The Virgin Labfest, an annual Philippine festival showcasing untried, untested, and unstaged plays, celebrates its milestone 20th year with VLF XX: Hinog. The title, which means ripe or mature in Cebuano, is an apt description of this year’s plays.

The festival has twelve ‘virgin’ plays and three plays from the previous year. These are divided into sets of three, equating to four sets of ‘virgin’ plays and one set of revisited plays. 

Set C: Kinalburo of VLF XX: Hinog brings together three intense plays that grapple with exhaustion and entrapment. Each story is true to the set’s title. Kinalburo, whose root word is kalburo, alludes to something that has been sped up in an unnatural manner. This acceleration is evident in each play, which sees its characters worn down by numerous burdens.

Daring to dream in Mga Magindara sa Siyudad

Written by playwright Chris Joseph Junio, the play follows performers Maureen and Maylene as they strive to make a mark. However, they are unable to do so due to financial constraints and Maylene’s paralysis. Despite these hindrances, it is immediately evident in their exaggerated expressions how much they desire to perform in stages. 

As Maureen, Raf Pineda exactly gets it. They embody the longing and desire well, and the raves they got at the curtain call were very much deserved. Donna Cariaga, as Maylene, adds texture to the character with her good comedic timing. Both actors balanced wit with exhaustion. 

Junio’s script proves his great grasp on the Filipino experience. Through Maureen and Maylene, he tells a story that is both specific and universal. People cling to dreams and the familiar, despite the world’s repulsion and lack of space for them. 

What’s also interesting about the play is that it recognizes the dilemma that people from provinces have. The abundance of opportunities is concentrated in the metro, urging huge numbers of people to pursue unfamiliar places because the metro is advertised as a promise of stability. Yet as evident in this play, the world seems unaware of what to do with special cases like Maureen and Maylene. 

The direction from Riki Benedicto persuades us to sit in the discomfort of the performers’ reality, which is hollow underneath yet vibrant on the surface. Set design by Wika Nadera emphasizes this reality, and how the world often reduces such people to spectacle only celebrated when it is convenient. 

Confrontation and collapse with The Late Mister Real

A harsh reminder about letting go of something that no longer serves you, The Late Mister Real loudly devastates. Playwright Rolin Migyuel Obina sets this play during the COVID-19 pandemic, a period that intensified one’s inner thoughts and amplified one’s anger. 

Boyet and Raquel, a separated couple, share rooms next to each other in a quarantine facility. They resentfully confront their past and the future of their son Carl.

Much of the play is a conversation between the two. This conversation evolves into an argument with lengthy rebuttals. The play has its ups and downs, before it peaks right at the end of its 40-minute runtime.

While the curse words prove to be one too many, solid acting from Roi Calilong and Shé Maala make this play a worthwhile watch. The burden of parenthood, as exemplified in Calilong’s Boyet, comes across as natural. Raquel’s pains, as expressed by Maala, feel authentic and lived-in. 

The play may prove to be too harrowing for those who have lived through the characters’ ordeals. However, the play reiterates an important lesson in life: not everything broken can be fixed. 

Justice in Ang Problema sa Trolley 

A seemingly simple journey home becomes a tense ethical crisis with one passenger’s desire to jump to the Pasig River. As secrets come to light, the thin line between survival and surrender becomes more and more apparent. 

Playwright Imuthis and their take on the trolley problem prove to be captivating. Yet as the play begins, it’s impossible to not be amazed by the set design of Wika Nadera. The play features an operating railway track that the titular trolley can move on. Director Adrienne Vergara and their handling of the text make for a thrilling play.

The scenario depicted in the play strips justice to its most raw form. It asks its audience: what would you do in the situation? Is saving someone always the right choice? It’s a moral tug-of-war between both justice and mercy, one that proves to be gripping. Its three-character ensemble – James Lanante, Joshua Tayco, and Mario Magalona – have the difficult task of emphasizing the moral dilemma in Imuthis’ script, and they all succeed.

The play does not present justice as a mere verdict. Rather, it critiques how people must then become the justice they themselves are denied.

Further Information

Set C: Kinalburo of VLF XX: Hinog has six overall performances. In its third and final week, it will have performances on June 28 and June 29, at 8:00 PM and 2:00 PM, respectively. Tickets are PHP 800 for Regular Seats and PHP 1,000 for Premium Seats. One ticket gains access to one set of 3 one-act plays. They are available for purchase through Ticketworld, Ticket2Me, and at the Tanghalang Ignacio Gimenez. The 20% ticket discount offered to Senior Citizens, PWD, Government and Military Personnel, and National Athletes can only be claimed at the CCP Box Office located at the Tanghalang Ignacio Gimenez.

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