Grace Libero

Review: Theatre Group Asia's "The Notebook: The Musical"

Article (news)

<div><em>&ldquo;On good days, I&rsquo;m a friend. On bad days, I&rsquo;m a stranger. I live for the good days,&rdquo; - Noah, The Notebook: The Musical</em></div><div><br></div><p><strong>Nicholas Sparks</strong>&rsquo; <strong><em>The Notebook</em></strong> has captivated hearts with the bestselling novel and the beloved film adaptation, which starred Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams, and fans of the epic love story now have more reasons to relive the romance with <strong>Theatre Group Asi</strong><strong>a</strong>&rsquo;s (TGA) Philippine staging of &ldquo;<strong>The Notebook: The Musical</strong>,&rdquo; which runs until September 20, 2026 at the<strong>&nbsp;Samsung Performing Arts Theater</strong> in Circuit Makati.</p><p>The musical, which features music and lyrics by acclaimed singer-songwriter <strong>Ingrid Michaelson&nbsp;</strong>and a book by <strong>Bekah Bruntstetter</strong>, follows the story of <strong>Noah</strong> and <strong>Allie</strong> whose love transcends classes, separation, and time, which audiences will witness across multiple stages of their colorful lives.</p><p>At the center of the story are six performers who portray Allie and Noah at different stages of their lives, with Philippine theater icon <strong>Celeste Legaspi</strong> taking on the role of Older Allie opposite acclaimed theater actor<strong>&nbsp;Rody Vera&nbsp;</strong>as Older Noah. Internationally acclaimed singer and performer <strong>Morissette</strong> stars as Middle Allie, with <strong>Laurence Mossman&nbsp;</strong>as Middle Noah, and the thespians completing the central trio are <strong>Sheena Belarmino&nbsp;</strong>as Younger Allie and <strong>Benedix Ramos&nbsp;</strong>as Younger Noah.</p><div><br></div><div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1788457604064The Company of Theatre Group Asia's The Notebook The Musical .jpg" style="width: 960px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"></div><div><br></div><p><strong>Metro.Style</strong> was also able to witness the essence of the peaks and valleys of true love through a sneak peek at the musical during rehearsals, gaining perspectives from the production&rsquo;s cast, talent, director, and executive producer.&nbsp;</p><p>And at the gala night of &ldquo;The Notebook: The Musical,&rdquo; excitement poured in for its cast members&#39; amazing performances, impressive staging, and the simultaneously heartfelt and heartbreaking music and lyrics that filled the Samsung Performing Arts Theater.</p><p>From exclusive conversations with Metro.Style and after finally witnessing the grand international debut of the musical, here, we listed the top reasons why &ldquo;The Notebook: The Musical&rdquo; should be on your calendar of activities this September.</p><div><br></div><div><strong>The fact that it is the musical&rsquo;s first-ever international staging</strong></div><p>&ldquo;The Notebook: The Musical&rdquo; marks a significant milestone in Philippine theater as its international premiere is set in the country, following its successful world premiere at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater in 2022 and its Broadway run at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre in 2024.&nbsp;</p><p>And Theatre Group Asia&#39;s production did not disappoint. Like Noah and Allie&#39;s dream house with a wrap-around porch at the center of the storytelling, this staging has steps that help elevate Philippine theater, doors that open wide for Filipino talent to gain further global recognition and appreciation, and windows with blue shutters from which audiences can get glimpses of how stories are told with Filipino excellence and warmth.&nbsp;</p><p>&ldquo;I think everyone on the team&mdash;the cast, crew, and staff&mdash;we&rsquo;re all just inspired that we are leading the international franchise of &lsquo;The Notebook: The Musical&rsquo; here in the Philippines. I think that alone is something to be proud of, and people should come watch it because we need to be reminded also that we can also do great things here in the Philippines,&rdquo; Morissette happily shared.</p><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1788491027256Theatre Group Asia's The Notebook The Musical - Morissette as Middle Allie, Laurence Mossman as Middle Noah.jpg" style="width: 960px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"></div><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width: 960px; display: block;" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1788490220751The Company of Theatre Group Asia's The Notebook The Musical.jpg" style="width: 960px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"><span class="fr-inner">Laurence Mossman and Morissette</span></span></span></div><div><br></div><div><strong>The showcase of world-class Filipino talent</strong></div><p>As the musical unfolded onstage, the show proved that Filipino talents are not only incredible singers but are also excellent at emotional portrayals. Audiences felt so deeply for Noah and Allie&rsquo;s &ldquo;you-and-me-against-the-world&rdquo; love story and cried with them as their love endured amid dealing with the pain of failing memories. Overheard after the show are reactions from audience members like, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m going to watch this show again,&rdquo; and &ldquo;I tried so hard not to cry, but I did.