The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business
Translating the intricate language of the human soul into words requires an insurmountable amount of dedication and courage. The process is not for the faint-hearted, as it often makes writers shed blood, sweat, and tears for simply wishing to execute a vision that has been haunting them for days, months, or years.
The Virgin Labfest (VLF), the country’s pioneering theater festival of untried, untested, and unstaged one-act plays, has turned these daydreams and ambitious ideas into reality since its establishment in 2005. Carrying the theme “Hubo’t Hubad” in its 21st edition, it transforms into a sanctuary for narratives that unwrap humanity’s innate hunger to be desired, seen, and celebrated.
Among the first-timers or “virgin” playwrights this year are Elijah Felice Rosales of “Human Rights Story of the Year,” Alab Usman of “Haram,” Ron Evangelista of “She’s Electric” and Gab Mactal of “Lualhati.”
“My first love talaga is writing for theater,” Mactal confessed, her journey beginning in 7th grade.
Media and philosophy teacher Evangelista confessed to falling into the same rough patch while drafting “She’s Electric.” “Pagdating sa scripts, naramdaman ko kasi na there’s a certain freedom,” he shared.
“Umabot ako ng 12 drafts,” Usman, a full-time freelance artist, said in between chuckles. “Haram” was derived from his college thesis.
Rosales, on the other hand, has been a journalist for almost a decade. With “Human Rights Story of the Year,” he steps into the world of Philippine theater as a playwright.
Catch their plays at 2 pm and 8 pm from June 3 to 28, 2026 at the Tanghalang Ignacio Gimenez (CCP Blackbox Theater).