Gabbi Garcia / CONTRIBUTED PHOTO, MISS MANILA
Within a period of a month, Kapuso actress Gabbi Garcia was seen in two televised pageants—Miss Universe Philippines and Miss Manila—hosting the ceremonies of the two competitions with established international beauty titlists.
She shared the stage with 2022 Miss Universe R’Bonney Gabriel for the 2024 Miss Universe Philippines pageant on May 22, then reunited with her for the 2024 Miss Manila pageant on June 22, where they were joined by 2018 Miss Universe Catriona Gray.
“Grabe, it was too surreal. Nakakatuwa nga eh. Kahit ako, parang, ang tapang ko naman, ’di ba? (It’s so fun. Even me, like, I’m so brave, right?) I’m hosting with Miss Universe,” Garcia shared at the end of the Miss Manila pageant held at the Manila Metropolitan Theater.
The actress said the two international beauties made her feel comfortable on stage. “It’s so fun [because] everybody has the same wavelength, everybody has the same connection. And they’re just really beautiful inside and out, so it was easy to banter with them,” Garcia shared.
She also got help from Boy Abunda in preparing for her recent hosting stint. “He’s really my mentor for hosting now. I’m learning a lot from him. He saw me in [Miss Universe Philippines], and we saw each other two or three days after that. And he’s been telling me, ‘I watched you, you have potential.’ And then I asked him, I’m so eager to learn about hosting and to improve more. So he took me in, and it’s so fun because he gave me his time to mentor me for this one,” Garcia said.
The actress said she was also able to bond with the two queens backstage, and asked about the challenges they encountered during their reign as Miss Universe. She, in turn, shared the comments she received online asking why she is hosting with international beauty titlists. “Tawa rin sila nang tawa (They also just laughed). It was such a memorable thing for me, [because] I got to host with them, and I got to talk to them also behind the scenes,” she said.
Garcia also revealed that she has been a long-time fan of pageants, and shared how she would ask permission from her parents to stay up late to finish the telecast of the Binibining Pilipinas pageant. She also confessed about dreaming of becoming a beauty queen someday, but her current contractual obligations from brands and her network are preventing her from pursuing it.
“Right now, I’m focusing on hosting. I actually felt [that] I belong here, there’s this feeling. So why not improve more on it pa?” she said, adding that the feedback she has been getting from the Filipino pageant community has been encouraging.
Garcia said she was surprised at how big the Miss Manila pageant is, which made her see “how they value pageantry here in this part of the Philippines.” She also found the winners to be beautiful.
The Miss Manila title went to Aliya Rohilla from Sta. Cruz, while Manuguit’s Leean Jamie Santos and actress Xena Ramos from Sta. Ana were proclaimed Miss Manila-Tourism and Miss Manila-Charity, respectively.