Marimar ends with grand March 14 wedding

The much-anticipated wedding between Marimar Aldama (Marian Rivera) and Sergio Santibañez (Dingdong Dantes) will be aired during grand finale of Marimar this Friday, March 14. This marks the end of the eight-month-old TV series, which topped the Nationwide Urban Television Audience Measurement (NUTAM) for weekday programs for February 2008 with its 36.9 percent rating. Last November 16, 2007, Marimar reached an all-time high of 49.5 percent rating. The wedding ceremony was shot in San Agustin Church, Intramuros, Manila, last March 10. It was officiated by Fr. Porres (played by Buboy Garovillo of The APO Hiking Society). The star-studded reception will be aired live from GMA Network's Studio 3 this Friday. In an interview with PEP (Philippine Entertainment Portal) contributor Nitz Miralles, Dingdong said that he feels different about shooting this wedding scene even though he has been "married" seven times in the past. He has shot wedding scenes with other actresses such as Tanya Garcia, Maricar de Mesa, and Iza Calzado but he claims shooting a wedding with Marian is different. "Iba ito, peak at climax ito ng love story nina Marimar at Sergio. Ito lang ang pinakagusto ni Sergio, ang makumpleto at maging masaya ang kanyang pamilya. The ultimate na ito at mixed feelings ako. Natutuwa, dahil alam kong marami sa sumubaybay sa amin ang masisiyahan, at nalulungkot din na after eight months, matatapos na ang Marimar. "Sa ngayon, nasa taping mode pa kami ni Marian. Pero alam kong pagpasok namin sa church, and just like any actors, we'll get into our characters. Kailangang tunay na emosyon na ang maramdaman namin. Up to the end, naging malapit sa akin ang character ni Sergio," said Dingdong. In the GMA-7 TV special titled Marimar...Isang Pasasalamat aired last March 9, viewers were able to see the preparations made for the grand wedding of the two beloved characters. Top designer Rajo Laurel was commissioned to do the fully-beaded silver satin gown of Marimar while Randy Ortiz designed the tuxedo worn by Dingdong. Chosen wedding sponsors include GMA-7 senior vice-president for entertainment Wilma Galvante, Regal Entertainment's Mother Lily Monteverde, MTRCB chairman Consoliza Laguardia, German "Kuya Germs" Moreno, talent manager Douglas Quijano and beauty expert Ricky Reyes. Dino Guevarra and Marky Cielo served as best men while LJ Reyes and Arci Muñoz were the bridesmaids. Manilyn Reynes, who played the role of Corazon in Marimar, was chosen to be maid of honor. Marimar's daughter Cruzita (played by Chelsea Salcedo) was the flower girl of the ceremony. Standing as secondary sponsors were Annette Gozon-Abrogar, Tim Yap, Sheena Halili, Arthur Solinap and Rufa Mae Quinto. Providing the music for the solemn ceremony were the wedding singers portrayed by Regine Velasquez and Ogie Alcasid. Conspicuously absent during the ceremony is Angelika (Katrina Halili), who is meted with a life imprisonment term. Inside jail, Angelika is forced to clean a toilet and will be branded with a tattoo bearing the name of her mortal enemy, Marimar. Watch the grand finale of Marimar this Friday, March 14, on GMA-7's Telebabad block. - Philippine Entertainment Portal