Manila Philharmonic Orchestra performing 'Hamilton,' 'Star Wars,' 'Game of Thrones' tracks at 25th anniversary concert

Kristofer Purnell - Philstar.com

MANILA, Philippines — The Manila Philharmonic Orchestra (MPO) is celebrating its 25th anniversary this October with a concert featuring special performances and guests.

The MPO's 25th anniversary concert is titled "Lights, Camera, Encore! — Music from the Stage and the Screen" as the orchestra led by founder and music director Maestro Rodel Colmenar performs iconic tracks from popular films, television shows and stage musicals.

These include "Hamilton," "Star Wars," "Les Miserables," "Game of Thrones," "La La Land," "A Star is Born" and select Studio Ghibli films, with more being teased.

Joining the concert as guests are Bituin Escalante, Lara Maigue, Arman Ferrer, the University of Santo Tomas Singers and the Philippine Madrigal Singers.

Tickets for "Lights, Camera, Encore! — Music from the Stage and the Screen," happening on October 29 (7:30 p.m.) at Makati's Samsung Performing Arts Theater, are already available via the Ticketworld website and outlets.

There are six sections to choose from: Upper Balcony (P2,500), Lower Balcony (P3,000), Loge Left/Right (P4,500), Loge Center (P5,500), Orchestra Left/Right (P5,500), and Orchestra Pit/Center (P6,500).

A portion of ticket proceeds will go to The PARC Foundation's PARC Aralan Project which helps underprivileged children through music and the arts.

Filipina among contestants for HYBE's 'The Debut: Dream Academy' for next girl group

The 20 contestants of "The Debut: Dream Academy" including the Philippines' Sophia Laforteza

Kristofer Purnell - Philstar.com

MANILA, Philippines — Filipina Sophia Laforteza is one of twenty contestants vying to be part of HYBE and Geffen Records' next global girl group through the talent show "The Debut: Dream Academy."

The 20-year-old Laforteza and 19 other young ladies originating from South Korea, Japan, United States, Australia, Brazil, Argentina, Belarus, Sweden and Slovakia were selected from over 120,000 candidates from a process dating back to November 2021.

"The Debut: Dream Academy" released posters and short videos introducing each of the 20 candidates, who all underwent the K-pop training and development system.

Beginning September 1, "The Debut: Dream Academy" will air on Youtube and Japanese streaming platform Abema, concluding with a finale on November 18 with the final members and name of the new girl group.

Fans can also participate by voting on TikTok and Weverse which members they want to be considered to make the cut. The group's concept and how many will ultimately be chosen will be announced at a future date.

The eventual group's development process will be filmed for a Netflix documentary series coming out next year directed by Emmy-nominated filmmaker Nadia Hallgren.

"Each candidate is incredibly talented, dedicated, and driven, making this an exciting moment for music fans around the world,"  said Geffen Records’ chairman John Jannick in a statement.

HYBE is the Korean agency behind BTS, Seventeen, NewJeans, Enhypen, Tomorrow X Together and Le Sserafim.

Meanwhile, Universal Music Group's Geffen Records founded by veteran producer David Geffen currently manages Ann Marie, Kali Uchis, Neon Trees, Big Time Rush, Marshemello, American distribution for Seventeen, NewJeans, and Le Sserafim, reissues of Nirvana, and Filipino-American Olivia Rodrigo.