Theater Review: Love, 'Mapanakit,' and Knowing When to Stop

There is something genuinely admirable about YPC Stage bringing Laguna's community theater artists to Quezon City. As much as we (or I) love branding the post-pandemic theater boom a "Renaissance," the surge of new shows—and the crowds funding them—remains tightly clustered in Imperial Manila. So when I say I had high hopes for YPC Stage, the professional touring arm of the Biñan Youth Performance Council, I truly meant it. Unfortunately, "Mapanakit: Mga Dulang Bittersweet" doesn't quite fulfill that promise just yet.

First, the good.

The triple-bill production running at IBG-KAL Theater, University of the Philippines Diliman, is proof of how collaboration between Biñan artists and Manila-based creatives could become a two-way street of artistic exchange, proving that regional talent doesn't just learn from the capital—it enriches it. Resourceful work from production designer Carlo Pagunaling and lighting designer Gabo Tolentino (both faculty members at the UP Theater Arts Department), along with Ateneo-based sound designer Arkel Mendoza, grounds the production visually and aurally. BJ Borja, who's also artistic director of the Biñan Youth Performance Council, brings in thoughtful direction. The actors, including Gab Pangilinan, Ross Pesigan, Phi Palmos, and Kokoy de Santos, deliver earnest energy and commitment to the collaboration with Laguna-based Jury Sanchez, Euden Moje, and Loudette Barias.

But a production's foundation ultimately rests on the page, especially one of straight one-act plays that couldn't (and shouldn't) hide behind grand theatrical spectacle. And that is where Mapanakit stumbles.

While it pulls directly from prolific writer Eljay Castro Deldoc’s baul, a portfolio with a proven track record, Mapanakit is a cluster of hit-or-miss scripts that don't exactly reach the heights of the playwright's best work. His Si Maria Isabella at Ang Guryon ng Mga Tala remains one of the finest scripts to come out of the Virgin Labfest, Pilipinas Kong Mahal Mahal With All the Overcoat is an inventive comedic gem, and Yemaya proved to be a fitting, evocative translation of Quiara Alegría Hudes's Yemaya's Belly.

This time, two of the scripts feel surprisingly overwritten—though not beyond repair—with only one emerging as a clear exception.

Ang Liknayan ng Ating mga Katawan, which bagged first prize for Dula na May Isang Yugto at the 2023 Palanca Awards, has its merits in its attempt at form. It reads almost like an autotheory paper but in drama, structured like a Review of Related Literature for a thesis, which is also the play's central image. High school student Hershey Mae (played by Jury Sanchez) sets out to test the hypothesis of her study "Observations and In-depth Analysis of the Effects of Natural and Phenomenal Factors to Two Body Systems and Their Co-independent Properties." In short, it's a scientific inquiry into love, which this two-hander eventually reveals to be between Hershey Mae and her teacher, Mr. Banakon (Ross Pesigan), the "Two Body Systems" in question. It turns out that Banakon has his own research paper, as a futile attempt to make sense of this inappropriate teacher-student relationship.

For anyone attuned to references to Darwin, Newton, and Kepler, Liknayan (Filipino for physics) is packed with inside jokes—where every knowing chuckle from the audience feels like a subtle flex of intellectual superiority: "Uy, gets ko 'yun." I must admit, I fell right into that smug trap myself. (What could help ground this dense material and prevent it from becoming alienating is the integration of visual representations, perhaps through the use of a blackboard, a whiteboard, or multimedia projections to anchor the concepts.)

Though Liknayan shouldn't be castigated for its intellectual ambition, its structure demands a closer look. For starters, its exposition is prompted by Banakon's investigation of three incidents (a suicide attempt, a viral fight, and a missing student) linked to Hershey Mae's paper and on which the whole dialogue between him and his student hinges. Yet as the play progresses, this premise is abandoned, left without a clear resolution. Secondly, Hershey Mae and Banakon both have unpredictable characterization. Perhaps that irrationality is to be expected from a high school student who is equal parts genius and delulu—less so from a seasoned teacher whose arguments verge on gaslighting. Unless, of course, that is precisely the point: pushing an already unsettling power dynamic into even more uncomfortable territory.

The text of Ang Liknayan ng Ating mga Katawan is publicly available on the Palanca website.

Continuing on the theme of mapanakit is a story of forbidden love between Ilihan (Gab Pangilinan) and Kalingaw (Euden Moje). Deldoc's take on the Romeo and Juliet trope draws from Bikolano mythology: the Buringkantada, a tribe of human-like giants who guard hidden treasures. Deviating from lore, Ilihan is appointed as the tribe's historian—and a poet, much to the disdain of her people. Even more frowned upon is her love for Kalingaw, who is already betrothed to another.

What makes the script enchanting is its lyrical tone and language: written in Filipino, with Ilihan's dialogue laced with Bikol phrases that remain effortlessly clear even to non-Bikol speakers. Her defense of poetry and imagination gives the play an immediate, resonant emotional core. The visual and aural elements, likewise, complement this magic. That the Gab Pangilinan delivers another stunning performance is an understatement.

Phi Palmos’ sharp comedic timing works wonders in Ganito ang Pinangarap Kong Kasal, a rom-com tracing the college romance of Noel (Kokoy de Santos) and France (Palmos), with Kris (Loudette Barias) along for the ride as France's third-wheeling best friend. But what starts as a playful comedy (read: nilaro) takes a dramatic shift as the relationship is tested by real-world complexities, mostly Noel's fear of commitment that's partly shaped by societal norms. I particularly liked the believable buildup to this, especially in highlighting how a lack of commitment—often signaled by an unreadiness to come out to one's family—can quietly stunt a queer relationship.

While the shift in their relationship is understandable, the play loses its footing somewhere in the middle, becoming needlessly drawn out. The exposition, from the meet-cute to the montage, is delightful to watch, but it adds bloated minutes to the runtime. Similarly, the radio drama framing (where the three characters break the fourth wall to narrate their story) lays necessary groundwork for the upcoming Papa Jack sequence, yet drags on far longer than it needs to. Something has to give to balance the tone of the narrative.

As a whole, Mapanakit attempts to thread together three plays centered on painful love. On the surface, the thematic link is clear, but the execution varies greatly. I would later find out that this triple-bill production was already staged in December 2025 in Biñan, making this July-August 2026 staging at UP Diliman a restaging—and a missed opportunity to tighten the material. But the saving grace of live theater (like love) is that it is never static.

This is a review of the matinee performance on July 25, which is also the opening show.

Mapanakit runs until August 9 at the IBG-KAL Theater, Magsaysay Avenue, University of the Philippines Diliman, Quezon City.

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