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‘Miranda & Yolanda’

Jude Cartalaba

<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/17706994209427 Jan24 POSTER V1.png" style="width:633px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/></div>The women of Floy Quintos are reclaiming the spotlight this April, as “Miranda &amp; Yolanda,” a twin bill of two Palanca-winning one-act plays, returns to the stage nearly two years after the playwright’s passing.The title comes from the names of the two female leads, with Ana Abad Santos as Miranda in “Evening at the Opera” and Shamaine Buencamino as Yolanda in “Ang Kalungkutan ng mga Reyna.”“Floy wrote the most beautiful, heartbreaking, empowered, richly layered female roles,&quot; Abad Santos said. “I identified so much with these roles he wrote that I believe he was so instrumental in my growth as an actor but also as a woman.”Buencamino added, “These two one-act plays premiered at Virgin Lab Festival (VLF) at the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP), and were also both re-visited.“Yolanda is the president of the Philippines. Both plays have a political undertone. Floy&#x27;s brilliance shines through these plays as always. Also, this role gave me my first acting awards from Aliw and Gawad, in 2008.”According to the award-winning director, Dexter Martinez Santos, “In his notes about &#x27;Ang Kalungkutan ng mga Reyna,&#x27; Sir Floy mentioned that it was his dream of one day mounting a triple bill of all his Virgin LabFest works – &#x27;Ang Kalungkutan ng mga Reyna,&#x27; &#x27;Suor Clara,&#x27; and &#x27;Evening at the Opera&#x27; – under the title &#x27;Miranda, Yolanda and Clara: Three Quintosian Women.&#x27;“During our script reading, Encore Theater executive producer Stella Cañete-Mendoza mentioned to the company that she chose to mount with &#x27;Miranda &amp; Yolanda&#x27; because they both speak of the psyche of people in power set in contemporary times.”He also added, “What I appreciate about Sir Floy, as evident in our collaborations, is his belief that the play is alive. There was never a rigid boundary between us as ‘director’ and ‘playwright.’ We listened to one another, and no idea belonged solely to him or to me. At times, he would ignite a thought in me; at other moments, I would do the same for him. In the end, the play always gained from our exchanges.”<div> </div><div>From VL Fest to now</div>&quot;Evening at the Opera&quot; was first staged during Virgin LabFest 7 at the CCP in 2011. Its original cast were Abad Santos, Jonathan Tadioan, and Frances Makil-Ignacio.Meanwhile, &quot;Ang Kalungkutan ng mga Reyna&quot; was first staged at Virgin LabFest 4, also at the CCP in 2008. It featured Buencamino, Tuxqs Rutaquio, Jonathan Tadioan, Rommel Benedicto, Gerard Napoles, and Nar Cabico.The two plays reflect the realities faced by women in today’s society, with Quintos’ stories resonating across time. These works strip away the public facade of people in power, revealing the personal costs and moral compromises behind authority.<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/17706996218251 FULL CAST.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/>The cast of &#x27;Miranda &amp; Yolanda.&#x27; Handout</div>&quot;Evening at the Opera&quot; unfolds on the night of a major cultural event. As Miranda Beloto prepares for the opera she has organized, an intense exchange with her mother and her husband, Governor Bingo Beloto, exposes the cracks beneath a powerful dynasty&#x27;s polished façade. Meanwhile, &quot;Ang Kalungkutan ng mga Reyna&quot; takes place inside the presidential palace, set the morning after the declaration of Martial Law, where hairstylist Marcel De Alba is summoned to serve President Yolanda Cadiz. Her penchant for royal image and protocol reveals the psychological shift brought about by absolute power.For this restaging, Abad Santos is joined by Frances Makil-Ignacio as Mamang and Joshua Cabiladas as Bingo, while Buencamino co-stars with Topper Fabregas as Marcel and Jules dela Paz as Ministro.“Miranda &amp; Yolanda” will run for approximately two hours with a 15-minute intermission. Performances are scheduled every Saturday and Sunday at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. from April 11 to May 3 at the Power Mac Center Spotlight Blackbox Theater, Ayala Malls Circuit, Makati City. Tickets are available online via Ticket2Me and through Encore Theater’s authorized show buyers. For more information, follow Encore Theater on its social media accounts on Facebook and Instagram via @EncoreTheaterMNLPH and @encoretheatermnlph, respectively.

Ana Abad Santos and Shamaine Buencamino dominate the stage again via ‘Miranda and Yolanda’

Ana Abad Santos and Shamaine Buencamino dominate the stage again via ‘Miranda and Yolanda’

Floy Quintos’ women reclaim the stage in twin bill ‘Miranda & Yolanda’

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Floy Quintos’ women reclaim the stage in twin bill ‘Miranda & Yolanda’

Jude Cartalaba

Published February 10, 2026 01:05 PM PHT

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Miranda & Yolanda

Floy Quintos

theater

Dexter Santos

Encore Theater

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