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(First of two parts) If Svetlana Cvetko's visually delectable and thematically provocative mnage trois drama "Show Me What You Got" were conceptualized and shot in the Philippines, it wouldn't be hard to imagine TBA Studios, the maverick indie-churning production company associated with such titles as "Heneral Luna," "I'm Drunk, I Love You," "Lingua Franca" and "Dito at Doon," producing it. For TBA, it's always been as much about artistic taste as storytelling innovation. And that is why we've patiently sat through every single one of its projects---from its groundbreaking innovations in filmmaking to its excusable occasional missteps. Shot in stylish and steamy black-and-w...

Keep on reading: ‘Show Me What You Got’: Ménage à trois demystified

For its new season, "Pepito Manaloto" returns to the 1980s and explores how everything began for the beloved characters of the long-running GMA 7 sitcom. Titled "Unang Kwento," this prequel shows the first-ever meeting and campus lives of future couple Pepito and Elsa, who were originally played by Michael V. and Manilyn Reynes. Young Pepito, portrayed by Sef Cadayona, is a shy, smart boy from Bulacan who's always ready to give a helping hand to his family and those who are in need. Young Elsa (Mikee Quintos) is a book-smart, competitive transferee from Cebu whose charm easily captivates her classmates' attention, including Pepito's. "I think this is the best direction for t...

Keep on reading: ‘Secret formula’ still at work in ‘Pepito Manaloto’ prequel

Capitol Police Officer Harry Dunn recounts how rioters called him and other officers racial slurs as they clashed with police during the January 6 riot.

The first Teatro Europa was held virtually last year at the onset of the pandemic, and the organizers are again holding the festival's 2021 edition online. The full video performances will be available Aug. 1-31 on Teatro Europa's Facebook page (@TeatroEuropaPH), with reruns in September. "Theater is a mirror of all human emotions and helps us to better understand Europe and its culture, from the plays staged in ancient Greece to the current online performances," said European Union Ambassador Luc Vron. "Teatro Europa provides a platform for artistic Filipino youth to share their talents in acting, directing and production design." The recent Teatro Europa Zoom launch was attend...

Keep on reading: Student theater groups collaborate with EU in virtual festival

Bea Antonio, retail operations and training manager for L'Oreal Philippines and indoor cycling instructor for Ride Revolution, has been balancing both jobs while working from home. "I have been trying to get back into some hobbies that I haven't had the time to do, like reading and making some art," she said. "I also recently decided that I want to get certified for scuba diving." Another thing she makes time for? Working out. Antonio, 29, has always led an active life. "At an early age, I was exposed to all sorts of physical activities---swimming, badminton, kickboxing, dance, etc., and I cannot remember a time when I didn't have any form of activity on the side." She admits...

Keep on reading: This Ride Revolution instructor also enjoys doing deadlifts

Last week, we discussed how history seems to be repeating itself with a one-size-fits-all strategy of mass vaccination for COVID-19, just as the scientists and health officials attempted to do during the Spanish flu of 1918, but desisted from it when they observed that it was not working to control the pandemic. Lucia Sto. Tomas of Makati City says that we don't have to go that far in time; just look what happened in the Dengvaxia catastrophe of 2016, when we prematurely rolled out the mass vaccination program to all schoolchildren, only to realize six months later---after having given close to a million doses---that it's not safe to give to children younger than 9 years old without h...

Keep on reading: Why I’m steadfast in my COVID commentaries despite criticism

MANILA, Philippines --- The Delta variant could drive Metro Manila's daily new COVID-19 cases to 11,000 by the end of September if health protocols would not be properly imposed, the Department of Health (DOH) said Tuesday citing projections. "We acknowledge that there is an increase of our case metrics which is why we urge people to continue adhering to the minimum health standards and get vaccinated, and for our local government units to strictly implement our protocols," Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said in a statement. "Otherwise, we might see daily active cases in NCR [National Capital Region] to reach 11,000 by the end of September 2021 based on the projec...

