MANILA — Exactly two weeks since ABS-CBN suspended the staging of its live entertainment shows in compliance with the government’s declaration of a lockdown to conain the spread of COVID-19, its top-rating variety program "ASAP Natin ‘To" went live on Sunday via a virtual gathering of its mainstays.

The show, in defining an image of the new normal of physical distancing, held its first live episode without its usual studio setup.

Instead, it featured numbers from the country’s best performers as well as video call screens shown on television as the hosts streamed from their respective homes.

“Sana ay safe kayo sa inyong mga bahay kasama ang inyong mga mahal sa buhay. Medyo kakaiba ang show natin ngayon dahil lahat kami ay nasa aming mga bahay. Sana kayo din dahil mayroon tayong enhanced community quarantine,” Luis Manzano said in his opening spiel.

Each of the show’s mainstays then gave an update about what they have been up to since the Luzon-wide lockdown was implemented.

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For the opening performance, Regine Velasquez and the trending Pinoy choir Villancico Vocal Ensemble gave a heartfelt rendition of “Heal Our Land.”

Martin Nievera and Zsa Zsa Padilla followed with a performance with the ABS-CBN Philharmonic Orchestra.

The succeeding segments of “ASAP Natin ‘To” included numbers from Morissette Amon, Angeline Quinto, Jona Viray, Klarisse de Guzman, Erik Santos and Gary Valenciano.

Sarah Geronimo and Nievera also sang for the frontliners who continue to work tirelessly to keep the nation afloat amid the COVID-19 crisis.

There were heartwarming performances as well from Piolo Pascual, Darren Espanto and Inigo Pascual, among others.

Like its regular broadcasts, “ASAP Natin ‘To” made it to the list of Twitter trending topics in the Philippines as soon as it began airing.