Remembering the Philippines’ First LGBTQ+ Play
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Programang Putul-Putol - Ang Pinta (Fragmented Program - The Painting) by Joni Ramos, 2020, acrylic on canvas, 20" x 15". (Photo by Joni Ramos)
In 1974, most applicants to the UP Broadcasting Association disagreed with the screening committee, so they formed a new organization: UP Samahan ng mga Mag-aaral sa Komunikasyon (Organization of Communication Students) (Samaskom). Their inaugural production was Programang Putul-Putol (Fragmented Program), a full-length play written and directed by founding member Rey E. de la Cruz. It was presented at the UP Abelardo Hall, in Diliman, Quezon City, from February 20 to 22, 1975.
The 1975 group photo features the UP Samaskom members, with playwright-director Rey E. de la Cruz positioned on the far right (Photo by Ami Miciano)
The minimalist production critiqued the depravity of mass media. Gerry Zaragoza explained in the souvenir program: “Programang Putul-Putol defies conventional description. Playwright Rey E. de la Cruz wrote a collage-montage of incidents with a message: Philippine mass media, in its form and content, is trivial and dehumanizing. The play’s message is achieved through witty and terse dialogues, as well as total-effect sets and sounds. The play could start and stop at any point and still have the same effect. It adheres to Marshall McLuhan’s dictum: ‘The medium is the message.’”
Set on a theatrical stage, Programang Putul-Putol is a television show with a nonlinear structure consisting of various segments, suggesting that the medium’s form has a more profound impact on the audience than the content it conveys.
Bibsy Carballo (The Times Journal, March 1, 1975) reported that Programang Putul-Putol was a big hit: “A satire on television today, the play has the audience roaring with laughter … but with one big difference—they were laughing at themselves.”
The acronym LGBTQ+ stands for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer. The “+” symbol is for inclusivity, diversity, and expansion. In 1975, LGBTQ+ issues were a sensitive topic that was largely avoided. However, Programang Putul-Putol courageously broke new ground by tackling the subject, incorporating scathing satire to critique the television industry. As a result, it became an influential and pioneering work in Philippine LGBTQ+ theater.
The plotless play introduces the audience to the pathetic reality of mass media. Intertwined with this is the life of the show’s star, Fofongay. From childhood to decline, he is a degraded and virulent creation of the mass media.
Dolphy was the Philippines’ King of Comedy. He was famous for his satirical and caricatured portrayal of gay characters onscreen. His gay roles were frivolous, boisterous, and one-dimensional. They became even more disconcerting with the addition of his trademark toilet humor. Although his performances misrepresented the LGBTQ+ community, they were tolerated at the time.
It is important to note that Dolphy’s depiction of gay characters was a snapshot of his times and reflected societal attitudes towards the LGBTQ+ community. However, his performances also demonstrated his multifaceted nature as an actor and his capacity to take far-ranging roles.
Dolphy initially portrayed Fofongay. De la Cruz adopted the character from Fefita Fofongay viuda de Falayfay (1973), a film directed by Armando Garces. De la Cruz’s Fofongay completely departs from Dolphy’s screaming version. He is a thoroughly average person, with no distinguishing features.
Ruben Defeo (The Carillon, February-March 1975) elaborated: “Fofongay was Everyman, subject to the rigidities of the society that worked on everyone else. In one brilliant scene, Fofongay was circumcised, and in another was compelled to make it with a prostitute … Fofongay, a homosexual, must be taken with no discriminating criteria to isolate him from the social mainstream.”
The original production of Programang Putul-Putol has had a lasting impact. In a 2020 YouTube video, playwright Rodolfo Vera recounts how Susan Jacinto, his high-school Pilipino teacher at San Beda College, required his first-year class to watch the play. He was utterly amazed at what he saw. He had never thought that the power of theater could be harnessed in such a way. “Wow—ganoon pala ang theater (Wow—that’s what theater is like!)!” he rhapsodizes in the video. He credits de la Cruz with being one of the reasons he chose a career in the theater.
