Ogie Diaz’s “Naririnig N’yo Ba Ako?” Review: A ₱1,000 Bar Play With Heart and Rough Edges

Walking into Lust Entertainment Bar on opening night felt like walking into a black box theater, the kind of bare, flexible room you’d find at the Spotlight Black Box Theater at The Circuit Makati. The difference is that this one serves drinks. The setup is looser, closer to a comedy bar, with people ordering food and drinks before the show.

The schedule is looser too. The poster said 6 PM. The show started at 7, after Ogie Diaz himself asked the service crew whether all the orders had been served, which turned out to be a smooth way into the opening scene. I can’t say more without spoiling it, so I’ll stop there.

Not the First Bar Play, and That’s the Point

“Naririnig N’yo Ba Ako?” (Can You Hear Me?) is the first one-act bar play from Diaz’s OgieD Productions Inc. It is far from the first play staged in a bar. When I came back to Manila in 2025, I was welcomed by a wave of intimate productions, among them Vince De Jesus’ Ateng, starring Kokoy De Santos at Rampa Bar in Quezon City. Earlier this month, we caught Jojo Urquico’s Hubo’t Hubad at Halxyon Bar in Poblacion, Makati.

I’ve come around to the idea, and to it becoming a trend. Bar plays pull in new, or at least different, theatergoers. They also give bars income during hours that would otherwise go to waste: regular bars open at 10 PM, and the real action starts at midnight and runs until morning. And artists get one more platform for their talent.

The price helps. Diaz, a self-confessed theater fan, told friends who asked him to act that he was too busy for 30 calendar days of rehearsals, so he produced instead. “Mahal ngayon ang live experience,” he said, meaning live shows are expensive these days. “Since sa bar ito gaganapin, 1K lang ang ticket.”

Playwright and director Kim Marasigan sees the venue as part of the story. “By creating a story about a bar, staged within a bar, the audience becomes more than spectators. They become part of the experience,” he said.

Hunter, Krista "Rufami" Aguilar, and Emi Felix of "Naririnig N’yo Ba Ako?" after the opening-night show — Opening-night cast Hunter, Krista “Rufami” Aguilar, and Emi Felix after the show.

Three Strangers, One Night

The play follows three people whose paths cross in one bar on one night. Liza is a single mother working as a waitress. Mark is a self-confessed “cutie” and former POGO (Philippine offshore gaming operator, the online gambling outfits that employed thousands before the industry was banned) worker. Ava is a trans woman searching for an AFAM, short for “a foreigner around Manila.” By the play’s own telling, that night changes the rest of their lives.

The cast alternates: Hunter and Kych Minemoto share Mark, Krista “Rufami” Aguilar and Marissa Sanchez share Liza, and Emi Felix and Serena Magiliw share Ava. On opening night, I watched Hunter, Aguilar, and Felix.

Can You Hear It?

“Naririnig N’yo Ba Ako?” is one more voice taking on the political and social issues of the day, among them corruption, online gambling, and bigotry. It also questions the voice of a majority that keeps putting scumbag politicians in power.

The play breaks the fourth wall from start to finish and leans into comedy, with characters belting songs on several occasions. But it only brushes against being a comedy bar skit. It refuses to be one. It carries the weight of the issues it wants to discuss without turning too melodramatic, though it does tip into the dramatic on several occasions.

It was my first time watching Hunter, Aguilar, and Felix, and they are real, natural actors. Hunter, who I later learned is part of the Pinoy pop group 6Sense, can act, and he does Mark justice. His shirtless scenes give the audience the treat we all deserve. Watch for the scene where he pours his heart out. He delivers. Felix’s presence and timing give the play its own flavor.

It isn’t a perfect piece. There are lapses in several parts, but the ensemble keeps them from being noticeable, unless you came looking for faults. There were technical problems with the lighting, audio, and music, which is understandable on an opening night in a bar. The script needs a lot of tightening, and the comedic timing needs more polish.

To answer the title’s question: we heard what the play is saying. A clearer voice and a more polished delivery would do more than make you hear it. They would leave a lasting impact on the audience’s heart.

The Other Half of the Cast

In a casual conversation after the show, Minemoto told us he hopes we’ll see his take on Mark too. Anytime, Kych. We took him up on it in our profile of his return to theater.

Sanchez told us how proud she is of her alternate, Aguilar, for her performance. We couldn’t agree more.

The actors told the press about the stakes before opening. Sanchez, returning to acting after years away, said Liza felt written for her. “I relate to Liza in many ways, especially her struggles and being single,” she said. Minemoto, whose last theater stint was with Tanghalang Pilipino (the Cultural Center of the Philippines’ resident theater company) in 2019, stepped away because theater doesn’t pay much. Mark brought him back. “This is my purpose as an actor,” he said. Magiliw, who has worked in both independent and mainstream theater, said the cast and creatives worked together to strengthen the script as it developed.

I can’t wait to see Minemoto, Sanchez, and Magiliw in their roles. That would deserve another piece.

Kych Minemoto, Marissa Sanchez, and Serena Magiliw of "Naririnig N’yo Ba Ako?" — The other half of the “Naririnig N’yo Ba Ako?” cast: Kych Minemoto, Marissa Sanchez, and Serena Magiliw.

Where the Money Goes

Part of the proceeds will benefit the Dugong Alay, Dugtong Buhay Foundation, a non-stock, non-profit organization founded by the late Napoleon Nicetas B. “Nap” Marilag. It provides safe, free blood to hospital patients who need transfusions.