Rick Shiomi. Photo by Lia Chang

Rick Shiomi continues to break new ground, even though he is “technically retired”. In a recent post on Howlround, Shiomi talks about the Philadelphia Asian Theater Project (PATP), a coalition of theatre companies that has been formed to promote the development of Asian American theatre in the Philadelphia theatre community for the first time in American theatre history.

Here’s the link:
http://howlround.com/getting-on-the-radar-in-unexpected-places

InterAct Theatre Company in partnership with Rick Shiomi Receives 2nd grant from Doris Duke Charitable Foundation for the Implementation Round of their Building Demand for Theater, made for and by the Asian American Community in Philadelphia 
Up Close and Personal with Rick Shiomi, Award-winning Playwright & Artistic Director of Mu Performing Arts
Randy Reyes Leads Cast of Mu Performing Arts’ Production of A Little Night Music, Helmed by Rick Shiomi at Park Square Theatre
Kurt Kwan, Sara Ochs, Eric Sharp and More Set for Mu Performing Arts production of R.A. Shiomi’s Yellow Fever in Guthrie’s Dowling Studio, March 8-24, 2013
Photos: Yellow Fever Playwright Rick Shiomi Explores New Territory with An All-Female Cast
Mu’s landmark 21st Season features a brand new Taiko Concert, Lauren Yee’s The Tiger Among Us, and Rick Shiomi’s Award-Winning comedy Yellow Fever
Rick Shiomi helms Mu Performing Arts’ Asian American Cast of Stephen Sondheim’s Into the Woods at Park Square Theatre in St. Paul, July 17-August 5, 2012
Mu Performing Arts’ Little Shop of Horrors on 2 ‘Best of’ Lists; Women in Arts Panel on 1/29, in Conjunction with Mu Daiko’s 15th Anniversary Concert and Tour
Mu Daiko 15th Anniversary Concert and Minnesota Tour, February 9-19, 2012
Photos: Opening Night of Mu Performing Arts’ Katie Hae Leo’s Four Destinies
Photos: Backstage at Mu Performing Arts’ Four Destinies by Katie Hae Leo
Photos: On the town with Rick Shiomi, Co-Editor of “Asian American Plays for a New Generation”, in D.C. & NY
Temple Press: Rick Shiomi recounts his tour for “Asian American Plays for a New Generation”
Mu Blog: Rick Shiomi’s Book Tour Logbook
knightarts.org: Reading on the road inside the book tour
Broadwayworld.com Photo Flash: Library of Congress’ IN REHEARSAL Exhibit
Lia Chang Theater Portfolio at Library of Congress Features Photos of Thom Sesma’s Makeup Transformation as Scar in Disney’s The Lion King Las Vegas, Robert Lee and Leon Ko’s Heading East Starring BD Wong, David Henry Hwang’s Chinglish, and Samrat Chakrabarti and Sanjiv Jhaveri’s Bakwas Bumbug! on View Through August 2
“Asian American Plays for a New Generation”, A New Anthology of Asian American Plays Is Subject of Book Talk

All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2017 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at lia@liachang.com

Gordon Hirabayashi, as portrayed by actor Greg Watanabe, decides to defy the curfew ordered against all those of Japanese ancestry by the U.S. government. Hirabayashi was one of only three people to challenge the order. Photo courtesy of Akiko Nishijima Rotch

Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths starring Greg Watanabe and directed by Leslie Ishii kicks off its limited  run in Anchorage on January 5th at the Sydney Laurence Theatre at the Alaska Center for the Performing Arts, 621 W 6th Ave, Anchorage, AK 99501, and will continue through January 15th. Tickets to HOLD THESE TRUTHS: alaskapac.centertix.net/eventperformances.asp or 263-ARTS

Hold These Truths tells the story of Japanese American Gordon Hirabayashi’s fight against the United States Government order to forcibly remove and mass incarcerate all people of Japanese ancestry on the West Coast. A true story in the form of a one-man-show, Hold These Truths is based on the life of an American citizen of Japanese ancestry who resisted the U.S. government’s order to report to internment camps early in World War Two. Gordon Hirabayashi always knew he was different. When he was a young man in 1943, and Japanese- Americans were being forced into camps, Gordon chose to fight US Government action rather than obey an order he felt was unlawful. His experiences in the courts and camps of the time sparked a passion for the U.S. constitution, and how it is our duty to uphold it.

