REVIEWS
Constellations
Joey Mendoza’s stage design and Mary Ellen Stebbins’ lighting seemingly simply and effectively — together with the audience’s imagination — move the scenes from one location to another. In fact, the set is a series of platforms and panels of stained wood with finely crafted vertical pieces and latticework that allow for the varying lighting from the back as well as the front... All these details combine to create a nearly seamless world as the scenes become a kaleidoscope of experiences that paint a picture of a very human and beautiful romance. - Jim Lowe, The Times Argus
Suggesting the infinity of space itself, scenic designer Joey Mendoza's set is three huge walls of latticework, each soaring to the full height of the theater. Simple geometric shapes and subtle patterns appear in the wood. A huge globe that echoes a moon or a planet hangs over the stage. The heights these elements command contrast with a stage area of low-slung platforms. The actors are beautifully tiny, small as subatomic particles, often seated close together in a world that towers above them. - Alex Brown, Seven Days
The Last Five Years
The Topper Fabregas-directed production stands on its own with a unique set design by Joey Mendoza. A moving platform that slides across the stage, symbolizing the characters' shifting timelines, further enhances Brown's discursive reordering of sequences through. The traverse stage, in addition, mimics the plot's dual timeline: as Jamie and Cathy have two separate perspectives, audience members also get physically different POVs. - Spot.ph
Any apprehensions about the musical are immediately put on hold when one enters the Power Mac Center Spotlight. Director Topper Fabregas strips the material to its barest and the audience is greeted by Joey Mendoza’s beautiful set — with two lush strips of faux grass paralleling each other, separated only by a white platform that slides between them, a wooden fence doubling as a lightpiece that hangs above its protagonists. Fabregas takes cue from the music’s opposing chronologies and separates the two lovers spatially, locking them into opposite ends of the stage. The two only intermittently refer to and even converse with each other’s silhouettes, with Meliton Roxas Jr.’s lighting design creating specters out of their spouses. - Rappler
It’s an ingenious conceit that Fabregas utilizes fully with the aid of Joey Mendoza’s set that features a moving platform that slides across the stage that was configured as a runway. It’s a visual way to transition between the characters’ alternating numbers and where they are respectively in the timeline of their relationship. It’s a highly artistic yet intimate way to tell an emotionally-charged love story. - TheaterFansManila
In this version of The Last Five Years, the experience is enhanced by the intimacy of Joey Mendoza’s minimalist set design, with audience members in the Power Mac Center Spotlight at Makati City surrounding the stage smacked in the middle, seeing two sides of the story. - Tatler Asia
Jane Anger
Joey Mendoza's sparsely furnished set is appropriately claustrophobic. - Pete Hempstead, TheaterMania
She's aided by Joey Mendoza's set, a medieval apartment with a central window through which she (Jane) must hoist herself. - Juan A. Ramirez, New York Times
The set by Joey Mendoza (featuring half-timber walls and leaded-glass windows)...contribute significantly to the show's artistic authenticity. - Deb Miller, DC Metro Theater Arts
Joey Mendoza's thatched-walled set and vintage furnishings are perfection. - Darryl Reilly, Theater Scene
Anna in the Tropics
The texture of the social ambience was a challenge to convey, and the production directed by Joey Mendoza delivered splendidly.
