stage to the envy of some who were seated in other sections.

 

Zac did not perform any songs. Instead, he sat down with TV host Boy Abunda for a tell-all interview.

 

In it, Zac recalled how he was cast for “High School Musical,” which opened amazing opportunities for him. “Just like the others, I auditioned.  It was more like an audition for Broadway.  We were told to sing or perform as a group and afterwards, they would tap some members of the team on the shoulders and there were others who weren’t tapped.  I didn’t get tapped and so I was kinda nervous.  At the end of that, they said that if you got tapped on the shoulders you can leave,” recalled Zac.  

 

Zac said that one of his fondest memories of “High School Musical” is the relationship she shared with his now ex-girlfriend Vanessa Hudgens whom he referred to as his “first Filipina girlfriend.”  Vanessa is actually half-American and half-Filipina (her mom is a Filipina).

 

“I met Vanessa [at the auditions] and we just clicked right away,” Zac said.

Since the couple split up in 2010, Zac has not been into another relationship and has focused entirely on his career.  But now that he is turning 25 this month, he’s already thinking about marriage, and watch out, girls: he’s currently searching for “the lucky one.”  

Asked what type of girl he is looking for, he answered, “I don’t know. Maybe she’s [Pinay]!”  Needless to say, that answer caused another roar inside the arena.

By the end of the event, Zac had fielded several questions and his now-hoarse fans went home satisfied. A few luckier ones had extra-kilig stories to tell, like the girl who boldly asked Zac to be her first kiss and the actor obliged -- lucky girl!

Apart from the fan conference, Zac also did pictorials and video shoots for his endorsement of the clothing brand Penshoppe, which allowed him to go to scenic spots in the Philippines.

 

Zac Efron also said in a later interview he had a great time visiting the country.  He mentioned that his dad, who was with him for this trip, used to visit the Philippines when he was a small boy. He is glad that, finally, he has experienced the wonderful things about the country that he had only read or heard about in the past.

 

“It has been a dream of mine to come to the Philippines and, finally, I’m here,” said the young actor. 

 

GMA Network is the official broadcast media partner of the Penshoppe Fan Conference 2012.  As such, GMA’s shows like StarTalk, 24 Oras, Unang Hirit and Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho were allowed exclusive one-on-one interviews with Zac Efron.