Gordon Hirabayashi, played by actor Greg Watanabe, reads while in prison awaiting trial for violating curfew and refusing to register to be interned during World War II. Photo courtesy of Akiko Nishijima Rotch

Helmed by Leslie Ishii, Greg Watanabe plays Gordon Hirabayashi and 36 other characters in Hold These Truths, which recently had performances at the Perseverance Theatre in Douglas, AK through December 4, 2016.

Capital City Weekly’s theater critic Geoff Kirsch writes, “Instructive, entertaining and thought provoking in any context, Hold These Truths takes on a whole new significance opening ten days after Election Day. Echoes of stories in the current news cycle are unmistakable, specifically proposals for ethnic registries and mass deportations, as well as the sudden, unexpected ascendency of politicians who champion these policies.

Greg Watanabe in HOLD THESE TRUTHS. Photo by Akiko Nishijima Rotch

Fresh from a Broadway debut in Allegiance, actor Greg Watanabe nimbly portrays Hirabayashi’s principled stand against both the government and the country’s prevailing sentiment of fear—“I seek to live such that the ought-to-be is.” During the play’s 98 fast-paced minutes (no intermission) Watanabe also assumes the role of other characters from the story, including his parents and friends, lawyers, judges, police officers, army brass and even several Supreme Court justices.

Greg Watanabe in HOLD THESE TRUTHS. Photo by Akiko Nishijima Rotch

In a broader sense, “Hold These Truths” explores the formation and impact of large cultural ideas in America. The play strives toward a deeper understanding of our triumphs through direct confrontation with our failures, as well as the courage of one person to stand up to—and triumph over—anything, even if that “anything” is his own government, and victory takes more than four decades to achieve.”

Capitalcityweekly.com: When equality loses its self-evidence

With set design by Akiko Nishijima Rotch, costumes by Sara Ryung Clement, lighting design by Art Rotch, sound design by John Zalewski; Jessica Jones is the stage manager.

Greg Watanabe in HOLD THESE TRUTHS. Photo by Akiko Nishijima Rotch

Critically-acclaimed runs of Hold These Truths recently ended at Portland Center Stage and the Guthrie Theater. Hold These Truths had its world premiere at LA’s East West Players in 2007 and its off-Broadway debut with the Epic Theatre Ensemble in 2012 (Drama Desk Nomination of Outstanding Solo Performance). It has since been performed at Seattle’s ACT Theatre, PlayMakers Repertory, People’s Light & Theatre, Honolulu Theatre for Youth (co-produced with Daniel Dae Kim), Terra Nova Collective, Silk Road Rising/Millennium Park, Coachella Valley Rep. and Plays and Players.

Gordon Kiyoshi Hirabayashi (1918-2012) was an American sociologist best known for his resistance to the Japanese-American internment during World War II. He was one of the only three to openly defy it. After being convicted for curfew violation he was sentenced to 90 days in prison. The verdict was appealed all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court in the case Hirabayashi v. United States (1943). They unanimously ruled against him. He later spent a year in federal prison for refusing induction into the armed forces after they had sent out a racially discriminatory survey to Japanese-Americans demanding renunciation of allegiance to the emperor of Japan. In 1987, the U.S. Court of Appeals Ninth Circuit overturned his conviction from 1943. In 2012, President Barack Obama posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Hirabayashi for his principled stand against Japanese-American internment.

