Amable Quiambao (January 19, 1947 – July 5, 2013), better known by her stage name, Ama Quiambao, was a Filipino

film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

and

theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The performers may communi ...

actress An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

in the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. She was best known for her roles in the films ''

Himala ''Himala'' ('Miracle') is a 1982 Philippine religious drama film directed by Ishmael Bernal and produced by the Experimental Cinema of the Philippines. It stars Nora Aunor as a young woman living in the province who claims to have seen a Marian ...

'' and ''Diablo''.

Early life

She was born ''Amable Quiambao'' on January 19, 1947, in Bacacay, Albay and had two siblings: Medgardo and Lui.

Personal life

She was married to former actor and

bass-baritone A bass-baritone is a high-lying bass or low-lying "classical" baritone voice type which shares certain qualities with the true baritone voice. The term arose in the late 19th century to describe the particular type of voice required to sing three ...

opera singer Opera is a form of Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a lib ...

Gamaliel "Gammy" Viray. The couple had only one son, Ishmael Viray. Her sister, Lui Quiambao-Manansala, is also an actress and her niece,

Miriam Quiambao Miriam Redito Quiambao-Roberto (, born May 20, 1975) is a Filipina actress, television host, and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Binibining Pilipinas Universe 1999 and placed first runner-up at Miss Universe 1999. She is currently ...

, was a former

Binibining Pilipinas Binibining Pilipinas (abbreviated as Bb. Pilipinas or BBP; ) is the oldest active national beauty pageant in the Philippines. Founded in 1964, it currently selects Filipina representatives to compete in one of the Big Four international beau ...

Universe winner and 1st runner-up at the

Miss Universe 1999 Miss Universe 1999 was the 48th Miss Universe pageant, held on 26 May 1999 at the Chaguaramas Convention Centre in Chaguaramas, Trinidad and Tobago. Mpule Kwelagobe of Botswana was crowned by Wendy Fitzwilliam of Trinidad and Tobago at the e ...

. She was also a former instructor of

St. Paul University Quezon City St. Paul University Quezon City (SPUQC), also referred to as SPU Quezon City, is a private, sectarian and coeducational university located in Mariana, Quezon City, New Manila, Quezon City, Philippines. It was previously an all-girls' school an ...

for the students of AB Mass Communications.

Theatre

Quiambao began her career as a

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a Stage (theatre), stage. The performe ...

actress. Her first play was "Ang Mga Tagahabi", directed by

Rolando Tinio Rolando Santos Tinio (March 5, 1937 – July 7, 1997) was a Filipino poet, dramatist, director, actor, critic, essayist and educator."Philippine Theater", Nicanor G. Tiongson (ed.), CCP Encyclopedia of Philippine Art, Volume VII, 1994 Biogra ...

(an adaptation of

The Weavers The Weavers were an American folk music quartet based in the Greenwich Village area of New York City originally consisting of Lee Hays, Pete Seeger, Ronnie Gilbert, and Fred Hellerman. Founded in 1948, the group sang traditional folk songs from ...

by Gerhart Hauptmann), when she was a drama student at the

Philippine Normal University The Philippine Normal University (PNU; ) is a public university, public coeducational teacher education and research university in the Philippines. It was established in 1901 through Act No. 74 of the Philippine Commission ''"for the education ...

Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...

in the 1970s. She later earned her

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

in Drama Education from the

University of the Philippines The University of the Philippines (UP; ) is a Higher education in the Philippines#State universities and colleges, state university system in the Philippines. It is the country's national university, as mandated by List of Philippine laws, Re ...

. She became a regular performer at the Teatro Pilipino and ''Bulwagang Gantimpala'' theatre groups at the

Cultural Center of the Philippines The Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP; ) is a government-owned and controlled corporation (GOCC) established to preserve, develop and promote Arts in the Philippines, arts and Culture of the Philippines, culture in the Philippines.Presid ...

in Manila. She played the role of President

Corazon Aquino María Corazón "Cory" Sumulong Cojuangco-Aquino (; January 25, 1933 – August 1, 2009) was a Filipino politician who served as the 11th president of the Philippines and the first woman president in the country, from Presidency of Corazon ...

at the 1986

political satire Political satire is a type of satire that specializes in gaining entertainment from politics. Political satire can also act as a tool for advancing political arguments in conditions where political speech and dissent are banned. Political satir ...