Keep on reading: Delta variant may raise daily COVID-19 cases in NCR to 11,000 by end of September – DOH

In a conservative country like the Philippines, talking about sex is sometimes seen as taboo. However, a youth-led organization called Amarela disregards this belief. Determined to make sexual and reproductive health care accessible in the Philippines, Amarela encourages conversing about sex, abortion, birth control and everything that Filipinos believe should be kept behind closed doors. In this exclusive interview with Lifestyle, the organization's founder Nina Co and chairs Kira Velasco and Arya Cabutihan lend their insights on the importance of youth activism and Filipinos' sexual and reproductive health rights (SRHR). Though the organization only started in 2019 with six me...

Keep on reading: Youth-led org’s call to destigmatize sex talk in PH

The Justice Department formally declined to assert executive privilege for potential testimony of at least some witnesses related to the January 6 Capitol attack, a person briefed on the matter said.

MANILA, Philippines --- The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) arrested on Tuesday five suspected drug pushers and seized from them 15 grams of crystal meth, locally known as shabu. A PDEA spot report identified the suspects as Macartos Montanes, 26; Luisito Manuel, 42; Marvin Cayanan, 40; Mandro Doque, 54; and Noime Canaleta, 35 years old. The suspects were arrested at 1:50 a.m. at North Triangle Alliance in Barangay San Jose, Rodriguez, Rizal. Authorities also drug paraphernalia, the P1,000 used as buy-bust money, and a pack of cigarettes. RELATED STORIES PDEA destroys P1.295-B worth of illegal drugs in Cavite PDEA seizes P3.4-M worth of 'shabu' in Quiapo drug bust ...

Keep on reading: PDEA arrests 5 suspected drug pushers in Rizal bust

MANILA, Philippines --- The Commission on Audit (COA) has asked the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (CEZA) to start collecting past dues from businesses in the area --- particularly those that have been delayed from 31 days to 10 years already --- a total of P148.101 million. According to COA's 2020 audit report for CEZA, these payments should be collected immediately especially as there had been a stark increase in uncollected funds --- increasing from just P92.70 in 2019 to P157.0 million as of Dec. 31, 2020. COA said that CEZA could have used these funds to aid its operations. About 95 percent of the uncollected obligations --- or P140.706 million --- are due from First C...

Keep on reading: COA orders CEZA to collect over P148 million of dues from firms

You know the old line about Ginger Rogers doing everything Fred Astaire did, just backward and in high heels? That's also the story of world-class women athletes: They're doing most of what the men do (and sometimes more), and doing it while being ogled, booed, scolded, sanctioned, fined and otherwise hyper-policed because of what they wear to compete.

Devastating wildfires have spread across parts of southern Europe, tearing through the Spanish and Greek countryside and forcing around 1,000 people from their homes on the Italian island of Sardinia.

New footage showing the events at the Capitol on January 6 was shown during a House select committee hearing investigating the riot.

There's no replacing Simone Biles. But her teammate and confidante Jordan Chiles was tasked with trying.

MANILA, Philippines --- The Department of Health (DOH) called on independent experts to be more careful in their statements about the COVID-19 pandemic in order to avoid causing panic. The DOH did not mention who it was referring to, but earlier in the day, OCTA Research fellow Ranjit Rye said that Metro Manila is "officially in a surge" of COVID-19 cases after some local government units confirmed cases of the highly transmissible Delta variant. Rye likewise urged the government to immediately impose "circuit-breaking" lockdowns to prevent the further spread of the Delta variant. READ: OCTA: PH needs 'circuit-breaking' lockdowns now amid Delta variant In a statement, the...

Keep on reading: DOH to independent experts: ‘Be more careful in making pronouncements’

It looks like the Kutcher-Kunis family is saving money on soap.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nFdHnjr6wPk TOKYO---Hidilyn Diaz has seen it all, heard it all. She's watched her name surface in a government matrix that detailed supposed conspiratorial destabilizers. She's seen her performance dip below standards she is accustomed to. A pandemic stranded her in Malaysia, locking her away from her family for 18 months. "People said I was over the hill," Diaz said. "I really went through a lot. Well, everyone is singing praises to her now, a day after she ended the country's quest for an Olympic gold medal by ruling the women's weightlifting 55-kg division at Tokyo International Forum late Monday night. Bashers who fed her reputation and ...

Keep on reading: ‘Worth it’: Hidilyn Diaz sacrificed a lot for Olympic gold