State of the Stage 2026: Manila’s Upcoming Theater Scene
Some people call it Revenge Theater. Others are calling it a full-blown Theater Renaissance. Me? I call it “scheduling TFM theater weekends nonstop.”
In 2025 alone, I logged a whopping 92 productions, up from 76 the year before. For the very small minority of people who might be curious, that count includes dance productions, concerts, and cabarets that are musical-adjacent, with each play in a festival counted as one. It excludes rewatches, reruns, or productions mounted again with new casts within the same year.
In his 2025 Theater Yearender, Emil Hofileña said that “major companies and smaller producers alike had their best work in shows that emphasized community, risk-taking, and small-scale storytelling”, which arguably set the tone for the ambitious slate now shaping 2026. You can read more about this in Theater Yearender 2025 — Highlights of the Philippine Stage.
For now, here’s a rundown of the shows announced for 2026 so far.
January
As usual, CAST PH kicks off the year with its annual staged readings. Returning for its sixth season, the series once again spans four weeks: four Sundays at 3 PM and 8 PM, from January 11 to February 1. This year’s theme, RE-ORIENT: Narratives from Asian Voices, centers on contemporary Asian identity in a global context.
As with previous editions, the titles will be kept under wraps until the day of the show. Artistic director Nelsito Gomez shares that all four plays are written by Asian playwrights and explore what it means to be Asian today. Performers include Dolly de Leon, Mikkie Bradshaw-Volante, Tarek El Tayech, Kakki Teodoro, and Gomez himself, among other theater stalwarts.
One of the hottest ticket items of the year is Les Miserables: World Tour Spectacular, featuring Lea Salonga as Madame Thénardier, Rachelle Ann Go as Fantine, and Red Concepción as Thénardier, alongside other West End and Broadway performers. The production runs from January 20 to March 1, with tickets already sold out.
Next up is Bagets The Musical, Newport World Resorts’ adaptation of the 1984 coming-of-age film Bagets. The lead cast is a mix of young artists from the music, television, film, and theater scenes, with particularly notable casting in Andres Muhlach as Adie, the same role his father Aga Muhlach originated in the film.
Produced in partnership with The Philippine STAR and Viva Communications, and staged by PETA Plus, the musical is directed by Maribel Legarda and runs from January 23 to March.
Samalamig Cold Readings series also returns, featuring Gab Pangilinan as its season-long guest artist. The third and final installment takes place on January 28 at 8 PM at Vault Speakeasy Bar Greenhills (inside Tittos Latin BBQ and Brew). Audience members are invited to read new scripts on the spot alongside Pangilinan, as playwrights hear their work come alive in real time.
January closes with the return of Areté’s Quomodo Desolata Es? Isang Dalamhati, starring Gab Pangilinan and Delphine Buencamino as sisters Paula and Candida Marasigan, respectively.
Translated by Jerry Respeto and adapted and directed by Guelan Varela-Luarca, the production, which debuted in August, reimagines Nick Joaquin’s A Portrait of the Artist as a Filipino as a contemporary lament on memory, grief, and national inheritance. The show runs from January 30 to February 8 at the Hyundai Hall, Areté, Ateneo de Manila University.
February
Opening in February is The Sandbox Collective’s staging of the rock musical Spring Awakening, starring Alex Diaz and Nacho Tambunting as Melchior Gabor, Sheena Belarmino as Wendla Bergmann, and Omar Uddin and Nic Chien as Moritz Stiefel. Directed by Andrei Pamintuan, with Ejay Yatco as musical director, the production runs from February 13 to March 22 at a new venue, The Black Box at The Proscenium Theater, Rockwell, Makati.
Opening the same weekend is the stage adaptation of Jun Robles Lana’s 2023 film About Us But Not About Us, starring original film actors Elijah Canlas and Romnick Sarmenta. Directed by Tuxqs Rutaquio, the play marks the second production of IdeaFirst Live!, following its adaptation of Anino Sa Likod ng Buwan.
