Robert Seña and Isay Alvarez are like any other couple. Their relationship has its ups and downs, glued together both by sunny and rainy days for more than two decades now.
Robert Seña and Isay Alvarez
In a chance encounter recently, we asked Isay the secret to their marital success.
“It’s because we love each other,” she began.
Later, the details surfaced. One big factor is that both of them are into music. While they were school mates in college, their paths did not cross until four years later when they found themselves performing together in the 1989 London production of award-winning musical “Miss Saigon.”
“He is the type of guy who never failed to surprise me,” Isay recalled, adding Robert always sent her gifts and flowers during rehearsals.
These days they still work together. Obviously, it hasn’t affected their personal lives at all.
“I’m used to working with him. It’s like buy one, take one. I found it really hard to work solo, I always want to see him,” she said. “Yes, there are times we are in a bad mood but we are professionals. If I see him mad and I know that it could affect me while performing, I just ignore it. I think that’s the secret to our chemistry. It’s also nice that we get to travel together because of work.”
Asked to name a song that best describes their happy marriage, Isay cited “All I Ask Of You” from the “Phantom Of The Opera.”
She sings: “Say you love me every waking moment/Turn my head with talk of summertime/Say you need me with you now and always/Promise me that all you say is true/That’s all I ask of you...”
‘Flourishing’
Robert and Isay were two of the performers at the recently-concluded concert “OPM Playlist.”
The event saw more than a hundred artists join forces for six-day celebration of Filipino musical talent across all genre and decades.
“I’m very proud to be part of this event. Actually when Mr. Ryan Cayabyab asked us several months ago to participate, we immediately said yes. This is a special event because it opens doors for Filipinos to appreciate the kind of music we have,” was how Isay put it.
Isay noted that OPM is flourishing thanks to the rise of talented young artists into different musical genres.
Isay, who has been in the scene for decades now, thinks the secret to longevity is “reinvention.”
“I always try to do something new, try to always improve. We don’t stop learning, we push ourselves to the limit.”
The word retirement is not in her vocabulary. However, she admitted there are times she gets exhausted, even doubting her mettle as artist.
“You know, it’s always difficult before the show. You get nervous, you get worried the audience will not appreciate your effort. But once I get on stage, my doubts disappear. I make sure that whatever happens, I will give my 100 percent to the performance.”
As for future projects, Isay revealed they are currently working on the re-staging of “Dirty Old Musical,” which features her husband along with John Arcilla, Michael Williams, Bo Cerrudo, and Nonie Buencamino.