Cherie Gil —PHOTO BY MARK NICDAO
If her late brother Mark Gil were still around, singer-actress Cherie Gil was certain he’d be just as busy—running all over the place, making sure that everything was perfect for the clan’s latest venture: a concert paying homage to the patriarch, Eddie Mesa, aka the Elvis Presley of the Philippines.
Cherie, who is the show’s producer, asserted: “Ralph (Mark’s real name) would attend every meeting. He’d be dishing out ideas. He’d help me organize everything. He’d bring sunshine and laughter to this project.”
As the big day (Sept. 23) draws near, Cherie owned up that she misses all the more her dear brother, who passed away three years ago due to cancer.
“He was my sounding board and confidant,” she said. After pouring her heart out, he would “wipe away the tears and stress with his humor, and we’d end up laughing like crazy. That’s Ralph!”
Her brother would also make sure that everyone in the cast and crew was well-fed. “He’d cook for everyone and bring food to every rehearsal!”
He has always been the Eigenmanns’ staunchest cheerleader—lauding every triumph and hailing every milestone with his booming voice.
“I am sure he’d be applauding in the wings,” Cherie remarked. “I wish that he were still with us … but we made sure that his presence would be deeply felt.”
For starters, the concert, titled “Sing Us Your Song Again: The Music and Legacy of Eddie Mesa,” was scheduled during Mark’s birthday weekend. (Mark would’ve turned 56 on Sept. 25.)
Coincidentally, the restored classic, Mike de Leon’s “Batch ’81,” which topbilled Mark, will be screened in Venice today, as well.
“We’re all excited about it,” she enthused. “I want a copy of the new poster! I’ll frame it and hang it on my wall.”
It’s quite an auspicious time to celebrate the achievements of the family’s heroes, Eddie and Mark. “No other date is more meaningful,” Cherie explained. “It’s just fitting that we should convene at this point … to give tribute to our father and my brother.”
Cherie pointed out that her dad had “paved the way for all the Eigenmanns.”
He made things easier for the rest of the clan. “We didn’t have to experience the same hard climb as he did. With this concert, we would like to share, through songs, his humble beginnings and his ongoing journey.”
It would be a sight to behold: watching Eddie and his children Cherie and Michael de Mesa, plus his grandchildren (Ryan, Gabby, Geoff, Max, Andi and Sid Lucero) on the same stage.
It’s no coincidence that the concert will be held at the Meralco Theater, the same place where “dad did his last show, ‘The Best of Times,’ 25 years ago.”
“My dad always reminded us to be professional, to love everything about the business,” she said. “Or as my mom (actress Rosemarie Gil) would put it: DDD … discipline, dedication and determination.”
The same values (plus “humility, honesty and love of God”) she had learned from her parents, she would hope to pass on to the next generation of Eigenmanns.
Apart from the show biz Eigenmanns who will be seen onstage, another progeny will be taking part in the show—albeit, behind the scenes.
“My eldest son Jay will be arriving from New York to do the sound for the concert,” proud mom Cherie volunteered.
Jay is a professional sound engineer in the United States, Cherie related. “Gary Valenciano always requests Jay to do the sound for his concert tours there. Jay has also done work as director of productions for Le Poisson Rouge in New York, for the Pulitzer-winning opera (Du Yun’s “Angel’s Bone”), and for the Japanese rock band toe.”
Jay had to take time off from his “rigorous” schedule, to join the show “because it would mean so much to him and his Papa (grandfather).”
Cherie quipped: “Plus, being my son, I know he’ll do his best to make me sound good!”