“Request sa Radyo,” a local adaptation of a German monodrama, is a marketing and promotions triumph. For months, Metro Manila buzzed about the reimagined Samsung Performing Arts Theater experience, featuring internationally acclaimed stars and a world-class production team. Postevent stories and social media posts were equally enthusiastic.

Nonetheless, the show lives up to the hype. We attended the preview starring Lea Salonga. Producer and scenographer Clint Ramos had seen Franz Xavier Kroetz’s “Wunschkonzert (Radio Request),” a play about a modest wage earner returning home from work and listening to the radio. In Western society, the solitary life, though common, can be daunting, forcing individuals to confront their feelings. Ramos adapted the play for the Philippine experience, focusing on an OFW in a New York suburb.

Monodramas, plays with a singular character, are ideal for intimate black-box theaters such as PowerMac Center Spotlight. However, staging it in a black box wouldn’t make news. The reconfiguring of the 1,200-capacity Samsung Theater by a Tony-award-winning designer would. Ramos transformed the conventional theater experience into an arena. As you enter, the theater is surrounded by crates, symbolizing the country’s export of caregivers.