Mendoza’s extensive experience in production design was an advantage here; his set, beautifully versatile in shifting scenes with just screens and props, was an exquisite feast for the eyes. Along with the costumes (Becky Bodurtha), lights (Barbie Tan-Tiongco), sound (Fabian Obispo) and projections (GA Fallarme), the play elegantly and economically brought a whole period and world to life. - Arturo Hilado
Company
Fabregas opted for a theater-in-the-round staging, with set designer Joey Mendoza placing a rectangular stage at the center of the Maybank Performing Arts Theater, with the audience on all four sides. It’s an unexpected setup but, to borrow a line from the show’s anthem “Being Alive,” it forces the audience to care. Or at least be more attentive. - Vladimir Bunoan, ABS-CBN News
Meanwhile, the show’s minimalist visual design not only allows us to imagine its settings any way we see fit, but it also makes Bobby’s circle of friends seem more like ever-present judges of his actions. And Fabregas guides small interactions skillfully, letting humor give way to profound sadness and back again. Emil Hofileña - Philippine Daily Inquirer
A Doll's House Part 2
This constricted battleground finds resonance in Joey Mendoza’s set design, which Villonco makes skillful use of to emphasize a point or a game change. A shadow looming over the wall, a crash on the floor, a character walking away by a few steps—they end up speaking thematic volumes. - Cora Llamas
Villonco also plays up the modern themes of both Hnath and Ibsen with Joey Mendoza’s set of plain white walls, with projections (by GA Fallarme) of whichever character is set to confront Nora in the upcoming scene. Mendoza’s costumes, too, seem to add to the feeling that the story is suspended in a time between then and now, with characters wearing clothes that are a mix between the 19th century and modern times. - NIkki Francisco
Without exploiting the obvious, directing is made infinitely easier with a technical unit that's dependable and battle tested. Theater critics would be remiss not to notice the ubiquitous touch of John Batalla's lighting design (is there a production in town he's not working on?), and Joey Mendoza's understated but compelling scenic idea: a sparsely furnished living room with two period cushioned chairs under an elegant chandelier (we're not sure if that one's a fixed theatre item). The empty walls painted in French gray (with minimal projections by GA Fallarme) evoke a stark sense of abandonment. Mendoza's scenic design suggests a life devoid of maternal care, which is an eerie sight as Nora recalls the meaningful items that once conveyed her presence. - Robert Encila-Celdran
Maybe it’s the anachronistic production design (by Joey Mendoza), maybe it’s Nora’s ideas of a post-marital society (written by Lucas Hnath), but Villonco put all the elements together and helmed something unique and gripping that it’s only downside was that it ended far too quickly. - TheaterfansManila
Eto Na! Musikal Napo!
What works best for Eto Na! Musikal nAPO! are two things. First is the nostalgia factor as further amped by Joey Mendoza's very ‘70s set design including an oversized public pay phone (yes, the iconic red one), as well as the colorful costumes created by Eric Pineda. - Edwin P. Sallan, Daily Tribune
What propels you to enjoy this show from beginning to end is the right amount of nostalgia (credits to Eric Pineda's costumes and Joey Mendoza's set design) and a fitting finale that will surely make you get up from your seat and give an ovation. - Jude Buot, Broadway World
Design-wise, “Eto Na! Musikal nAPO!” captured the period flavor without going overboard. Set designer Joey Mendoza used groovy geometric patterns for the simple set, while Eric Pineda's costumes had the right details and silhouettes and looked authentic instead of mere retro chic. Vladimir Bunoan, ABS-CBN News
Joey Mendoza’s set design makes one realize how such a simple platform can do so much for the material’s themes and characters. With minimal sets, we are drawn closely to the characters, making us a part of the group, and ultimately becoming part of the narrative, without dismissing that needed ‘unAPOlogetically’ nostalgic pull. - Orly S. Agawin
Silent Sky
Set and costume designer Joey Mendoza created atmosphere with a streamlined, modern aesthetic that places the emphasis on the characters and the drama. In lieu of overwrought, heavy sets, he opted to establish the period with choice furniture and accessories that defined the era as well as through historically accurate costumes with the right colors — somber earth tones for the women in a man’s world and sweet pastels for the rural, home-based Margaret. A lot is achieved with minimal structures that fuel the imagination, suggesting without showing too much. You know it’s an observatory even without the giant telescope when Shaw emerges taking the stairs from an opening on the floor. Even a railing is sufficient to evoke the glorious experience of being on an ocean liner. - Ricky Toledo, Chito Vijandre, The Philippine Star
The set transformed through space and time. A church façade, seamlessly fades into an attic office. Then with just a suggestion of railings, becomes a deck on a cruise liner. And we are constantly treated to a silent sky of twinkling little stars. - Sujata S. Mukhi, Business World
Hair
From start to finish, Repertory Philippines’ Hair is an electrifying display of talent and creativity. Upon entering the theater, the audience is greeted by a bevy of hippies dressed in gorgeously period-faithful outfits (by James Reyes with hair by Leslie Ferrer Espinosa) frolicking across the colorful, bead-curtained stage designed by Joey Mendoza (the sun projection on the stage floor was a particularly nice touch). Isabella Olivares, People Asia