Performance schedule in Anchorage:
Thursday, January 5, 2017 @ 7:30pm  Pay-As-You-Can Preview, with post-show discussion.
Friday, January 6, 2017 @ 7:30pm
Saturday, January 7, 2017 @ 7:30pm
Sunday, January 8, 2017 @ 4:00pm, post-show discussion with playwright Jeanne Sakata.
Wednesday, January 11, 2017 @ 7:30pm
Thursday, January 12, 2017 @ 7:30pm
Friday, January 13, 2017 @ 7:30pm
Saturday, January 14, 2017 @ 7:30pm
Sunday, January 15, 2017 @ 4:00pm
Purchase tickets here.

As part of the opening weekend festivities, there will be a screening on Monday, January 9th of Greg Chaney’s documentary THE EMPTY CHAIR with panel discussion at The Anchorage Museum, 6:30pm.

Greg Watanabe recently made his Broadway debut in Allegiance. Off-Broadway credits include THE BALLAD OF YACHIYO (The Public), and GOLDEN CHILD (Signature Theater). Recently, he appeared in EXIT THE KING (Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey) and A SINGLE SHARD (People’s Light). Other regional credits include the world premiere productions of THE SUMMER MOON (A Contemporary Theater), THE HAPPY ONES (South Coast Repertory Theater, L.A. Drama Critics Circle nomination, Best Featured Performance) and EXTRAORDINARY CHAMBERS (Geffen Playhouse, Ovation nomination, Best Featured Actor). Others favorites include YELLOW FACE (Mo’olelo Performing Arts Company, San Diego Theater Critics Circle nomination, Outstanding Lead Performance in a Play), NO-NO BOY (adapted by Ken Narasaki) Greg is member of the 18 Mighty Mountain Warriors, an Asian American comedy troupe.

Leslie Ishii

Leslie Ishii is a stage director, arts educator and actor. At East West Players (EWP), she supported the launch of their 2042: See Change Campaign which included the 51% Preparedness Plan for the American Theatre, their national equity/diversity/inclusion initiative. Leslie has directed at EWP and is a longtime faculty member in the EWP Conservatory, serving Pan Asian and Pacific Islanders of Southern California. It is here where she shares her liberation and alliance building curriculums integrated with acting, voice work, and theatre making training.

Ishii is in her ninth season as a Project Faculty for Center Theatre Group’s (CTG) Young Audiences Program (YAP), where she integrates her alliance building approach into Audience Engagement and YAP curriculums, teacher-conferences and in-school visits throughout greater Los Angeles. With CTG teaching artists, Leslie is co-organizer/founder of a Los Angeles equity/diversity/inclusion task force that presented the breakout session Allies Eliminating Racism In Theatre at the Theatre Communication Group’s (TCG) National Conference, Boston, June 2012.   This breakout session led to TCG’s first ever Fall Forum Conference on diversity and inclusion and the launch of their Equity/Diversity/Inclusion Institute, November 2012, where Leslie was a co-facilitator of both. 

Ishii is a guest director, professor, lecturer, panelist, and mentor at universities, colleges, and conservatories and has also co-organized and co-directed Freedom and Focus International Fitzmaurice Voicework® Conferences in Barcelona, Spain and Vancouver, Canada, bringing together national and international acting, voice and speech trainers. Leslie has also been a featured presenter at national and international artistic and research conferences in Vancouver, BC, Mexico City, Mexico, Barcelona, Spain, and Vienna, Austria reaching university, college, and conservatory practitioners/researchers.

Ishii has been seen in every genre of film and tv, from major motion pictures to independent films to recurring on hit tv shows and soap operas. She has also shot national and region commercials, industrials, and has appeared in numerous print ads. Leslie is enormously grateful to have continued to work in the theatre since starting at the Northwest Asian American Theatre in Seattle and graduating from the American Conservatory Theater. Upon graduation she worked on Broadway, in regional theatres and supported the development of numerous plays in readings and workshops. SDC, SAG-AFTRA, AEA. She is an Arts For LA ACTIVATE Cultural Policy Cohort and a James P. Shannon Leadership Institute Cohort,a recipient of the Teachers Making A Difference Award; Commendation by the City of Los Angeles, 2010.

