Bea sets the thespic pace in ‘A Love to Last’

Ian Veneracion (left) and Bea Alonzo

Last Jan. 9, Bea Alonzo’s new teleserye, “A Love to Last,” costarring Ian Veneracion and Iza Calzado, began its romantic-dramatic storytelling, with its lead actress’ focused and felt portrayal pacing the rest of the stellar cast.

From the get-go, she showed why some people regard her as her generation’s finest actress: She believes her character’s backstory and present-day parameters, making her performance eminently credible and empathetic.

Ian does well enough in his role as a very successful married man who loves his wife (Calzado), but is shocked out of his comfort zone when she asks for an annulment!

But, his performance has less bite and teeth to it, so he ends up as Bea’s thespic consort, while she sets the thespic pace.

Still, Ian does better than Iza, who is so distantly curt and contained as the unhappy wife who causes her family great pain with her selfish decision to focus on herself and her problems.

The role is full of conflicts and contradictions, but the actress opts to take the “generically sad” way out, and just plays it ineluctably “unhappy.”

We trust that she’ll be given more time and thespic elbow room in succeeding telecasts to show why her character has come to this querulously quixotic crossroads in her life, even as it focuses more on its main Bea-Ian “love on the rebound” storyline.

A strong suit of the new drama series is its brisk pacing, which enabled it to cover a lot of storytelling territory in just its initial telecast.

Let’s hope that it can sustain this efficient and focused progression, so that all of its principal characters can be insightfully developed and limned.

Another plus factor is the presence of “colorful” veteran stars like Pilar Pilapil and Melanie Marquez. Pilar shines as Bea’s wealthy and demanding client, who first makes her aware of Ian’s existence.

We trust that Pilar’s character won’t be just an occasional presence on the show, just to add sass and pizzazz to it, but will figure strongly in its plotting and thematic development.

As for Melanie, her characteristically ditzy comeback performance is similarly diverting, albeit on a lower scale, so the series’ younger leads will have to work hard to keep up with their “seniors.”

As for the teen actors who play Ian and Iza’s kids, Julia Barretto does well, but JK Labajo is too nervous and “generically troubled” as her errant younger brother. He should learn how to relax and focus, and not rely on distracting thespic tics to “indicate” his vague and fuzzy dis-ease.