‘Pasiya’ Twin Bill Explores the Weight of Choice This June
The Corner Studio, in partnership with Headroom, is set to stage Pasiya, a twin bill of original works that interrogate power, choice, and consequence, running from June 12 to 21, 2026.
One half of the twin bill features the restaging of People v. Dela Cruz, following its successful premiere earlier this year. Set in an imagined version of the Philippines’ first-ever jury case, the play places six jurors in a room to decide one man’s fate. What begins as deliberation quickly unravels into ego, politics, prayer, personal bias, and social performance. Beneath its satire lies a central question: what does it mean to wield the power to decide over another human being?
That question of power reverberates differently in Every Male or Female, which makes its world premiere as part of Pasiya. Set during the Philippine women’s suffrage movement in 1935, the naturalist play centers on a historical moment when freedom was not only contested from the outside, but also wrestled with from within. It explores the tensions, hesitations, and contradictions surrounding women being asked to exercise the right to vote for a Constitution that, at the time, did not fully guarantee that very right.
The production will be staged at Headroom’s emerging venue, envisioned as a space for intimate and socially engaged performance.
“For Headroom, Pasiya is exactly the kind of work we want our space to hold: stories that are intimate, urgent, and deeply rooted in the Filipino experience,” says Headroom’s Kevin Nieves. “As a design firm opening our venue to live performances, we are excited to witness our space come alive with stories that linger, that engages the audience with questions, and invites them to ponder even after the curtains have closed.”
Premiering on June 12, Pasiya brings together two distinct stories bound by a shared question: what does freedom really look like when people are forced to decide?
“From the past to the distant future, choices will always be part of our story,” says Eldrin Veloso, who wrote and directed both plays. “It’s interesting to analyze our own human nature in theoretical settings vis-a-vis situations with real consequences. When it all boils down to what’s in front of you, what do you really choose? Do you truly have a choice? Do you act to change those choices? These are the questions Pasiya hopes to hold up as we commemorate our nation’s independence.”
Veloso also joins the cast, alongside Pauline Arejola, Althea Aruta, JP Basco, Rain de Jesus, Aaron Dioquino, Vea Noroña, and Emlyn Olfindo-Santos. Pat Gregorio serves as associate director and stage manager, Shaira Carandang as production designer, and Almie Layog as associate stage manager.
Pasiya runs from June 12 to 21, 2026 (2:30 p.m. shows every Saturday and Sunday, 7:00 p.m. shows every Friday and Saturday). Tickets are priced at P1,500 and are available via tcs.helixpay.ph.
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