March
Tanghalang Pilipino closes its 39th season with the return of Mabining Mandirigma: A Steampunk Musical, celebrating its 10th anniversary. Now starring Shaira Opsimar as Apolinario Mabini, the production also sees the return of Arman Ferrer and David Ezra as Emilio Aguinaldo, with Tex Ordoñez-De Leon joining the company as Dionesia. Written by Nicanor Tiongson, with music by Joed Balsamo and direction by Chris Millado, the show runs from March 6 to 29 at the Tanghalang Ignacio Gimenez.
Following its box-office hit Into the Woods, Theatre Group Asia mounts A Chorus Line. Emmy Award–winning choreographer Karla Puno Garcia directs and choreographs the production, with JM Cabling as associate choreographer. The cast is led by Conrad Ricamora as Zach and Lissa de Guzman as Cassie. The musical runs from March 12 to 29 at the Samsung Performing Arts Theater, Circuit Makati.
A week later, Repertory Philippines launches REP Unplugged: Staged Readings Reimagined, a new staged reading initiative featuring two comedies: Noel Coward’s Private Lives, directed by REP Artistic Director Jeremy Domingo, and Anton Chekhov’s The Proposal, directed by Cara Barredo. Performances run on March 21, 22, 28, and 29 at the REP Eastwood Theater.
April
A stage adaptation of Endo, based on the 2007 film written and directed by Jade Castro, opens at the PETA Theater Center from April 10 to May 10. The cast includes Jasmine Curtis-Smith and Rissey Reyes-Robinson as Tanya, Royce Cabrera and Esteban Mara as Leo, and Kate Alejandrino-Juan and Iana Bernardez as Candy. Adapted by Liza Magtoto, the production marks Ticket2Me’s return to producing after Maxie the Musical: Ang Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros in 2013 and Children’s Plays for Adults in 2015.
May
In May, the international touring production of Jesus Christ Superstar arrives at The Theatre at Solaire, presented by GMG Productions. Originally staged at London’s Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, this reimagined version is directed by Timothy Sheader and choreographed by Drew McOnie, with design by Tom Scutt and music supervision by Tom Deering.
June
PETA’s latest pasabog is Ang Babae sa Septic Tank 4: Oh Sh*t! It’s Live sa Cheter!, a full-blown satirical straight play. Running from June 19 to August 16, 2026, at the PETA Theater Center, the production stars Eugene Domingo, who originated the role in the film franchise, and reunites original creators Marlon Rivera and Chris Martinez, with stage direction by Maribel Legarda (her second announced big musical after Bagets The Musical, if you’re keeping track).
The Virgin Labfest, the annual festival of untried, unstaged, and untested one-act plays, returns for its 21st season at the Cultural Center of the Philippines. While dates and casting have yet to be announced, the final roster of 12 featured plays has already been revealed.
Man of La Mancha, Repertory Philippines’ next big musical, runs from June 5 to 28 at the REP Eastwood Theater, with Nelsito Gomez at the helm. Presented in partnership with the Manila Symphony Orchestra, it’s safe to say audiences can expect some lush, live music.
August and September
REP’s Theater for Young Audiences (RTYA) returns in August with Cinderella, A Tale of the Glass Slipper at the REP Eastwood Theater, featuring book, music, and lyrics by Janet Yates Vogt and Mark Friedman, and co-directed by RTYA founder and creative director Joy Virata and Cara Barredo.
Closing REP’s season is William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, directed by the company’s artistic director Jeremy Domingo, running from September to October 2026 at Saint Cecilia’s Hall, St. Scholastica’s College, Manila, in partnership with the school.
And this is only what’s been announced so far. As more productions, festivals, and surprises are revealed in the coming months, the 2026 theater calendar is shaping up to be just as packed and just as unpredictable as the year before.
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