&rdquo;</p><p>Thankfully, TGA is on a mission to showcase the best of Filipino talents. At the media briefing for the musical, executive producer <strong>Christoper Mohnani&nbsp;</strong>expressed this intention, saying, &ldquo;We are once again very ambitious in our goals and remain steadfast in our mission to be a place where Filipino artists from around the world can present world-class theater we can claim as our own. For us, this isn&rsquo;t really about staging beloved musicals; it&rsquo;s about creating more opportunities for Filipino talents to shine.&rdquo;&nbsp;</p><p>Apart from the talented lead cast members, the musical is also under the direction of New York-based <strong>Nicholas Polonio</strong>, one of the most exciting Filipino-American artists in the international theater scene today, whose directing credits and theater experience on acclaimed productions lend heightened anticipation to the musical.</p><p>&ldquo;What&#39;s exciting to me is that this will be the first production of the show besides the Broadway production. The touring production that&#39;s in the US right now is a touring remount of the Broadway production, and it was just so exciting to get to design, create, cast, and imagine a production that is essentially the second version of the show that the world has ever seen. It really is a love letter not only to this version of the story, but also to the novel and the movie. We have so many surprises and great things that I think will both delight folks who are really familiar with the material but also come across as quite exciting to those who&mdash;this is their first time witnessing <em>The Notebook</em>,&rdquo; Polonio said at the media briefing.</p><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1788490425173Theatre Group Asia's The Notebook The Musical - Morissette as Middle Allie, Laurence Mossman as Middle Noah (1).jpg" style="width: 960px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width: 960px; display: block;" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1788491337201Theatre Group Asia's The Notebook The Musical - Sheena Belarmino as Younger Allie, Benedix Ramos as Younger Noah.jpg" style="width: 960px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"><span class="fr-inner">Sheena Belarmino and Benedix Ramos</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br></div><div><strong>The songs and scenes you won&#39;t help but fall in love with</strong></div><p>The after-effect of watching &ldquo;The Notebook: The Musical&rdquo; includes having LSS (last song syndrome) on several amazing songs such as &quot;My Days,&quot; performed with such amazing aplomb, emotions and vocal prowess by Morissette amid a backdrop of night lights; &quot;Iron in the Fridge&quot; by Rody Vera, supported by younger Noahs (Laurence and Benedix), as he struggled to share the beginning of Allie&rsquo;s health decline; the flirtatious and playful but emotionally honest &quot;Forever&quot; when Noah and Allie met again at the dream house that Noah built; and even the innocence and curiosity of love portrayed during &quot;If This is Love&quot; and &quot;Kiss Me&quot; portrayed so convincingly by younger Allie and Noah (Sheena and Benedix).</p><p>Music-loving Filipinos and theater aficionados will have a grand time choosing their favorite songs from the musical. Marked by emotional moments in the musical, the lyrics echo the situations and challenges faced by the characters. On the sidelines of the rehearsals, the cast gamely shared with Metro.Style their favorite songs from the musical that audiences can take note of.</p><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width: 960px; display: block;" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1788491392799Theatre Group Asia's The Notebook The Musical - Morissette as Middle Allie, Sheena Belarmino as Younger Allie, Celeste Legaspi as Older Allie.jpg" style="width: 960px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"><span class="fr-inner">Morissette, Sheena Belarmino, and Celeste Legaspi</span></span></span></div><div><br></div><p><em>Rody Vera:</em> &ldquo;I have a lot. I like &#39;My Days,&#39; &#39;Iron in the Fridge,&#39; but for me, I really like &#39;Time&#39; during the opening.&rdquo;</p><div><br></div><p><em>Celeste Legaspi:</em> &ldquo;I really like the song of the kids as they&rsquo;re about to make love. I think &#39;Kiss Me&#39; was wonderfully written. The lyrics are<em>&nbsp;bagay na bagay sa&nbsp;</em>moment. It&rsquo;s so honest. It got me hooked into the musical.&rdquo;</p><div><br></div><p><em>Morissette</em>: &ldquo;All of them! One of my favorites is &#39;Don&rsquo;t You Worry.&#39; It gets me every time. It reminds me of my relationship with my mom as well.&rdquo;</p><div><br></div><p><em>Laurence Mossman:</em> &ldquo;It&rsquo;s the Act One song called &#39;I Wanna Go Back,&#39; which features all three Allies onstage, and I&rsquo;m just getting to experience the incredible talent of these three women (Morissette, Celeste Legaspi, and Sheena Belarmino).&rdquo;</p><div><br></div><p><em>Sheena Belarmino:</em> &ldquo;&#39;Iron in the Fridge.&#39; Seeing that side of Noah, that yearning for love and the life with Allie, is such a stab in the heart. It shows how persistent he is as a person who&rsquo;s loving someone in the depths of Alzheimer&rsquo;s.&rdquo;</p><div><br></div><p><em>Benedix Ramos:</em> &ldquo;&#39;Sadness and Joy.&#39;<em>&nbsp;Sobrang ganda niya</em> in terms of lyrics and melody. <em>&#39;Yu</em><em>n &#39;yung</em> love&mdash;there&rsquo;s sadness and joy, for richer and for poorer, until death do us part. It&rsquo;s a wedding song. I also like &#39;What Happens&#39; by Middle Allie.&rdquo;</p><div><br></div><p><em>Carla Guevara-Laforteza</em>: &ldquo;&#39;Coda&#39; because it&rsquo;s about coming home.