A Chorus Line’s Conrad Ricamora: ‘We’re bringing so much passion’
The actor talks about his Philippine stage debut, his thoughts on his role, and his excitement about meeting the passionate Filipino theater-going public.
Conrad Ricamora is ready to step into Zach’s shoes.
The Fil-Am actor – known for originating the role of Ninoy Aquino in Here Lies Love and for his Tony Award-nominated turn as Abraham Lincoln in Oh, Mary! – will be playing the lead role of Zach in Theatre Group Asia (TGA)’s upcoming production of A Chorus Line.
A Chorus Line won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1976 and is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. It features a group of 17 ensemble dancers during a grueling audition for eight exclusive spots in a Broadway production. Ricamora’s character is the director and choreographer, running the audition and pushing the aspiring stars not just to showcase their performing prowess but also to reveal their true selves, with all the passion, ambition and insecurity that come with this.
Theatre Group Asia, which also brought us Request sa Radyo and Into the Woods, will be staging A Chorus Line in March 2026 at the Samsung Performing Arts Theater.
Breaking new ground
This will not only be Conrad’s first production in the Philippines, but his first time in the country as well. His father was born here and then moved to the U.S. when he was 10 or 11 years old and never went back since.
“I’ve never been so I’m just excited,” he shares during a recent interview with TheaterFansManila.com. “I’m just so curious, and I’m coming completely with an open heart and open mind.”
He is aware of the passion of Filipino theater fans, and he is looking forward to experiencing it firsthand. “I know from my friends that have performed in Manila that there is such a devoted fan base, especially with musicals. I know that Filipinos love to sing and so I’m excited to be around them. I feel Filipinos are just passionate, and to be around that passion, I think, is going to be so invigorating.”
Ricamora has performed for more than two decades all over the United States from New York to North Carolina, Philadelphia, Utah, and various cities in California. “I’ve experienced a lot of different audiences, and every audience, even in the same city, has a very unique energy. And I’m just excited to feel that unique energy that is the theater-going audience in the Philippines.”
Unpacking Zach
In A Chorus Line, Zach is a demanding character who pushes the other cast members to reveal more of themselves during the exhausting audition process. When asked about the role possibly being perceived negatively, he says: “I don’t really pay attention to what people from the outside, what their notion is of the character, because my job is to let go of judgment.”
“Anytime that you’re playing a character, you have to be that person and find it within you to be that person, and so you can’t judge that person,” he continues. He also shares that he has some theories about Zach’s origin story. “Maybe it’s because Zach couldn’t make it as a performer, and so has felt powerless as a performer early on in his own life, and now gets to exert that power over this group of individuals.”
Conrad recognizes the challenges of this role. “Sometimes the director, like a Zach, has to be a therapist, has to be a good cop, has to be a bad cop. Sometimes you have to coddle an actor like a baby and to really make them feel safe. And then sometimes you have to be really stern and that kind of emotional range, I think, is going to be pretty demanding.”
“And I’m interested in exploring the idea of: what is the truest sense of what we do as actors and dancers and singers and what gets in our way? How do we get in our own ways and how do we let go of those ways that we block ourselves?” says Conrad.
A very passionate job
A Chorus Line, Conrad reiterates, is really an inside look at the life of performers who are just “dying to get this job” and the intense emotions they experience along the way: “the exhilaration from either getting the job or the heartbreak from not getting it.” And this journey is something he very much looks forward to sharing with audiences next year.
“I think because we’re bringing so much passion to something that is already a very passionate job, that it makes the joy and the heartbreak even just heightened, and I’m excited to share that experience on a stage and in a theater in Manila.”
The company has also announced that Fil-Am Broadway performer Lissa de Guzman, who was last seen in the U.S. national tour of Wicked as the first Filipino to play Elphaba, will play the role of Cassie. Her Broadway credits include playing Ann Darrow in King Kong and Jasmine in Aladdin, a role she also performed on the musical’s national tour.
A Chorus Line is helmed by Karla Puno Garcia, who serves as both director and choreographer. It will run from March 12 to 29, 2026. Thursday and Friday shows are at 7:30 PM, while Saturday and Sunday shows are at 2:00 PM and 7:30 PM. Tickets are available through TicketWorld, with prices ranging from P900 to P5,500.
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