if i didn't know anything about shirley pizarro, i would think that she was one simple and ordinary family person. and indeed, that's primarily what she is. she identifies herself as a wife first, and a mother second. along with her husband christopher, she's done a good job in raising 4 bright and bubbly kids- there's averill who's a magna cum laude, alfonso carlo who's a cum laude, angelo gabriel who's a voracious reader and writer, and arielle who's aiming to be a high school valedictorian. now who wouldn't be proud of having kids like these? besides passing on good genes (may pinagmanahan, ika nga), shirley and hubby have done well in imparting good values onto their children.
but the thing is, i do know who shirley matias-pizarro is, and thus i know that she is NOT just a simple and ordinary family person. for decades now, this lady has been wearing many professional hats, with one hat atop another. for those of you who don't know her, this superlady deserves a 10-minute drumroll prior to her introduction: to start with, shirley is an events and publicity consultant for the GMA Artist Center. she is also a talent manager of actors and actresses with "real and brilliant" talent (Cesar Montano being one of those). many people know shirley as a columnist for Manila Bulletin's entertainment section, and moreover, she serves as an untiring consultant for many other projects. shirley may be a low-profile person, but this lady MAKES the stars!
as a psychologist for the entertainment industry, i do a lot of life coaching and drama therapy sessions with actors and actresses for their personal and professional growth, and so, i became utterly excited to pick the mind of this lady veteran of the entertainment industry. throughout her career, she's witnessed the comings and goings, the travails and victories, the ups and downs in the actual lives of people in showbiz.
i posed to shirley this question, "if you were to give 3 tips to aspiring actors and actresses, what would they be?" here's a paraphrase of what she shared: (1) nothing beats having an education. if young people should choose between getting an education or entering showbiz, education should be it! (2) artists should retain good values, and be able to separate their personal/ family life from their showbiz life instead of allowing those two lives to enmesh and mess up each other. and lastly, (3) actors and actresses should keep themselves rooted to the ground, and avoid self-inflating their egos. after experiencing some degree of success, many actors and actresses start having a "star complex" and feel a sense of "entitlement" just because they are "stars."
listening to shirley pizarro is like listening to an enlightened master spewing out nuggets of wisdom. as a last word, she tells me that actors and actresses need to learn the value of hard work. "they have to realize that fame and fortune from showbiz does not last, and that there are more essential things in life like getting an education, developing your character, and having good values."
thank you shirley. i hope that all budding and established actors and actresses not only hear your words, but more importantly, heed them. God bless you, your family, and your work!