&rdquo;</p><div><br></div><p><em>Markki Stroem:</em> &ldquo;&#39;What Happens&#39; by Morissette after she sees the house. This song basically talks about if someone&rsquo;s living with you, to your ex. It always brings a tear to my eyes because it opens our hearts and minds to what was in the past. The other one is &#39;Iron in the Fridge&#39; because this is the only window to [Noah and Allie&rsquo;s] life, the time when they just lived together, and they had a life.&rdquo;</p><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1788491175918Theatre Group Asia's The Notebook The Musical - Morissette as Middle Allie.jpg" style="width: 960px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><br></strong></div><div><strong>The story that appeals to the Filipino audience</strong></div><p>From Act One to the Finale, one would be convinced that, although it has American roots, &ldquo;The Notebook: The Musical&rdquo; is as Filipino melodrama as it gets.</p><p>It is one of its strengths and one of the best reasons to watch the show since the love story burdened by class differences completely resonates with Filipinos. As Older Noah and a playwright, Rody Vera shares his thoughts on this with enthusiasm.</p><p>&ldquo;<em>Naku</em>, <em>wala nang mas</em> Filipino <em>pa dito</em>. <em>Sa lahat ng</em> Broadway musicals <em>na napanood ko</em>, <em>ito na iyong pinaka</em>-Filipino. <em>Puwede mo ngang gawing teleserye ito e</em>. The whole musical is as Filipino as it gets. The storyline, juxtaposing all the timelines, gives you a different perspective on old stories,&rdquo; Vera said.</p><p>Legendary singer-actress Celeste Legaspi also believes Filipinos would relate to the story. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a beautiful love story that spans several decades, and Filipinos love a good love story. There will be wonderful performances felt from the heart, and it&rsquo;s a very Filipino story&mdash;&#39;<em>yung pag-ibig na hanggang sa kahuli-hulihan</em>,&rdquo; she remarked.</p><div><br></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width: 960px; display: block;" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1788491070056Theatre Group Asia's The Notebook The Musical - Celeste Legaspi as Older Allie, Rody Vera as Older Noah.jpg" style="width: 960px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"><span class="fr-inner">Rody Vera and Celeste Legaspi</span></span></span></div><div><br></div><div><strong>The universal theme&mdash;not only for lovers but also for family and loved ones</strong></div><p>&ldquo;The Notebook: The Musical&rdquo; may be centered on Noah and Allie&rsquo;s love story, but all around it, whispers of family love will touch the hearts of audiences. As the story unfolds, one would be inspired to get to know your parents beyond their roles in the family and ask questions like: Who is your father or your mother before their duties and responsibilities as parents? Did they have dreams as individual people? What made them cry? What made them smile? What does love mean for them? What were their lives before family happened?</p><p>It is certainly a musical that&rsquo;s not only created for romance but also for filial love.</p><p>With a timeless love story that moves between youth and old age, &ldquo;The Notebook: The Musical&rdquo; invites audiences to examine and redefine what true love really means, not just when faced with grand romantic gestures and happy moments, but also in the face of life&rsquo;s trials that challenge enduring devotion.</p><p>Now, our &quot;The Notebook: The Musical&quot; hangover wasn&#39;t over. Still isn&#39;t over.&nbsp;</p><div><br></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width: 960px; display: block;" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1788491527421Theatre Group Asia's The Notebook The Musical - Benedix Ramos as Younger Noah, Sheena Belarmino as Younger Allie, Jiallian Ita-as as Georgie, Shaun Ocrisma as Fin, Felicity Kyle Napuli as Sarah.jpg" style="width: 960px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"><span class="fr-inner" spellcheck="false">Benedix Ramos as Younger Noah, Sheena Belarmino as Younger Allie, Jiallian Ita-as as Georgie, Shaun Ocrisma as Fin, and Felicity Kyle Napuli as Sarah</span></span></span></div><div><br></div><div><strong><em>Theatre Group Asia&rsquo;s &ldquo;The Notebook: The Musical&rdquo; runs from September 3 to 20, 2026 at the Samsung Performing Arts Theater, Circuit Makati. Tickets are now available at <a href="https://premier.ticketworld.com.ph/shows/show.aspx?sh=NOTEBOOK26" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">TicketWorld</a>.</em></strong></div><div><br></div><p>Photos:</p><p>Property of Theatre Group Asia</p><p>Artistic Director: Clint Ramos</p><p>Executive Director: Christopher Mohnani</p><p>Photos by Jyllan Bitalac and Sherie Bolo</p><p>Marketing &amp; Social Media: Art Directed</p>

<p>An extraordinary romance takes audiences on an emotional musical rollercoaster ride with the first-ever international staging of “The Notebook: The Musical,” proudly held in the Philippines.</p>

An extraordinary romance takes audiences on an emotional musical rollercoaster ride with the first-ever international staging of “The Notebook: The Musical,” proudly held in the Philippines.

5 Reasons Why You Must Watch Theatre Group Asia's 'The Notebook: The Musical'

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5 Reasons Why You Must Watch Theatre Group Asia's 'The Notebook: The Musical'

Grace Diez

Published September 04, 2026 11:40 AM PHT

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Updated September 04, 2026 11:41 AM PHT

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