Jeanne Sakata. Photo by Lia Chang

Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths was recently included by audience demand in Seattle’s ACT Theatre 2015 50^th Anniversary Mainstage Season following four sold-out performances in the ACT Lab.  In 2016, in addition to its Perseverance Theatre run, the play is also being produced at Portland Center Stage and the Guthrie Theater. Premiering at LA’s East West Players in 2007, Hold These Truths had its off-Broadway debut with the Epic Theatre Ensemble in 2012 (Drama Desk Nomination for Outstanding Solo Performance, actor Joel de la Fuente; Joe A. Callaway Award Finalist, Outstanding Direction, director Lisa Rothe) and has since been performed at PlayMakers Repertory, People’s Light & Theatre, Honolulu Theatre for Youth (co-produced with Daniel Dae Kim), Terra Nova Collective, Silk Road Rising/Millennium Park, and Coachella Valley Rep. Jeanne is also an acclaimed actor who has performed with the Public Theatre, Lincoln Center Theatre, Kennedy Center, the Mark Taper Forum, South Coast Rep, La Jolla Playhouse, the Intiman, Portland Center Stage, ACT Seattle, ACT San Francisco, Berkeley Rep, and People’s Light & Theatre.  Screen credits include the internationally acclaimed indie film Advantageous (US Dramatic Special Jury Award for Collaborative Vision, 2015 Sundance Film Festival) and guest appearances on BRAVO’S True Fiction, Dr. Ken, NCIS Los Angeles, Tyler Perry’s Meet the Browns, Desperate Housewives, Presidio Med, ER, Threat Matrix, Line of Fire, American Family, John Ridley’s I Got You, and Sex and Marriage, a Justin Lin YOMYOMF YouTube webseries.  Special honors: LA Ovation Award, Outstanding Lead Actress, Red at EWP;  2016 Lee Melville Award, Outstanding Contribution to the Los Angeles Theatre Community, Playwrights’ Arena; Outstanding Artist Award, LA Asian Pacific American Friends of Theatre; establishment of the Jeanne Sakata Collection, Library of Congress Playwrights Archive, Asian American Pacific Islander Collection.  www.jeannesakata.com,  www.holdthesetruths.info  www.facebook.com/holdthesetruths

Lia Chang_photo by Garth Kravits

Lia Chang is an actor, a multi-media content producer and co-founder of Bev’s Girl Films, making films that foster inclusion and diversity on both sides of the camera. Bev’s Girl Films’ debut short film, Hide and Seek was a top ten film in the Asian American Film Lab’s 2015 72 Hour Shootout Filmmaking Competition, and she received a Best Actress nomination. BGF collaborates with and produces multi-media content for artists, actors, designers, theatrical productions, composers,  musicians and corporations. Lia is also an internationally published and exhibited photographer, a multi-platform journalist, and a publicist. Lia has appeared in the films Wolf, New Jack City, A Kiss Before Dying, King of New York, Big Trouble in Little China, The Last Dragon, Taxman and Hide and Seek. She is profiled in Jade Magazine and Playbill.com.

Gordon Hirabayashi, as portrayed by actor Greg Watanabe, decides to defy the curfew ordered against all those of Japanese ancestry by the U.S. government. Hirabayashi was one of only three people to challenge the order. Photo courtesy of Akiko Nishijima Rotch

Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths starring Greg Watanabe and directed by Leslie Ishii will have performances in Anchorage, January 6-15, 2017, at the Sydney Laurence Theatre at the Alaska Center for the Performing Arts, 621 W 6th Ave, Anchorage, AK 99501.  

Hold These Truths tells the story of Japanese American Gordon Hirabayashi’s fight against the United States Government order to forcibly remove and mass incarcerate all people of Japanese ancestry on the West Coast. A true story in the form of a one-man-show, Hold These Truths is based on the life of an American citizen of Japanese ancestry who resisted the U.S. government’s order to report to internment camps early in World War Two. Gordon Hirabayashi always knew he was different. When he was a young man in 1943, and Japanese- Americans were being forced into camps, Gordon chose to fight US Government action rather than obey an order he felt was unlawful. His experiences in the courts and camps of the time sparked a passion for the U.S. constitution, and how it is our duty to uphold it.

