The 2026 theater season is shaping up to strike a balance between big-budget musicals and thought-provoking straight plays. Reflecting this trend, 9Works Theatrical has announced its first offering of the year: a Filipino adaptation of Yemaya’s Belly by Pulitzer Prize–winning playwright Quiara Alegría Hudes.

Titled Yemaya, the production is set to open this June at the Black Box of the Proscenium Theater in Rockwell, promising a moving journey of hope and the pursuit of big dreams.

In Hudes’ original play, Yemaya’s Belly tells the story of a Cuban boy who, inspired by his first taste of Coca-Cola, leaves home in search of a new world—and a chance to meet the American president. Hudes is also widely known for her collaboration with Tony Award–winning composer Lin-Manuel Miranda on the hit Broadway musical In the Heights.

Yemaya will be helmed by Gawad Buhay award-winning director Ed Lacson Jr., whose body of work includes Himala: Isang Musikal in 2018 and 2019. Adapting Hudes' work into Filipino will be Eljay Castro Deldoc. The rest of the creative team and featured cast are yet to be announced.

9Works Theatrical's lineup first two theatrical offerings for the year were announced during the closing show of their sister company, The Sandbox Collective's Spring Awakening this past weekend. Right on the heels of Yemaya will be autobiographical Gloria and Emilio Estefan musical, On Your Feet, which opens in July at the Proscenium Theater.

For more details on final showdates and where to get tickets, follow 9Works Theatrical on their social media platforms.