Nora Aunor’s casket showered with petals, gold confetti during funeral march
LIVE UPDATES: Nora Aunor’s State Funeral and Hero’s Burial
Nora Aunor’s portrait is shown on the stage of the Metropolitan Theater as a shower of petals brought a moment of silence to the audience. INQUIRER.net / Noy Morcoso
Before National Artist Nora Aunor’s cortege arrived at the Libingan ng mga Bayani for the culmination of the state funeral and hero’s burial, she was honored with a flower petal shower and metallic gold confetti, bespeaking her true character as Superstar of the masses.
A necrological service was held at the Metropolitan Theater for Aunor where more eulogies and tributes offered, with her flag-draped casket at the center of the stage, adorned with funeral wreaths and a black-and-white portrait just behind it.
Like a vignette from a film, the state necrological services was bittersweet event as accolades pour in for the late actress, moving her family and friends to tears.
The program, which started with the arrival honors at 8:30 a.m. at the Arroceros Forest Park, was marked with solemnity.
An audiovisual presentation documenting Aunor’s contributions to Philippine cinema, OPM, and other pursuits can be seen onstage. Among its highlights were performances from Aicelle Santos, the Philippine Madrigal Singers, Jed Madela, and Angeline Quinto, where they sang “Walang Himala,” “Handog,” and “Superstar ng Buhay Ko,” respectively.
National Artist Ricky Lee, filmmaker Joel Lamangan, former ABS-CBN CEO, and the National Archives of the Philippines executive director (representative of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.) Victorino Mapa Manalo also honored Aunor’s life with speeches, with Lamangan and Lee sharing snippets of her off-screen personality.
Before her funeral march, Aunor’s children Ian, Lotlot, Matet, Kenneth, and Kiko expressed their gratitude to the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) and the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) for the heartfelt program documenting her life.
Children of Nora Aunor: Ian, Lotlot, Matet, Kenneth and Kiko de Leon. Image from Noy Morcoso/ INQUIRER.net
As honor guards prepare to carry her body to the hearse that will bring her to the Libingan ng mga Bayani for her state funeral, more fans came out from the theater balcony to take their last glimpse of the Superstar and shower her casket with metallic gold confetti and flower petals.
The funeral march began at around 11:00 a.m., capping off the two-hour state necrological services held in tribute to Aunor’s life and legacy. Her casket was greeted with a myriad of cameras, adoring fans, and special guests, hoping to get a glimpse of the late Superstar.
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WATCH: The casket of the late Nora Aunor was showered with metallic gold confetti and flower petals, as it was carried out of the Metropolitan Theater (MET). | @HMallorcaINQ
READ MORE: https://t.co/EMp9y6v2i0 pic.twitter.com/RcobOuvXkQ
— Inquirer (@inquirerdotnet) April 22, 2025
The flower-lined casket was placed at the center and was watched over by two honor guards on both sides of the stage. A black-and-white photo of Aunor and the emblem of the Order of National Artists was placed behind it.
WATCH: The casket of the late Nora Aunor was carried from the Metropolitan Theater (MET) at around 11:00 a.m., as her body is set to be brought to the Libingan ng mga Bayani in Taguig for her internment. | @HMallorcaINQ
READ MORE: https://t.co/EMp9y6v2i0 pic.twitter.com/oG2iCA5MYi
— Inquirer (@inquirerdotnet) April 22, 2025