Gordon Hirabayashi, played by actor Greg Watanabe, reads while in prison awaiting trial for violating curfew and refusing to register to be interned during World War II. Photo courtesy of Akiko Nishijima Rotch

Helmed by Leslie Ishii, Greg Watanabe plays Gordon Hirabayashi and 36 other characters in Hold These Truths, which recently had performances at the Perseverance Theatre in Douglas, AK through December 4, 2016.

Capital City Weekly’s theater critic Geoff Kirsch writes, “Instructive, entertaining and thought provoking in any context, Hold These Truths takes on a whole new significance opening ten days after Election Day. Echoes of stories in the current news cycle are unmistakable, specifically proposals for ethnic registries and mass deportations, as well as the sudden, unexpected ascendency of politicians who champion these policies.

Greg Watanabe in HOLD THESE TRUTHS. Photo by Akiko Nishijima Rotch

Fresh from a Broadway debut in Allegiance, actor Greg Watanabe nimbly portrays Hirabayashi’s principled stand against both the government and the country’s prevailing sentiment of fear—“I seek to live such that the ought-to-be is.” During the play’s 98 fast-paced minutes (no intermission) Watanabe also assumes the role of other characters from the story, including his parents and friends, lawyers, judges, police officers, army brass and even several Supreme Court justices.

Greg Watanabe in HOLD THESE TRUTHS. Photo by Akiko Nishijima Rotch

In a broader sense, “Hold These Truths” explores the formation and impact of large cultural ideas in America. The play strives toward a deeper understanding of our triumphs through direct confrontation with our failures, as well as the courage of one person to stand up to—and triumph over—anything, even if that “anything” is his own government, and victory takes more than four decades to achieve.”

Capitalcityweekly.com: When equality loses its self-evidence

With set design by Akiko Nishijima Rotch, costumes by Sara Ryung Clement, lighting design by Art Rotch, sound design by John Zalewski; Jessica Jones is the stage manager.

Greg Watanabe in HOLD THESE TRUTHS. Photo by Akiko Nishijima Rotch

Critically-acclaimed runs of Hold These Truths recently ended at Portland Center Stage and the Guthrie Theater. Hold These Truths had its world premiere at LA’s East West Players in 2007 and its off-Broadway debut with the Epic Theatre Ensemble in 2012 (Drama Desk Nomination of Outstanding Solo Performance). It has since been performed at Seattle’s ACT Theatre, PlayMakers Repertory, People’s Light & Theatre, Honolulu Theatre for Youth (co-produced with Daniel Dae Kim), Terra Nova Collective, Silk Road Rising/Millennium Park, Coachella Valley Rep. and Plays and Players.

Gordon Kiyoshi Hirabayashi (1918-2012) was an American sociologist best known for his resistance to the Japanese-American internment during World War II. He was one of the only three to openly defy it. After being convicted for curfew violation he was sentenced to 90 days in prison. The verdict was appealed all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court in the case Hirabayashi v. United States (1943). They unanimously ruled against him. He later spent a year in federal prison for refusing induction into the armed forces after they had sent out a racially discriminatory survey to Japanese-Americans demanding renunciation of allegiance to the emperor of Japan. In 1987, the U.S. Court of Appeals Ninth Circuit overturned his conviction from 1943. In 2012, President Barack Obama posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Hirabayashi for his principled stand against Japanese-American internment.

