Joanna Ampil: Radiant Actress and Singer, Part 2 of 2

Today, we are honored to continue our interview with Ms. Ampil as she tells us more about her often challenging journey to stardom. Joanna Ampil played the main character Grizabella in the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical “Cats.” This part requires a particularly wide vocal range. Ms. Ampil shares her thoughts on the kind of qualities an actor needs to interpret and portray a character accurately and well to an audience.

Joanna Ampil describes her growth through playing Saint Mary Magdalene in “Jesus Christ Superstar,” a role she first played in 1996. Joanna Ampil portrayed Candida Marasigan in the film “Ang Larawan” (“The Portrait”). During the long and difficult filming process, “Ang Larawan” became Joanna’s biggest struggle, but ultimately proved to be a very rewarding experience for her.

In 2019, in the Philippine TV show “Memories” episode titled “Kadena,” Joanna gave a poignant performance based on a true story about mental unwellness and the effects it brings upon loved ones. In her performance, she amplified the dignity of her character, a mother named Corazon, while bringing a much-needed sympathetic awareness to mental illness.

We ask Joanna Ampil: which of her performances has been her favorite? “I can talk about the most memorable one. I’m not saying this because I’m with you guys, but it is ‘The Real Love.‘ Definitely. Because that is the one that really changed me as a human being, as a person, changed me morally, the way I was thinking, the way I deal with people, the way I deal with animals. It just changed me as a whole being, completely.”

Joanna Ampil was praised for her heartfelt portrayal in the film “Ang Larawan,” winning the Best Actress award at the 2017 Metro Manila Film Festival and the Gawad Urian Award for Best Actress in 2018. For her performance as Corazon, Ms. Ampil won the GEMS Award for Best Actress for Television.