The cast and crew of “FNL at the FAC”
OXON HILL, Maryland—To start the new year on a lighthearted noted, Filipino-American community leaders will host “FNL at the FAC” or “Friday Night Laugh-In” at the Filipino American Center (FAC).”
The event is billed as an evening featuring amateur comedians, storytellers, psychiatrists, magicians and a variety of local entertainers, to be held on Jan. 17 at 7 p.m. at the center on 7500 Livingston Road in Oxon Hill, MD.
Launched last year as a pilot, FNL will return to raise funds for survivors of Supertyphoon “Yoland” (international name: Haiyan).
“Our community has been through so much pain and loss lately, notably the tragic deaths of friends and loved ones and the devastation in the Philippines caused by Typhoon Haiyan,” says FNL producer Mya Talavera Grossman.
“That’s why we need to fortify ourselves with laughter and humor and stay healthy so we can be productive and creative in facing the challenges ahead,” she adds.
In a format patterned after TV’s popular talk shows, FNL will feature special guests including child psychiatrist Marilou Tablang-Jimenez, medical director of the Montgomery County Crisis Center. A mental health professional with sterling credentials, Dr. Jimenez will talk about “releasing those feel-good endorphins that are so essential to wellness and good mental health.”
Featured band Tutubi. CONTRIBUTED PHOTOS
Co-hosted by Manila Mail columnist Jon Melegrito and Abe Lobo, board chairman of the National Philippine Multicultural Center Foundation (NPMCF), the comedy show will also feature an “Open Mike” segment, where people in the audience will do a three-minute stand-up comedy routine or share their funniest, scariest, saddest and most memorable moments in life – from raising children to retirement.
Among those eager to share her “real story” is writer Rita Gerona Adkins. Well into her 80s but still sharp and going strong, Adkins will re-enact an attempted mugging incident that happened near her apartment in Arlington, Virginia, and talk about her “survival strategies” throughout the scary ordeal.
“By recounting how hysterical the episode is long after it happened, I’ve been able to deal with my own fears, being an elderly woman living alone, who sometimes walk the streets late at night.” But, she hastens to add, “not for the reasons naughty minds like some people I know might be thinking.”
Featured performers include the father-and-son musical duo Robin and Joseph Gopiao. Robin, whose bossa nova tunes on the alto sax will be accompanied by his dad on the keyboard, has won plaudits and awards.
Beny Rizal and Alex Fraser, known as “The Fraser Brothers,” will perform the best of pop heroes Michael Jackson and Bruno Mars. Adding to the evening’s magic are magic tricks by Tutubi Band Leader and Artist Julian Oteyza, a man of many talents and “tricks.” The Tutubi Band provides dancing music the rest of the evening until midnight.
“The evening is also a birthday party for all Januarians,” says Talavera-Grossman. “In fact, one of them is marking 70 years on planet Earth by, yes, coming down from cloud nine and letting his hair down. And he’s having the last laugh.”
The suggested donation of $10 and up covers dinner and a glass of wine or beer. Net proceeds will be donated to the NPMCF’s typhoon Haiyan relief fund.
For more information, call Mya Talavera at 240-441-6941 or e-mail myatalavera@aol.com.