Theater Review: Shorts & Briefs by Night Festival

Stepping into Café Shylo feels like entering a friend’s living room: intimate, warm, and only a foot away from the performers. The nearness heightens every glance and gesture, creating an almost tactile connection between actors and audience. A thoughtful touch was the presence of sign language interpreters, a gesture of inclusivity that deserves applause.

Below are the evening’s six short plays—distinct in voice, daring in subject, and bound by the festival’s playful spirit.

1. SH*T
Jeremi Flores’ script follows a gay couple trying to steady their relationship while raising an adopted child, even as old wounds from judgmental parents resurface. Director Phi Palmos delivers a quietly powerful debut, balancing tenderness and tension. It’s a story of love’s limits—how sometimes we sacrifice even what we cherish most for the sake of those we love.

2. Reklamasyon Headquarters
Who knew a comedy about male and female genitals could be both educational and hilarious? Through witty dialogue and clever costume design, the play imagines private parts suddenly able to speak their minds. The result is a cheeky takedown of sexual taboos and a reminder to respect our own bodies.

3. The Red Hotel
A chance encounter between a call boy and a devout churchgoer becomes an unexpected dance of flirtation, shame, and mutual respect. The performers tease and charm their way from awkward small talk to a consensual revelation of their wilder sides. It’s funny, daring, and surprisingly sweet.

4. Ang Babae at ang Mangga
This whimsical piece is a mythical love story—complete with a gender-flipped manananggal. Here, the man is the shy winged creature, while the woman is delightfully uninhibited. Both humorous and subversive, it playfully normalizes frank talk about sexuality and desire.

5. Josefino at ang Estatwa
Romance and poetry intertwine in this elegant tale reminiscent of the Machete legend. The writing is lyrical, almost dreamlike, offering intimacy without vulgarity. It’s a gentle reminder that sensual storytelling can be both tasteful and mesmerizing.

6. Warla Arena
The finale is the festival’s boldest piece—a drag-queen spectacle that feels like Face 2 Face colliding with a fetish fair. Toy-centered fantasies take the spotlight, and while no nudity appears, the suggestiveness is unmistakable. It’s playful, provocative, and impossible to look away from.

The Shorts & Briefs Festival thrives on audacity and variety. From tender domestic drama to gleeful sexual comedy, it embraces topics that Philippine theater often tiptoes around. Its close-quarters setup turns each performance into a shared secret between actor and audience, proving that intimacy—both emotional and physical—can be the most powerful stage of all.

Tickets for the Shorts & Briefs Festival are priced at ₱750, which already includes a complimentary drink and admission to all six plays in one sitting. The festival runs from September 20 to October 5, 2025, with performances every weekend at 2:00 PM and 7:30 PM at Café Shylo in Pasig (Showroom by Projects Unlimited, Skyway Twin Towers Condominium). To reserve a seat, simply send a Viber message to 0919-487-3983 and follow the instructions provided. Reservations are recommended, as seating is limited and the space’s intimate setup fills quickly. For updates and confirmations, follow Eksena PH on Facebook or Instagram. Please note that the festival is strictly for audiences 18 years old and above.

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Six Bold Stories, One Unforgettable Night: Shorts and Briefs by Night Returns

Taboo. Sexy. And just a little unexpected. The country’s most daring festival of short plays is back, bringing six provocative pieces in a single ticketed experience. Shorts & Briefs by Night once again champions first-time playwrights, new directors, and fresh talent, promising an evening of surprises for adventurous theatergoers.

Here’s a peek at the sizzling lineup:

 

1. The Red Hotel

Cast: Khaye Paje, Warden Malaya
Writer: Aeriel Madriaga (Miss A) | Director: Rye Capulong
A Christian woman who’s never had a boyfriend finds herself in a setup planned by friends—meeting a stranger meant to seduce her. But as sparks fly, the night takes an unexpected turn.

2. Ang Babae at ang Mangga
Cast: Mika O’Hara, Cullen Landicho
Writer: John Custer | Director: Tads Obach-Acosta
A playful encounter unfolds between a woman and a mango that isn’t quite what it seems.

 

3. Josefino at ang Estatwa
Cast: Rozel Basilio, Kiko Mariano
Writer: Francis Panes | Director: Ingrid Joyce
An artist sculpts a statue as beautiful as the Blessed Virgin. When he longs for it to come alive, a mysterious miracle—or delusion—begins.

