After a rollercoaster of a journey on TV5’s newly reformatted Shall We Dance: Search for the Next Dance Superstar, Gabriel Valenciano and partner, Jasmin Nabelgas, emerged as the first Shall We Dance Champions. Their road to the finals was one filled with suspense. After starting off strong, they fought for their lives during the wildcard stage eventually emerging dance champions.
On finals night Gab and Jasmin did three sets of dances – contemporary, the pasa doble and mambo. They impressed the judges with their choreography and passion garnering a final score of 9.17 besting Sexbomb Jopay Paguia and Mark Cruz (second runner-up), and Danilo Barrios and Stephanie Sabalo (first runners-up). They won Php 500,000.
That’s the part we all know about – the technical stuff. What you don’t know about is Gab’s journey behind the cameras.
It was a tough one for Gab, who was born a dancer. He had just arrived from a European tour with his dad and only had a few days to perfect their routine. He wasn’t too happy about that. To make up for it, he made sure that no time was wasted. He rehearsed until 3am on most days, even if he had a 730am call-time the next day.
Finals day. Members of the Genesis team, headed by his mom, Angeli Pangilinan-Valenciano, were present to give their undying support. Those with him recall a nervous Gab but being the professional that he is, he gave his all during those dance numbers. Then when all the dancing was done, Gab separated himself from the group. He sat quietly in prayer waiting for the announcement.
It was an interesting experience for this young man. It wasn’t just about dancing or technique though. It was about inner courage to outdo himself show after show. It was about heart, passion and determination, all of which propelled Gab and Jasmin to the big dance superstar win.
From all of us, Congratulations!
