Roselle came out on stage with an explosive medley of Miami Sound Machine hits ("Rhythm Of The Night," "Conga"). Clad in a sexy yellow shirt and abs–revealing top, a more energized performer than the one we used to see welcomed the audience.

It was nice to see Roselle all grown up. She’s completely moved on from the Regine Velasquez wannabe accusations of yesteryears. The woman on stage that night was able to hold her own as she has matured so much as a performer. She wanted to let the people know that she is feeling every song and nailed what needs to be conveyed. Sometimes, this can be a disadvantage though because audience tend to get carried away with her facial expressions and drift from the songs but it’s better than not having a depth to pull strings of emotions from.

Roselle presented to the crowd this dance diva who survived being ostracized from the limelight when she disappeared from showbiz for more than two years because of a serious throat problem that she did not think she’d be able to sing again.

Roselle took the struggle to the gym and she reaped a drop dead gorgeous physique out of it. Her positive attitude over a long showbiz setback radiated the moment she took control of her audience.

Although there were lyrical fumbles and not–too–obvious flats, Roselle sounded much better than she did before. She has that uncanny ability to shift to falsetto with seamless ease; this remains one of Roselle’s performance strength.

However, the crowd favored Roselle’s pop numbers ("I Love You Goodbye," "Hindi Magbabago") over R&B and fast tracks ("Stick With You," Beyonce medley). The best numbers of the night, however, are her old hits like "Bakit Nga Ba Mahal Kita," "You," and "Sana Maulit Muli."

The mere fact that the audience is able to sing along with the stanzas of Roselle’s originals  proves that she has left an indelible imprint on the consciousness of the pop listening public. Even the most jaded person in the room gave into singing "Bakit Nga Ba Mahal Kita" and "Dahil Mahal Na Mahal Kita."

Roselle told the Manila Bulletin after the show that an album is under way thereby making the bar tour her sort of ‘soft re-launch.’ Well, we do hope that she comes out with more originals now that the doors of OPM are wide open. May Roselle find her place under the (sometimes harsh) showbiz sun again.

(Roselle’s bar tour was made possible by Skechers and Skechers Time. She will soon be on another tour in June with Jinky Vidal.)