Performance schedule in Anchorage:
Thursday, January 5, 2017 @ 7:30pm  Pay-As-You-Can Preview
Friday, January 6, 2017 @ 7:30pm
Saturday, January 7, 2017 @ 7:30pm
Sunday, January 8, 2017 @ 4:00pm
Wednesday, January 11, 2017 @ 7:30pm
Thursday, January 12, 2017 @ 7:30pm
Friday, January 13, 2017 @ 7:30pm
Saturday, January 14, 2017 @ 7:30pm
Sunday, January 15, 2017 @ 4:00pm
Purchase tickets here.

Greg Watanabe recently made his Broadway debut in Allegiance. Off-Broadway credits include THE BALLAD OF YACHIYO (The Public), and GOLDEN CHILD (Signature Theater). Recently, he appeared in EXIT THE KING (Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey) and A SINGLE SHARD (People’s Light). Other regional credits include the world premiere productions of THE SUMMER MOON (A Contemporary Theater), THE HAPPY ONES (South Coast Repertory Theater, L.A. Drama Critics Circle nomination, Best Featured Performance) and EXTRAORDINARY CHAMBERS (Geffen Playhouse, Ovation nomination, Best Featured Actor). Others favorites include YELLOW FACE (Mo’olelo Performing Arts Company, San Diego Theater Critics Circle nomination, Outstanding Lead Performance in a Play), NO-NO BOY (adapted by Ken Narasaki) Greg is member of the 18 Mighty Mountain Warriors, an Asian American comedy troupe.

Leslie Ishii

Leslie Ishii is a stage director, arts educator and actor. At East West Players (EWP), she supported the launch of their 2042: See Change Campaign which included the 51% Preparedness Plan for the American Theatre, their national equity/diversity/inclusion initiative. Leslie has directed at EWP and is a longtime faculty member in the EWP Conservatory, serving Pan Asian and Pacific Islanders of Southern California. It is here where she shares her liberation and alliance building curriculums integrated with acting, voice work, and theatre making training.

Ishii is in her ninth season as a Project Faculty for Center Theatre Group’s (CTG) Young Audiences Program (YAP), where she integrates her alliance building approach into Audience Engagement and YAP curriculums, teacher-conferences and in-school visits throughout greater Los Angeles. With CTG teaching artists, Leslie is co-organizer/founder of a Los Angeles equity/diversity/inclusion task force that presented the breakout session Allies Eliminating Racism In Theatre at the Theatre Communication Group’s (TCG) National Conference, Boston, June 2012.   This breakout session led to TCG’s first ever Fall Forum Conference on diversity and inclusion and the launch of their Equity/Diversity/Inclusion Institute, November 2012, where Leslie was a co-facilitator of both. 

Ishii is a guest director, professor, lecturer, panelist, and mentor at universities, colleges, and conservatories and has also co-organized and co-directed Freedom and Focus International Fitzmaurice Voicework® Conferences in Barcelona, Spain and Vancouver, Canada, bringing together national and international acting, voice and speech trainers. Leslie has also been a featured presenter at national and international artistic and research conferences in Vancouver, BC, Mexico City, Mexico, Barcelona, Spain, and Vienna, Austria reaching university, college, and conservatory practitioners/researchers.

Ishii has been seen in every genre of film and tv, from major motion pictures to independent films to recurring on hit tv shows and soap operas. She has also shot national and region commercials, industrials, and has appeared in numerous print ads. Leslie is enormously grateful to have continued to work in the theatre since starting at the Northwest Asian American Theatre in Seattle and graduating from the American Conservatory Theater. Upon graduation she worked on Broadway, in regional theatres and supported the development of numerous plays in readings and workshops. SDC, SAG-AFTRA, AEA. She is an Arts For LA ACTIVATE Cultural Policy Cohort and a James P. Shannon Leadership Institute Cohort,a recipient of the Teachers Making A Difference Award; Commendation by the City of Los Angeles, 2010.

