February is Arts Month, and in support of theater, why not watch a play? There’s something for everyone, whether your preferences lean toward a comedy, a rock musical, a dark tale, or a Filipino classic.

Cast of Skin-Deep with director Nor Domingo. Photo from PETA blog.

Skin-Deep by Vince de Jesus opened at the Philippine Educational Theater Association February 1 and will run all Fridays, Saturdays, and Saturdays of February until March 9.

Tickets are at P300. Contact these numbers for reservations: +63 2 725 6244/410 0821 and+63 917 8154567. If you haven’t been to the new PETA theater, it’s at 5 Eymard Drive, New Manila, Quezon City.

Read the summary of Skin-Deep here. Better yet, go watch it and tell us how you like it!

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Over at Tanghalang Pilipino, EJ: Ang Pinagdaanang Buhay nina Evelio Javier at Edgar Jopson opens February 15.

Written by Palanca awardee Ed Maranan and directed by Chris Millado, EJ places two modern-day heroes face-to-face.

Jett Pangan plays Ed Jopson, the president of the National Union of Students of the Philippines when martial law was declared. Ricky Davao assumes the role of Evelio Javier, governor of Antique, who refused to kowtow to the ruling party. [Read a more concise post at TP's artistic director Dennis Marasigan's blog.]

With music by the Dawn, EJ is a play that the idealistic youth will most certainly relate with, and it’s a history lesson for those who weren’t around then, so go!

EJ runs at Tanghalang Aurelio Tolentino (CCP Little Theater) at these dates: February 15, 16, 22, 23, 29, and March 1, 7, and 8 at 8 p.m. and February 16, 17, 23, 24, and March 1, 2, 8, and 9 at 3 p.m.

Tickets are at P600 (regular) and P300 (students). Get them through Ticketworld (8919999) or through Tanghalang Pilipino (832 3661 and 832 1125 locals 1620/1621).

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Dulaang UP opens its 2008 season with a presentation of Francisco Baltazar’s Orosman at Zafira. The production runs from February 13 to March 2 at the Wilfrido Ma. Guerrero Theater at UP Diliman.

Arnold Reyes and Lex Marcos alternate as Orosman. Maita Ponce and Cris Villonco alternate as Zafira. The cast also includes Jean Judith Javier, Tao Nono, Red Concepcion, Joel Molina, Natasha Cabrera, Hazel Maranan, JC Santos, Ricky Ibe, and the Dulaang UP ensemble.

With noted choreographer Dexter Santos, who is on his directing debut, Orosman and Zafira features music composed by Carol Bello of the Pinikpikan band. Lighting is by John Neil Batalla, and production design by Tuxqs Rutaquio.

Show schedules are 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. for weekends and 7 p.m. for weeknight performances. For tickets, contact +63 917 6206224, 926-1349, 433-7840, 981-8500 local 2449.

Orosman and Zafira thumbnail poster by actor-photographer Jojit Lorenzo.

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If you’ve heard of the line “To be, or not to be: that is the question,” but cannot seem to remember where it comes from, it’s from Hamlet, William Shakespeare’s greatest masterpiece.

This month, Repertory Philippines brings a “futuristic” Hamlet onstage, with Niccolo Manahan as Hamlet and Cris Villonco as Ophelia.

Now if you think this will be another Shakespeare play that will send you dozing off, not to worry. This is not your typical Shakespeare play. Director Anna Abad Santos-Bitong writes in “Stripping Hamlet”:

No tights. No lavish sets. No British accents. Because, really, in the 400 years that the play has been performed, Hamlet has never been about any of that. When stripped to its core, this immortal masterpiece, this most famous of Shakespeare’s plays, is really about greed, love, vengeance, passion: in short, all the ugly, hateful, beautiful, sordid things that make us human.

Hamlet runs from February 1 to 17 at Greenbelt 1’s Onstage in Makati City. Shows are at 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, and 3:30 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. Tickets range from P250 to P550. Call 887 0710 for reservations.

Hamlet image from Repertory Philippines site.