Like in its original 1967 production, Joey Mendoza's set rejected the conventional theater design with its center, relatively bare, but not neglected of color and breathable space....If this is not what Art is supposed to do, I don’t know what is. - Orly Agawin
Repertory Philippines, also celebrating its golden year, mounted “Beauty and the Beast,” based on the classic French novel and not Disney, with a wow stage design by Joey Mendoza; then closed the year with a rousing production of that ’70s cult classic, “Hair.” - Amadis Ma. Guerrero, Inquirer
Blackbird
Set designer Joey Mendoza created a sterile environment bursting with meaning, which made perfect sense in a cathartic scene near the end. He also enclosed it in opaque plexiglass panels as another reminder of the haziness of the unfolding action.... Meanwhile, lights designer John Batalla uses harsh fluorescent lights for much of the place yet dims everything save for a spot shone solely on Uma for a heartbreaking monologue. The near blackout at the end effectively conjures the horror Uma felt during that fateful night. - Vladimir Bunoan, ABS-CBN News
Joey Mendoza’s set design sketches a well-lighted rectangular space, littered with pantry and office junk. At some point, you’d ask if this is an office at all, and if so, who allowed such mess in a workplace. Mendoza’s design paves a careful preparation for the audiences, sprinkling a few hidden hints of a messy past of the two characters that are about to take center stage. As early as the first minutes in your seat, you’d feel a certain level of discomfort, silently preparing you for whatever lies ahead. - Orly Agawin
Mr. Fabregas is rather fortunate to elicit the support of a dream production team. Joey Mendoza's appropriate set design recalls the callous ambiance of an efficient but drab corporate lunch room. John Batalla's lighting is basic but effectively dramatic where it counts (he's used to far more complex demands). Jethro Joaquin's sound design deploys an electronic eeriness of a dissonant variety, sufficiently placed to heighten dramatic tension. All in all, it's a team astute enough to complement a play for and about actors. - Robert Encila, Broadway World
Beauty & The Beast
While this Beauty and the Beast may not be the version that we all know and love, it is by no means any less visually enchanting. The production design captures the gilded opulence of 18th century France quite elegantly. Joey Mendoza’s ornate proscenium — which features gold rococo-inspired curls on a blue field — and textured sets perfectly complement Bonsai Cielo’s costumes, which utilize frills, fabrics, embroidery, and powder to such an extent that they become both stately and comical. - Isabella Oliveres, People Asia
The stage design by Joey Gonzalez-Mendoza is excellent especially given the space at Onstage Theatre and its proximity to the audience. If you think you have had enough of the story, the stage will definitely make you want to come back for more. The stage itself is a masterpiece. - Emmanuel Evan Alba, Broadway World
Agnes of God
Complementing the stellar acting is Bart Guingona’s direction and the inspired output of the technical team. The stage’s bare set – with nine textured, stone gray panels and a table with two chairs, is the perfect canvas on which the dramatic shadows, silhouettes and music help the cast build the emotional tension of the play’s climactic reveal, upon which the entire play is hinged. Repertory Philippines’ Agnes of God is a masterful weaving of stellar acting and production design that is pulled at its tightest in the play’s final moments. It holds its own as the psychiatrist prods, the Mother Superior pleads and the young nun breaks for a final time so that when it’s time to drop the curtains, the audience is left stunned by the astonishing show of talent and design. - Isabella Olivares, People Asia
But “Agnes of God” isn’t just an acting triumph. It’s also beautifully staged and designed. Mendoza’s minimalist set, inspired by the giant pillars in old churches and monasteries, and dramatically lit by John Batalla, has an otherworldly, almost spiritual glow. Jethro Joaquin’s sound design, meanwhile, accentuates the ethereal quality of Agnes’s singing. - Vladimir Bunoan, ABS-CBS News
Hyena
Daring in its cynicism, adorable in its nastiness, Soutus navigated that spectacular stage knowing each movement, each step mastered with her director Rachel Levens....the technical aspects of this production are top notch. The work that Joey Mendoza and Gareth Hobbs did is of equal importance to Soutus’ performance. But what you should know the most, is that you will miss out on something truly remarkable if you don’t see this show. - Nelson Diaz-Marcano
She creates striking and imaginative tableaux via Joey Mendoza’s elegant set design. - Rachel Kerry, New York Theater Review
Full Gallop
Who else describes red as “Rococo with a spot of Gothic and a bit of Buddhist in it” but her (Vreeland)? We have to raise our glasses to Joey Mendoza, for a spectacular rendition of that description in his set design… Once the curtains go up, you are immediately thrust into her mind. How often can one take a tour that intimate? - Aya Tantiangco, Spot.ph.
But if there's anything that people will be talking about long after the curtain has dropped, it is the set design of Joey Mendoza, which was so exquisite it's worth its own story. - James P. Ong, Philippine Daily Inquirer
Joey Mendoza’s set design for FULL GALLOP is breathtaking… and paints a vivid picture of what could have been Vreeland's state of mind. - Jude Cartalaba, Broadway World
It isn’t every day that a set design receives applause from an audience...Joey Mendoza’s scenery for “Full Gallop”... received applause for every single show… Audiences invariably burst into spontaneous clapping at the sight of Mendoza’s interpretation of Vreeland’s apartment. - Walter Ang, PDI