Jeanne Sakata. Photo by Lia Chang

Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths was recently included by audience demand in Seattle’s ACT Theatre 2015 50^th Anniversary Mainstage Season following four sold-out performances in the ACT Lab.  In 2016, in addition to its Perseverance Theatre run, the play is also being produced at Portland Center Stage and the Guthrie Theater. Premiering at LA’s East West Players in 2007, Hold These Truths had its off-Broadway debut with the Epic Theatre Ensemble in 2012 (Drama Desk Nomination for Outstanding Solo Performance, actor Joel de la Fuente; Joe A. Callaway Award Finalist, Outstanding Direction, director Lisa Rothe) and has since been performed at PlayMakers Repertory, People’s Light & Theatre, Honolulu Theatre for Youth (co-produced with Daniel Dae Kim), Terra Nova Collective, Silk Road Rising/Millennium Park, and Coachella Valley Rep. Jeanne is also an acclaimed actor who has performed with the Public Theatre, Lincoln Center Theatre, Kennedy Center, the Mark Taper Forum, South Coast Rep, La Jolla Playhouse, the Intiman, Portland Center Stage, ACT Seattle, ACT San Francisco, Berkeley Rep, and People’s Light & Theatre.  Screen credits include the internationally acclaimed indie film Advantageous (US Dramatic Special Jury Award for Collaborative Vision, 2015 Sundance Film Festival) and guest appearances on BRAVO’S True Fiction, Dr. Ken, NCIS Los Angeles, Tyler Perry’s Meet the Browns, Desperate Housewives, Presidio Med, ER, Threat Matrix, Line of Fire, American Family, John Ridley’s I Got You, and Sex and Marriage, a Justin Lin YOMYOMF YouTube webseries.  Special honors: LA Ovation Award, Outstanding Lead Actress, Red at EWP;  2016 Lee Melville Award, Outstanding Contribution to the Los Angeles Theatre Community, Playwrights’ Arena; Outstanding Artist Award, LA Asian Pacific American Friends of Theatre; establishment of the Jeanne Sakata Collection, Library of Congress Playwrights Archive, Asian American Pacific Islander Collection.  www.jeannesakata.com,  www.holdthesetruths.info  www.facebook.com/holdthesetruths

Lia Chang_photo by Garth Kravits

Lia Chang is an actor, a multi-media content producer and co-founder of Bev’s Girl Films, making films that foster inclusion and diversity on both sides of the camera. Bev’s Girl Films’ debut short film, Hide and Seek was a top ten film in the Asian American Film Lab’s 2015 72 Hour Shootout Filmmaking Competition, and she received a Best Actress nomination. BGF collaborates with and produces multi-media content for artists, actors, designers, theatrical productions, composers,  musicians and corporations. Lia is also an internationally published and exhibited photographer, a multi-platform journalist, and a publicist. Lia has appeared in the films Wolf, New Jack City, A Kiss Before Dying, King of New York, Big Trouble in Little China, The Last Dragon, Taxman and Hide and Seek. She is profiled in Jade Magazine and Playbill.com.

Rajiv Joseph. Photo by Lia Chang

2015 Steinberg Award winner Dominique Morisseau attends the 2015 Steinberg Playwright Awards on November 16, 2015 in New York City. Photo by Lia Chang

The third round of the 2016 Edgerton Foundation New Play Awards were presented to Archduke by Rajiv Joseph at Center Theatre Group; Pipeline by Dominique Morisseau at Lincoln Center Theater, Syncing Ink by NSangou Njikam at Alley Theatre; Too Heavy for your Pocket by Jiréh Breon Holder at Alliance Theatre; Hood, The Story of Robin Hood by Douglas Carter Beane & Lewis Flinn at Dallas Theater Center; Icebergs by Alena Smith at Geffen Playhouse; Escape to Margaritaville book by Greg Garcia & Mike O’Malley, music by Jimmy Buffett at La Jolla Playhouse; Mosquitoes by Lucy Kirkwood at National Theatre of Great Britain; Her Portmanteau by Mfoniso Udofia at New York Theatre Workshop; Girl From North Country by Conor McPherson at The Old Vic; Gently Down The Stream by Martin Sherman at Public Theater; Tiny Beautiful Things by Cheryl Strayed at Public Theater; Women of a Certain Age by Richard Nelson at Public Theater; The Hypocrite by Richard Bean at Royal Shakespeare Company; A Doll’s House Part 2 by Lucas Hnath at South Coast Repertory; Mary Jane by Amy Herzog at Yale Repertory Theatre. 

