Vilma Santos keeps promise to Edgar Mortiz, joins concert repeat

When the first “Goin’ Standard” concert of director-actor-singer Edgar “Bobot” Mortiz was staged last June, his popular loveteam partner, Batangas Governor Vilma Santos, was out of the country. Although Santos sent a video greeting, she also committed that if ever the concert would be restaged, she will not miss it for the world.

She did not commit to any performance, but when Mortiz called her onstage, Santos gamely went up and congratulated her former screen partner. 

The Vi and Bot fans in the audience were obviously thrilled. Even the regular concert goers were just as excited seeing the two together after decades.

“Nasa Japan po ako last June,” Santos said. “But when I learned about the repeat, nangako ako. I told him, ‘Bot, I will be there.’ Present.”

Santos even commended Mortiz. “Ang galing pa rin ni Bobot. Grabe.”

Mortiz readily revealed there are only two women that won his heart. “Alam mo Vi, dalawang babae lang ang malapit sa puso ko. Dalawang babae lang ang naging girlfriend ko. Si Vilma at saka ang misis ko.”

Mortiz is married to Millet Santos for 49 years last April. They have four children, born one year apart when she was only 17. By the time she was 21, she was already “ligated.”

“Pero tignan niyo, bumagsak din siya sa Santos,” Santos pointed out.

“Vi maraming maraming salamat,” enthused Mortiz. “Sana next time duet naman tayo.”

To which she smilingly countered, “Dancer ako, Bot.”

“Isa ngang swing diyan,” he dared her.

“Patay kang bata ka!,” said Santos who readily danced to the lilting dance music. It was not a tall order to make her flex her muscles anew briefly. She used to dance every week in her musical-variety show, “Vilma,” on television.

Musical director Rodel Colmenar who led the Manila Philharmonic Orchestra (MPO) played Michael Buble’s “Sway” and the two erstwhile lovers danced.

When Mortiz was about to sing “My Pledge of Love,” a song identified to both of them, he requested Santos to go up onstage again. And she gamely sang with him. The audience screamed. 

Mortiz disclosed that right after the successful concert last June, there was immediately a producer willing to restage the show. When that happened, Mortiz lost no time to look for new standard tunes in his music room at home. His daughter, Camille, readily countered him and said he does not need new songs. That’s why the concert is tagged the “repeat.”

Yet, Mortiz continued to scour the stacked file of papers, especially the scribbled notes by his mom, who wrote lyrics of the songs then. “My mom was only 15 ad my dad was 17 when they got married,” Mortiz told the audience. “Everybody knows I started singing in ‘Tawag ng Tanghalan’ when I was only 13. I won for ten weeks.” He dedicated “Strangers in the Night” to them.

He brilliantly regaled the audience with stories in between songs so he could rest, after he opened with Frank Sinatra’s “Let Me Try Again.” He was backed up by the Manila Philharmonic Orchestra with maestro Rodel Colmenar as musical director.

He rendered more standards – “For Once in My Life,” “I Wish You Love,” “I’ve Got the World on a String,” “Yesterday I Heard the Rain,” “How Do You Keep the Music Playing,” and “You and Me (We Wanted It All).”

Throughout the night at the full-house Proscenium Theater, Mortiz dished out popular standards by Frank Sinatra, Johnny Matthis, Nat King Cole. The concert was produced and presented by TJAV Productions.

Mortiz reminded everyone that his “Goin’ Standard” album, released three years ago, was being sold at the theater lobby in vinyl form. The album was released by Curve Entertainment. 

There were hardly any Gen Zs in the crowd. Mostly seniors graced the packed theater and they undoubtedly made Mortiz’s heart swell.

The second part of the concert saw all of Mortiz’s guests onstage one after the other. Everyone previously worked with him at some point, With young actress Belle Mariano who started in “Goin’ Bulilit,” with Mortiz at the helm, they carried out “Something Stupid.”

“Isang tawag ko lang dito (kay Belle),” Mortiz said.

“You’re one of the people who believed in me,” a grateful young artist said.

When Christian Bautista was still starting, he worked with Mortiz in the series “Kampaneran Kuba.” They did a duet of “This Is All I Ask,” while Gigi de Lana sang “If I Ruled the World” with him.

Mortiz was one of the judges (hurado), when De Lana won in the daily ‘Tawag ng Tanghalan’ contest on “It’s Show Time.”

Power belter Bituin Escalante did a duet of “What Now My Love” with Mortiz and also rendered Nat King Cole’s “Orange Colored Sky.”

Mortiz’s long-time friend, singer-actor Tirso Cruz III, rendered Frank Sinatra classics – “Come Fly With Me,” “Fly Me To the Moon,” “Night and Day,” “I’ve Got You Under My Skin.”

“Hindi kailangan pilitin basta ikaw,” Mortiz told Cruz.

Mortiz’s daughter, Caitlin, shared the stage with her dad and they sang “Who Can I Turn To.” Mortiz’s wife, Millet, was in the audience. He dedicated the song, “Happy Anniversary” to her.

 In the audience that night were celebrities close to Mortiz – Randy Santiago, Iza Calzado, Rio Locsin, Harlene Bautista and Federico Moreno, a slim Charo Santos (the older sister of Millet Mortiz), Julius and Tintin Babao, Rico Hizon, Narciso Chan, Rudy Tee and Serafin Pua.