Karla Ysabel Marquez Santos, who goes by the nickname Karel or Penoy, was born on December 21, 1986.
Ever since she can remember, Karel always finds her way to show business, being, first and foremost, a beautiful daughter to
Pinky Marquez, a common name in theater groups. At an early age of 2 until she was in her teens, she was already shooting commercials and endorsing numerous products. It wouldn’t be long, therefore, before the call of TV will beckon upon her.
Despite her mom’s sweetness and full support to all her endeavors, Karel still wants to break free from her shadow. Thus, she struggled in making her own mark as occasional actress to various ABS-CBN shows until she got her biggest break in
Berks, where she played the antagonist to the equally beautiful
Heart Evangelista. It was also at that time that she graced boob tube as a VJ of
Myx, a Filipino music channel.
But Karel isn’t only about a pretty face and an acting talent to boot. She’s also a certified singer. She would usually sing during Full Circle, a segment of
ASAP Mania where ABS-CBN talents can expose their other hidden skills. She also plays different kinds of instruments such as drums, the piano, and guitar. If these weren’t enough, she also performs in various music bars such as in Dish. It was in 2004 that Karel was offered a record deal by Star Records, and thus began her journey towards CDs and cassette tapes. Even if she shares her initial album, Singles, to other fresh singers like
Marinel Santos,
Maoui David, and
Aliya Parcs, she was thrilled nonetheless. After all, she gets to fulfill one of her childhood dreams. She viewed
Singles as her method of expressing her musical preferences and taste to her fans through her choices of songs which include her own rendition of
Tag-Ulan, originally sang by the
After Image, and of
Pangarap, a pop-rock song that became a very popular koreanovela theme song. If Karel isn’t in TV acting or in bars singing, she’s in school, where she’s basically taking up Marketing in Thames. She’s also a hit in theater. Recently, she topbilled the theatrical adaptation of
High School Musical, where she played the female lead Gabriella Montez. Early on, she was exchanging the top spot with
KC Concepcion in
Beauty and the Beast.
At 20 years old, it’s not difficult to not notice her curves. Thus, when she posed for men’s magazines—such as in
FHM, where she became November 2006 cover girl—she sent all lads drooling. But Karel is out to prove that she isn’t any average girl. Besides being true-blue techie—she loves hi-tech gadgets such as laptops and cell phones—she’s also a shining star whose light shines bright in spite of some people who are pulling her down.
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