ABS-CBN.com’s reigning ‘Drama Princess’ Bea Alonzo speaks up

By Rachelle Siazon
Source: beta.abs-cbn.com

Bea Alonzo was overwhelmed when she learned that thousands of online fans hailed her as the number one Drama Princess in a recent ABS-CBN.com poll.
"Wow! Nakakatuwa, nakakatouch, nakakataba ng puso," Bea exclaimed in reaction to her poll victory. But along with the honor of being named the Drama Princess comes the pressure of living up to her fans’ expectations. "Nakaka-pressure kasi I don’t consider myself as one (drama princess). Pero kung yun yung tingin nila syempre ia-accept ko. Pero hindi dapat yun ilalagay sa ulo. At nagpapasalamat talaga ko lalo na dun sa mga sumusuporta sa akin from the very first soap na sinalihan ko," she humbly acceded.

Bea had proven her acting chops in various hit teleseryes like Kay Tagal Kang Hinintay, It Might Be You, and Maging Sino Ka Man 1&2. But in spite of her achievements, she refused to think of herself as the next premium leading lady, following the likes of Claudine Barretto and Judy Ann Santos. She also maintained that there’s no rivalry whatsoever between her and the other drama actresses (Anne Curtis, Angel Locsin, Kim Chiu, and Roxanne Guinoo) who were also in the poll. "None at all. Lalong-lalo na almost everyone of us galing sa Talent Center. Parang one team yun eh," she explained.

Whatever issues of rivalry with other Star Magic artists are immediately addressed with the help of their manager Mariole Alberto of Star Magic. "At kung may kompetisyon man, it's a healthy competition. Hindi kami nagsisiraan. It's a competition of projects, of performances," the young actress added. When it comes to the success of her soaps, she shares the credit with her colleagues in the industry as a whole. "Hindi naman magwo-work ang isang teleserye kung ako lang nagtrabaho dun. I was so lucky to be given a team na passionate sa trabaho. At dun naman ako sumasaludo sa ABS-CBN—sa production staff nila at sa creative team nila—binibigyan talaga nila ako ng project na maipagmamalaki ko."

Also, since Bea joined the network’s recent teambuilding program, it enhanced her working relationship with them and helped her remember her true mission as an actress. "[Inspiring the viewers] is actually my main goal even before I entered show business. It wasn’t for fame or stardom. I wanted to touch lives. After a while, kapag sobrang napapagod ka na sa trabaho nawawala yung [drive to do that]. Pero nakatulong yung seminar sa buong group kasi it makes you go back to your core, kung ano bang rason bakit ka andito."

In the meantime, Bea is really excited to discover who will play Armando in I Love Betty La Fea which has already begun taping. She also said knowing who her leading man will be would make it easier for her to internalize her character’s emotions. When ABS-CBN.com asked who between Betty and Bea would get a love life first, Bea answered, "Hindi ko alam pero sana sabay para makatulong sa akin as an actress, para nag-glo-glow talaga yung mata ko."

After the controversy involving Jake Cuenca, does she feel uncomfortable going out with someone else again? "No naman. Feeling ko you have to be responsible for your actions every time. So if you don’t want to be talked about then don’t go out," she simply stated. Unlike other celebrities, Bea maintained that she is not the type who’d resent the rumor mill because it’s just part of showbiz. "Yun ang paniniwala ko sa showbiz eh. Bigyan mo sila ng totoo babalikan ka nila ng totoo. Bigyan mo sila ng pagmamahal, ibabalik nila sa’yo pagmamahal (din)," she ended.

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