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MANILA -- Anne Curtis is undoubtedly excited to mount the stage again, and to sing and perform live.

She has started rehearsing for her forthcoming live concert, “Luv-ANNE,” that will go onstage at the Newport Performing Arts Theater at Resorts World Manila on June 11.

“A lot of new faces ang dapat ninyong abangan,” Curtis told ABS-CBN News on Wednesday. “That’s something new we’re bringing to the stage. Guests na hindi ko pa nakakasama.”

When “Luv-ANNE” was originally conceptualized last year, Curtis had just returned from Australia, where she gave birth in 2020. They wanted a digital concert then.

“It made sense to do an online concert back then because everyone was at home,” Curtis said. “A lot of lockdowns also happened. But then, I asked myself. ‘Kaya ko na bang kumanta ulit?’ It took me a long time to convince myself.

"But things started opening up. People were going out and there was a sense of normalcy. So they (Viva) asked me: 'Are you ready to do a live concert?'”

She was tentative at first that she had to visit Resorts World herself. “I sat on the stage. I had to feel the venue. Parang na-feel ko na kaya ko siya because it’s an intimate setting. Hindi siya ‘yung parang ang daming tao when you’re onstage. If I felt that was the right amount of people that I could be comfortable performing live with. I feel like it’s a great way to reintroduce this world to me," she recalled.

"I’ve been in hibernation. I’ve been a hermit crab. This is a great way for me to really start and prepare myself to start this journey again. So I said, ‘Sige, let’s go live na.’ Nami-miss ko na din ang energy at mga ngiti ng tao. I let the nervousness go and it turned into excitement.”

Directing “Luv-ANNE” is Paolo Valenciano, with Louie Ocampo as musical director and choreographer is Georcelle Dapat Sy.

While she was away from the limelight for more than two years, Curtis had a lot of realizations being a first-time mom to Dahlia Amelie, now two years old.

“A part of the segment of my concert explains this part. The song that I will be singing for that part is [Selena Gomez’s] ‘Lose You To Love Me.’ It’s so important for any human being. It doesn’t matter what industry you’re in. You really have to take that time to love yourself,” she said.

Curtis discovered new things the last two years -- “How fun it is and how hard to be a mother. More importantly, to really concentrate on your family.”

The last concert that Curtis did was “Anne Kulit.: Promise, Last na ‘To” in 2018.

"I’ve been missing the people and missing the energy, the laughter and the eye contact that you get from an audience, whether it be my concert audience or the madlang people. Because it was part of my life for so long. ‘Showtime’ was 10 years of my life and throughout those 10 years, I’ve been doing concerts in between. I miss that energy," she said.

"Even my dancers and Sir Louie [Ocampo], they were saying they all missed the live performance. Yes, I took a break to concentrate on being a mom. But I missed the interaction and the rapport you get from an audience.”