''"Bongbong at Kris"'' at CCP's ''Bulwagang Gantimpala'' in 1986.

Film

Ama made her film debut in 1982, when she starred in the movie ''

'' (''Miracle''), directed by

Ishmael Bernal Ishmael Bernal (September 30, 1938 – June 2, 1996) was a Philippines, Filipino filmmaker, stage and television director, actor and screenwriter. Noted for his melodramas, particularly with feminist and moral issues, he directed many landmark ...

. Film director Bernal wanted to cast theatre and radio actors in ''Himala'', so theatre director Rolando Tinio recommended the casting of Quiambao. She was chosen for the role of Sepa, a disciple of the lead character Elsa, played by

Nora Aunor Nora Cabaltera Villamayor (May 21, 1953 – April 16, 2025), known professionally as Nora Aunor (), was a Filipino actress, producer and singer. Known for her leading roles with patriotic, feminist and Political sociology, socio-political th ...

. Her role in ''Himala'' earned her a Best Supporting Actress nomination at the

Gawad Urian Award The Gawad Urian Awards are annual film awards in the Philippines presented since 1977 by the Manunuri ng Pelikulang Pilipino (), a Film criticism, film critic organization composed of critics, writers, and scholars. It is the regarded as the h ...

s in 1982. She subsequently appeared in many other films. A restored version of ''Himala'' was screened at the 2012

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival (, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival held in Venice, Italy. It is the world's oldest film festival and one of the ...

to mark its 30th anniversary. Three decades later, Quiambao was cast as Lusing in the 2012 film, '' Diablo'', which was directed and produced by the married partners Mes de Guzman and Rhea Operaña de Guzman. Lusing was a very serious, strict character in the film, which Quiambao described as the opposite of her own personality. Her work in ''Diablo'' earned Quiambao the first acting award of her career. In 2012, she won "Best Actress in the New Breed category" at the 8th Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival. In a later interview, Quiambao described her reaction to winning, "I was strangely calm,” she recalled. “I didn’t feel cold; I didn’t cry. I was glad that the trophy was presented to me by Iza alzado I’ve worked with her a number of times on TV and in the movies. I love that girl." She also said that she was thrilled to see other veteran Filipino actors win Cinemalaya awards that year, including

Anita Linda Anita Linda (born Alice Bueñaflor Lake; November 23, 1924 – June 10, 2020), was a Filipino actress whose career spanned nearly eight decades and had done close to 400 motion pictures. A romantic lead in her early years, she gained wides ...

and

Eddie Garcia Eduardo "Eddie" Verchez Garcia (; May 2, 1929 – June 21, 2019), colloquially known as Manoy, was a Filipino actor, television personality, and filmmaker. Widely regarded as the greatest Filipino actor of all time, Garcia appeared in nearly ...

, which she called "the night of

senior citizens Old age is the range of ages for people nearing and surpassing life expectancy. People who are of old age are also referred to as: old people, elderly, elders, senior citizens, seniors or older adults. Old age is not a definite biological sta ...

Death

Quiambao suffered a heart attack on June 28, 2013, while attending the premiere of the one-act play, ''Pamamanhikan'', in which she was performing as part of the ''Virgin Labfest 9'' theatre festival. She died at Capitol Medical Center in

Quezon City Quezon City (, ; ), also known as the City of Quezon and Q.C. (read and pronounced in Filipino language, Filipino as Kyusi), is the richest and List of cities in the Philippines, most populous city in the Philippines. According to the 2020 c ...

at 8:09 p.m. on July 5, 2013, at the age of 65. Her funeral was held at the Arlington Memorial Chapels in Quezon City. Her younger sister, Lui Quiambao-Manansala, said that "she was surrounded by all members of her family and close relatives. Let us pray for the eternal rest of her soul... Let us all remember Ama with fondness as a colleague, a mentor and a friend." Quiambao's wake was held at Arlington Memorial Chapels in Quezon City. Quiambao appeared posthumously in her final film, '' Ang Kwento Ni Mabuti''.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Quiambao, Ama 1947 births 2013 deaths Bicolano people People from Albay Bicolano actors Filipino film actresses Filipino stage actresses Filipino television actresses University of the Philippines alumni GMA Network (company) people ABS-CBN people Philippine Normal University alumni