The Sandbox Collective, coming off of a highly successful 10th anniversary season, just announced the full cast of their opening salvo for 2025 — the Tony Award-winning musical, Next To Normal. The show is slated to open in February of next year at the PowerMac Spotlight Theater in Circuit Makati.

One of the most moving shows to hit Broadway, Next To Normal opened in 2009 to rave reviews. The show follows the life of the Goodman family, as they experience love, loss, illness, grief, alongside the intricacies of the family dynamic. The musical has been credited with launching the conversation on mental health in mainstream theater. With book and lyrics by Bryan Yorkey, and music by Tom Kitt, it wen on to win three Tony Awards and the Pulitzer Prize for Literature.

The Sandbox Collective’s staging features a stellar cast of actors, tasked to bring this family drama to life. Playing the central role of family matriarch Diana Goodman are two of the country’s top talents. Gawad Buhay and Aliw Award winner Shiela Valderrama-Martinez, who has been theater mainstay since she was 13, is gearing up to put her emotions on stage to bring this role to life. The actress was last seen as Erzulie in 9Works Theatricals’ Once On This Island, and had a starring turn in the recent CCP Triple Threat series, Leading Ladies. Alternating with her in the role is FAMAS Award winner Nikki Valdez, marking her return to the stage. She is best known for her roles in the films Tanging Ina and Family Matters.