Author, publisher, and fashion impresario Zardo Austria was a broadcast-communication student at the UP when he watched Programang Putul-Putol in 1975. He pointed out that censorship under Martial Law dictated the boundaries of expression at that time. Austria wrote in an email: “Using satire as his weapon, Rey cleverly unmasked the caricatures and stereotypes of LGBTQ+ perpetuated by mainstream media in the ‘70s, exposing both the pain and the absurdity of being limited within such narrow portrayals.”
What struck Austria most was how Programang Putul-Putol managed to be simultaneously funny, heartbreaking, and thought-provoking—holding a mirror up to a society that chose to laugh at what it did not understand. He added: “Rey’s work is not only historically significant, but it is also incredibly relevant today, reminding us how far we’ve come and how much further we need to go. Programang Putul-Putol was a masterstroke in subversive storytelling—smuggling truth under the guise of comedy, and in doing so, ensuring it reached our hearts!”
When Programang Putul-Putol was first staged in 1975, the term LGBTQ+ had not yet been coined, and the subject was not seriously discussed. Promoting it as an LGBTQ+ play at that time would not have drawn a sizable audience. Today, however, the LGBTQ+ community is recognized and widely accepted. Its members are our friends, siblings, classmates, acquaintances, or people we meet on the street.
Programang Putul-Putol appeared on a limited-edition Philippine Post Office stamp in January 2025 to mark a milestone: 50 years of pioneering Pride Theater in the Philippines. The stamp featured Gene Navea and Asean Gabat, who played Fofongay in 1975 and 2025, respectively.
The Philippine Post Office issued a limited-edition stamp on Programang Putul-Putol in January 2025 to commemorate its 50th anniversary as a pioneer of Pride Theater in the Philippines (Photo by Dominic Agsaway).
To commemorate the 50th anniversary of its first staging in 1975, the play was reimagined as Programang Putul-Putol: The Musical and staged on March 15 and 16, 2025, at the UP Ignacio B. Gimenez Theater in Diliman, Quezon City. It was produced by the Gigi Felix Velarde Ballet and Performing Arts Dance Theater.
“The original play needed an update to reflect the developing inclusivity of the LGBTQ+ community,” director Gigi Felix Velarde-David explained. “Meldrig Costuna and Yvan Peter Juni’s music, Jet David’s choreography, and Binky Feliciano’s costumes further enhanced the play.”
Marius Brisenio (Facebook, March 16, 2025) found the maximalist production to have breathed new life into the story of Fofongay and his struggles, delivering a powerful and moving performance: “Echo Harris commands the stage as Fofongay, bringing raw intensity and deep emotion from start to finish. His performance is so compelling that you would feel every ounce of his journey. Ako ang napagod sa kanya. (I’m the one who got tired of him.)”
The maximalist production of Programang Putul-Putol: The Musical was staged at the University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City, in March 2025 to commemorate the first staging of the original play in 1975 (Photo by Seelay Photography).
The UP Samaskom is now the most popular organization on the UP Diliman campus in Quezon City, primarily because its annual show, Live A.I.D.S., is well attended. From its inception, boldness, rebellion, and relevance have defined the organization and molded its identity. The mass-media component of Programang Putul-Putol was fitting for the members, who were majoring in journalism or broadcast communication. However, their most significant achievement was to premiere Programang Putul-Putol in 1975, daringly paving the way for Pride Theater in the Philippines.
Programang Putul-Putol appeared on a limited-edition Philippine Post Office stamp in January 2025 to mark a milestone: 50 years of pioneering Pride Theater in the Philippines.
Playwright and director Rey E. de la Cruz is a trailblazer in his field, consistently expanding the possibilities of his craft. Programang Putul-Putol’s fragmented narrative is similar to film negatives spliced together, producing a subtle yet inspiring storytelling. Although it may feel restrained compared to recent LGBTQ+ plays and films, de la Cruz’s innovative creativity and emotional resonance have secured Programang Putul-Putol’s status as a landmark in Philippine theater and literature.
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Ivan Kevin Castro is based in Chicagoland. A photography enthusiast, he has an artistic temperament with paintings. An audiophile, he can’t go without music. Although he only has dreams, he is an aspiring global explorer of the world’s richest cultures.
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