Rufa Mae Quinto: The show must go on

Amid the lingering shadows o f grief following her husband's passing, comedienne Rufa Mae Quinto has bravely stepped into the spotlight, accepting the challenge of becoming a celebrity contestant on the reality show "Your Face Sounds Familiar," airing on the Kapamilya Channel.

- ROBERT REQUINTINA

During the grand media conference for the show, Rufa explained that she decided to join the television contest to have fun after experiencing a dramatic and challenging period in her life. She had just returned from the US, where her husband, Trevor Magallanes, was laid to rest.

"Dumaan ako sa mga madramang problema. Kaya sabi ko, gusto kong gumawa ng malilibang. Kailangan ko yung kasi nagluluksa pa rin kaming mag-ina at maibigay ko rin kaligayahan ko sa anak ko. Ang magagawa ko lang ay magpatawa at magpasaya habang gumagawa rin ako sa 'It's Showtime.' So kapag sumasaya sila, masaya rin ako. Yun lang naman ang gusto ko. "I went through dramatic problems. So I said, I want to do something fun. I need that because my mother and I are still grieving, and I can also give my happiness to my son. All I can do is make him laugh and make him happy while I'm also working on 'It's Showtime.' So when they're happy, I'm happy too. That's all I want.)"

"So when it was offered to me, sabi ko maganda ito dahil matagal din ako na hindi nag-full blast sa showbiz. Halos sampung taon ganun ang career ko. Sabi ko pwede na akong mag - full time sa career ko. (So when it was offered to me, I said it's good because it's been a long time since I went full blast in the showbiz industry. My career has been like that for almost 10 years. I said I can now work full-time in my career.)"