“Tao Po” correspondent and ABS-CBN News reporter Anjo Bagaoisan gauged the sharpness of Shaina Magdayao’s memory by quizzing her about some of the characters that she had portrayed over the years.
He started off with Carina from the 2000 family drama flick “Tanging Yaman,” which, according to Shaina, she would never forget since it was her first time learning how to pray the rosary through the guidance of her co-star, late veteran actress Gloria Romero, who taught her how to. At a young age, she recalled not having any tinge of awareness that she was very fortunate to have worked alongside the ‘greats’ of this industry.
Another character of hers that she would definitely not forget is Severina Montecillo from “Ang Tanging Ina,” as she revealed that the cast actually continues to keep in touch with each other up to this day through a group chat.
Next was Maribel Dela Fuente from the 2010 Philippine adaptation of the Mexican telenovela “Rubi,” in which she got to work with the late primera kontrabida Cherie Gil, who played as her mother. “I didn’t really have a hard time because comfort zone ko ang drama,” Shaina related. “Although, I think ‘yan ang isa sa efforts ng management to help me portray more mature roles.”
She went on to share her habit of scrupulously studying every role given to her, most especially those roles that are based on real-life personalities and that leave valuable lessons for audiences. One of those is the character she played in the “Tubig” episode of “Maalaala Mo Kaya” which first aired in 2019.
The seasoned actress considers “Sarah” the most difficult character that she has ever done, since she was an overseas Filipino worker (OFW) in Saudi Arabia who was raped five times by five different men.
“Growing up, nagpo-portray na talaga ako ng overseas Filipino workers. And growing up, na-expose ako sa buhay nila, sa struggles nila, sa mga pinagdaanan nila. Mahal na mahal ko ‘yong character, pati siya when I met her. I have so much respect for her. Siyempre, napakasakit na she had to go through that,” she conveyed.
Shaina may be used to portraying a variety of characters throughout her career or to changing her colors like a chameleon, but there are some who have stuck by her until present—just like the ones mentioned above.
When asked if she was ever able to bid farewell to her past characters, she imparted that she actually practices her personal ritual of “pagpag,” or shaking off the character in order to make space for a new one. She needs to do it, or else she will “overheat,” just like what happens to machines once they get overloaded. Yet, she will surely remember those characters.
Getting into the shoes of a new character never fails to excite her, not because of the fame that it may give her, but also because of the new experiences and learnings that she can get from it. She may have been in showbiz for almost three decades now, not to mention reaping recognition and accolades for some of her acting performances, yet she has never lost her enthusiasm to learn.
“Hindi ko ever naisip na ang galing ko. Parang there’s always so much to learn, so much to improve—and that’s what keeps me going. Sana hindi siya ever mawala. Siyempre, ‘di ba, the moment you stop learning, parang that’s the moment that you’re going to be stagnant and slowly fail, I guess.”
Catch Shaina on “Sins of the Father.” weeknights on Kapamilya Channel, Kapamilya Online Live (KOL), A2Z, TV5 and iWant.