Why Protégé winner Thea Tolentino is on fire

Thea Tolentino turns 17 today, and the blessings are pouring in. True to her title as the grand champion of Protégé: The Battle For The Big Artista Break, the talented young actress now gets her biggest break as she takes on the title role in the upcoming GMA Afternoon Prime series, Pyra.   Shy and conservative, she broke out of her shell when she decided to take her chances in show business. Eager to pursue her dream, she auditioned for Protégé: The Battle For The Big Artista Break. She sang "Torete" by Moonstar 88 while playing the guitar. Eventually, Thea was chosen as one of the official protégés for that season and one of the four protégés of Gina Alajar.   Among Thea’s many talents is singing. She sang and composed the song, Butterfly with her co-finalist, Mikoy Morales.  She also impressed the judges with her acting prowess. She went on to win the competition and was named Ultimate Female Protégé. Jeric Gonzales was named Ultimate Male Protégé.   After winning Protégé, Thea was paired with Jeric in the 2012 teen-oriented show, Teen Gen. The series is a spin-off of the '90s youth-oriented show T.G.I.S.  and revolves around a group of young people making the journey from adolescence to adulthood. Thea played K-Pop fan, Angge and Jeric played the handsome rich kid, Tiago. At the same time, Thea and Jeric were paired in the GMA Telebabad suspenserye, Love and Lies, headlined by Richard Gutierrez. Thea played Marissa, a house maid who falls in love with her employer’s son, Ryan (played by Jeric Gonzales).   After Love and Lies, Thea starred in yet another Primetime series, Anna Karenina. She took on the role on Angel, who pretended to be the real Anna Karenina Monteclaro.   Now, all eyes are on Thea Tolentino, as she breathes life into her first lead role. With her passion and talent, Thea definitely has what it takes to give justice to her character, Pyra. As Thea turns a year wiser, GMANetwork.com joins her in celebrating her career milestones. May her star shine even brighter. Happy, happy birthday to the girl on fire, Thea Tolentino. -- Samantha Portillo/Bochic Estrada, GMANetwork.com