Ensemble dancers take center stage

Theatre Group Asia brings A Chorus Line to the Philippines

THE NEXT production of Theatre Group Asia (TGA) is a landmark Broadway title, A Chorus Line, to be directed and choreographed by New York-based Filipino-American Emmy winner Karla Puno Garcia.

Set to run from March 12 to 29, 2026, at the Samsung Performing Arts Theater in Circuit Makati, this staging coincides with the musical’s 50th anniversary. It remains one of the few musicals to ever win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, aside from winning the Tony Awards for Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical (James Kirkwood), Best Original Score (Marvin Hamlisch and Edward Kleban), Best Director (Michael Bennett), and Best Choreography (Michael Bennett and Bob Avian) in 1976.

It revolutionized Broadway by spotlighting the lives of ensemble dancers and TGA aims to “bring the story to life with an all-Filipino cast, celebrating the global talent and cultural depth of the Philippines.”

“We have a lot of natural talents who don’t necessarily go to a formal theater or dance school, but they are great talents. Karla was very particular about the dancing because, when the curtain opens, it’s the first thing that you see,” said TGA Executive Director Christopher Mohnani at a press roundtable in Makati on Nov. 6.

Compared to TGA’s previous production, Into the Woods, this one required a rigorous audition process, which Ms. Puno Garcia oversaw initially from New York. She is now in the Philippines for the final rounds.

“We’ve been doing the audition process for about two months now,” Mr. Mohnani said. “Karla has been looking for somebody that is authentic, so that when they step on stage, you know his or her style. Now, we’re working with almost 30 people that we’ve sort of shortlisted.”

Aside from the director-choreographer, TGA has not yet revealed the rest of the creative team of A Chorus Line. The only cast member we know so far is Filipino-American actor Conrad Ricamora who will tackle the leading role of Zach, who is the director and choreographer in the musical’s story and the driving force and emotional mirror of the show.

The production made waves in 1975 for its stripped-down set, iconic choreography, and intensely personal monologues about ambition, sacrifice, and individuality. Popular songs include “One [Singular Sensation],” “What I Did For Love,” “I Can Do That,” “I Hope I Get It,” and “The Music and the Mirror.”

CONTEMPORARY INFLUENCE

Ms. Puno Garcia is an Emmy winner for Outstanding Choreography for Variety or Reality Programming and the first Filipina cast member and dance captain in Hamilton.

When TGA artistic director Clint Ramos called to offer her the chance to direct A Chorus Line in the Philippines, she immediately said yes.

“I spent so many years in the chorus line of numerous Broadway shows,” she told the press. “I vividly recall watching it with my late mother on Broadway, back in 1977. Anne Reinking played Cassie in the show I watched.”

As a fan, she explained that the production will remain faithful to the original material but also reflect her own aesthetic as a dancer and choreographer — and she expects the same of the people they are casting as principals.

“We’ll see my vocabulary, which is more influenced by contemporary movement and influences of hip-hop, modern dance, and a fusion of different things, but subtly infused in a way that still honors the original,” Ms. Puno Garcia said.

She added that there have been “thoughts about intentionally including Filipino culture in the piece.”

Though TGA’s A Chorus Line still takes place in New York in 1975, the actors will be bringing their own personalities into the roles.

“There’s a lot of versatility, which is really exciting, because this version is going to showcase a lot of different types of dancers,” she said. “The entire line are all principals and there is no real ensemble because that is the whole point — they are stars in their own right. That is the beauty of this piece, that the chorus are the stars.”

A Chorus Line will run from March 12 to 29, 2026, at the Samsung Performing Arts Theater in Circuit Makati. Tickets are available now through TicketWorld, with prices ranging from P900 to P5,500. — Brontë H. Lacsamana