CAST PH to stage ‘The Effect’ on September with Sue Ramirez and Brian Sy
CAST PH to stage ‘The Effect’ on September with Sue Ramirez and Brian Sy
SINEGANG.ph published this press release shared by Scene Change. No staff writer participated in writing this article.
CAST PH, in partnership with Areté, brings you The Effect by Lucy Prebble. Originally presented as part of CAST PH’s staged reading series, Theoria Omnium, in 2025, The Effect returns as a fully staged production at the Doreen Blackbox Theater.
“We were heartened by all the positive reactions to The Effect back in 2025. To see it really resonate with so many completely took us by surprise,” says Sarah Facuri, Executive Director of CAST PH, who will once again direct the piece. “We knew then that we had to explore it as a full production. It was a special experience creating the reading, and we’re looking forward to rediscovering the work with the same cast, now on a bigger stage.”
The original cast of the reading will all return to reprise their roles. Leading the cast is Sue Ramirez as Connie Hall and Brian Sy as Tristan Frey. With Dean Daniel Rosen as Dr. Toby Sealy, and Cathy Azanza-Dy as Dr. Lorna James. Chaye Mogg understudies for the role of Connie Hall. Joining Facuri in the artistic team are Teia Contreras (Assistant Director), Carlos Hombrebueno, (Sound Designer), Jethro Nibaten (Lighting Designer), D Cortezano (Set Designer), and Myra Ho (Photographer).
The Effect will run from September 19 to 27 at the Doreen Blackbox Theater in Areté. Performances are scheduled on September 19 at 8 PM; September 20 at 3 PM and 8 PM; September 24 and 25 at 8 PM; and September 26 and 27 at 3 PM and 8 PM Tickets are available on https://arete.helixpay.ph/
The Effect is presented by special arrangement with Concord Theatricals. “And this is only the start. We still have two unannounced shows for 2026 that will surely be a treat for theatre fans of all kinds. Stay tuned.”, adds Sarah.
Follow CAST PH on social media for show announcements. For partnerships, showbuying, and other opportunities, email at castph20@gmail.com. As Ateneo's creativity and innovation hub, Areté has always been interested not only in the work we put onstage, but in who gets to enter the room and experience it. It has mounted full-scale professional productions while deliberately keeping ticket prices low, not because the work is worth less, but because access is part of the work.
Students should be able to encounter professional theatre not as a distant cultural luxury, but as something alive, immediate, and within reach. If Areté is serious about creativity and innovation, then part of that responsibility is to keep asking how theatre can be made and shared differently.
CAST enters that conversation naturally. Its streamlined model is not about doing less. It is about being precise about what a production actually needs, putting resources where they matter, and refusing the idea that scale or expense determines the value of the work.
Because “all the stories we can tell” means very little if only a few people can afford to hear them.