4. SH*T!
Cast: Philip Macabantad, Quiel Campo
Writer: Jeremi Flores | Director: Phillip Bracero Palmo
Bondage, role play, and family secrets collide as Louis and Fino return home to a revelation about their son—dancing through passion, trauma, and unexpected love.

 

5. Warla Arena

Cast: Salmo Nella, Kriszan Manipon, JB
Director: Tom Navarro | Musical Arrangement: Vanessa Dulay
A wife confronts a robot accused of stealing her husband’s affection in a no-holds-barred talk show showdown.

 
6. Reklamasyon Headquarters
Cast: Monique Louise Maglaqui, Jonnel Empinado, Sidrey Omer A. Apita
Writer: Lewor Sotis | Director: Mark Norman Boquiren
In a place where complaints become revolution, two ordinary people rise up to demand the respect they deserve.

Admission is strictly for audiences 18 years old and above. A single ticket priced at PHP 750 grants access to all six plays and includes a complimentary drink. Shows run from September 20 to October 5, 2025, with performances at 2:00 PM and 7:30 PM at Cafe Shylō in Pasig. To secure your seat, reservations are accepted exclusively via Viber at 0919 487 3983.

Experience a night of fearless storytelling and fresh artistry—because sometimes the shortest plays leave the deepest impression.

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Shorts & Briefs 9 at Draper Startup House this August 6-27, 2023

Shorts & Briefs 9 by EKSENA PH, is an independently produced “THEATRE FESTIVAL” of short and brief Plays (10-12min plays) that features ONLY 1st time theatre makers and performers. It’s been running for 9 years. This year they are back to the LIVE theatre scene celebrating 9 years with 8 live shows on all Sundays of AUGUST. Debuting this season are 8 set of plays featuring new faces in the theatre scene. This year SNB 9 will also feature original stories from new and upcoming playwrights.

It will be staged at DRAPER STARTUP HOUSE in Poblacion Makati, All Sundays of August starting August 6-27. Showtime is at 2pm and 7pm every Sunday. DRAPER is a 80-seater venue, is located at 5048 P. Burgos Street, Poblacion, Makati, Philippines.

This year SNB 9 will feature original stories from New and Upcoming Playwrights.

The plays are as follows:
Tim Villanueva’s “Mga Nakasusuyang Putahe”, a funny story about relationship, revenge and food to be Directed by Naye Hedriana who is a former actress during SNB 5th season and currently an accountant, now exploring the role of a play director.

Ephraim Villafania’s “Save the Coffee Jelly” A comedy about creating false campaigns--save the coffee bean, in this instance--to create income. Directed by Cyril Balderama who is an Artist and Choreographer from Valenzuela City.

Aldrich Alcantara’s “Grief Registry” is a play set in a hotel room about a newly-wed couple who receives an unknown wedding gift to be Directed by Jemuel Satumba an award winning film actor.

Francis Peralta and Sean Macaraeg’s “Online Class” has been devised and collaborated with director and a licensed chemical technician Eunice Pacifico with “Latency” as its new title.

Julay Elloso and Frank Conche’s “Ang Tigas ng Ulo Mo” a riot story about three brothers and their “Alive” arthritic father to be directed by film/ theatre sound scorer and designer Paulo Almaden.

Dino Quintana’s “Homecoming” is a story about a balikabayan box that arrives months after the sender has died to be directed by Ciri Clarion a fresh graduate from Iligan City and a member of Integrated Performing Arts Guild (IPAG).

Billie Fuentes’ “The Mourning After” has been collaborated and now called “11:11” is a story about relationship, friendship and mourning to be directed by certified meisner teacher and Sightlines Actors Space Founder Alecx Lorica.

Wilfredo Alipala’s “Bakit Bata” a story about ghosts and ghosting to be directed by Earl Pingol a former thespian and now a brand ambassador for a popular soda drink.

Shorts & Briefs started in 2015 to have a safe space for 1st timers and aspiring creators to collaborate and just create. An initiative of Festival Director Karl Alexis C. Jingco, a theatre Practioner whose works revolves around IMPROV and INCLUSIVE theatre, recently directed this years revisited play for the Virgin Labfest “Nay my Dala akong Pancit”. Since then S&B has been expanded to serve the larger theater community.

For more information about the festival please follow them on their socials. “EKSENA PH” on Facebook.
For tickets and other inquiries, please contact 09673828066 or message them on their social media.

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