Ben&Ben’s Paolo Benjamin recently commended the historical fantasy GMA series Maria Clara at Ibarra on its second week run.
Benjamin tweeted, “#MariaClaraAtIbarra is such a groundbreaking show. Kudos to everyone involved.”
The band’s fans are delighted that the series has caught the attention of the singer-songwriter. They asked Ben&Ben to do music for the show—which it has done on previous hit series.
Maria Clara at Ibarra is a classic, historical story with a modern twist. It touches on women’s rights, education, labor and other issues.
The show stars Julie Anne San Jose and Dennis Trillo in their respective title roles, and Barbie Forteza in the dual roles of the other Maria Clara and Klay, a fictional character who time-travels back to the setting of the Jose Rizal novels Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo.
Playing prominent roles are Tirso Cruz III, Juancho Triviño, Rocco Nacino, Andrea Torres, Gilleth Sandico, Juan Rodrigo, and Ces Quesada.
A grade 3 teacher at Tibag Elementary School in Tarlac, Charlaine Alyssa Sese, took a video of her pupils who were watching the show during recess.
In an interview on GMA Online News, Sese said, “Narinig ko po kasi na may pinapanood sila sa TV, kung Maria Clara at Ibarra ba. Pinagbigyan ko po silang manood kasi may mga batang walang TV sa bahay.
“Although wala pa silang Noli Me Tangere, kahit papano nagkaka-idea na sila. Ang dami nilang tanong about the past. Nakakatuwa lang po kasi seryoso silang nanonood, talagang interested sila kaya vinideo ko po.”
Netizens applauded upon learning of it.
“Ay, ang galing! Making the story very relatable to the new generation. Mas maiintindihan nila ang essence ng NMT,” Trish tweeted.
“Pinapanood din namin ‘to sa school. First time ‘to naipalabas yata sa school namin, ’yung payagan kami manood ng ganyan kase nga marami ka matutunan,” James Castillo posted.
Cast member Forteza commented, “OH WOW!” and San Jose posted Korean heart emojis.
Maria Clara at Ibarra airs on GMA Telebabad Mondays to Fridays at 8 p.m.
Viewers can also join the Kapuso stream on the GMA Network YouTube channel and in the live chat.
Full episodes are also posted, as well as exclusive online content from behind the scenes on the GMA Network mobile app.