Over the last ten years, the Edgerton Foundation has awarded $9,885,900 to 335 TCG Member Theatre productions, enabling many plays to schedule subsequent productions following their world premieres. Twenty-Four have made it to Broadway, including: Curtains, 13, Next to Normal, 33 Variations, In the Next Room (or the vibrator play), Time Stands Still, Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo, A Free Man of Color, Good People, Chinglish, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, Bronx Bombers, Casa Valentina, Outside Mullingar, All the Way, Eclipsed, Bright Star, Hamilton, The Columnist, In Transit, Doll’s House Part 2, Dear Evan Hansen, Indecent, and Oslo. Eleven plays were nominated for Tony Awards, with All the Way, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, and Hamilton winning the best play or musical awards. Nine plays were nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, with wins for Hamilton (2016), The Flick (2014), Water by the Spoonful (2012) and Next to Normal (2010).

“It is incredible seeing the direct impact that the Edgerton award has on the productions it supports,” said Teresa Eyring, executive director of TCG.“ Giving playwrights, directors, and creative team members the freedom of time so they can delve into the details inspires productions that live past their world premieres, and contribute to a new canon of American plays.”

“The Edgerton grant will allow us to add one week of rehearsal for A Doll’s House, Part 2.” said Marc Masterson, artistic director of South Coast Repertory. “Hnath plans to continue refining the play between now and its nearly simultaneous openings at SCR and on Broadway; the extra week will give him more elbow room to do so while he’s in residence with us. Of equal importance, director Shelley Butler and her cast will have more time to explore the tricky nature of Hnath’s deceptively familiar, deceptively naturalistic language and theatrical style and home in on the right way to deliver the play.”

“The 2016 Edgerton Foundation New Play Award grant will allow the artists involved with the world premiere production of Her Portmanteau a much needed additional week of rehearsal,” said James C. Nicola, artistic director of New York Theatre Workshop. “Throughout this week, playwright Mfoniso Udofia and director Ed Sylvanus Iskandar will work closely with the three actors to explore the family dynamics embedded within the piece, grounding them in reality and strengthening the intimate universe of the play.”

TCG Member Theatres with a strong and consistent track record of producing new work are invited by the foundation to submit letters of inquiry to plays@edgertonfoundation.org. A panel of readers reviews the plays and one-time grants ranging from $5,000 to $75,000 are awarded.

The Edgerton Foundation New Plays Program, directed by Brad and Louise Edgerton, was piloted in 2006 with the Center Theatre Group in Los Angeles by offering two musicals in development an extended rehearsal period for the entire creative team, including the playwrights. The Edgertons launched the program nationally in 2007 and have supported 335 plays to date at over 50 different Art Theatres across the country. The Edgerton Foundation received the 2011 TCG National Funder Award in June in Los Angeles.

For over 50 years, Theatre Communications Group (TCG), the national organization for U.S. theatre, has existed to strengthen, nurture, and promote the professional not-for-profit theatre. TCG’s constituency has grown from a handful of groundbreaking theatres to nearly 700 member theatres and affiliate organizations and more than 11,000 individuals nationwide. TCG offers its members networking and knowledge-building opportunities through conferences, events, research and communications; awards grants, approximately $2 million per year, to theatre companies and individual artists; advocates on the federal level; and serves as the U.S. Center of the International Theatre Institute, connecting its constituents to the global theatre community. TCG is North America’s largest independent publisher of dramatic literature, with 14 Pulitzer Prizes for Best Play on the TCG booklist. It also publishes the award-winning American Theatre magazine and ARTSEARCH®, the essential source for a career in the arts. In all of its endeavors, TCG seeks to increase the organizational efficiency of its member theatres, cultivate and celebrate the artistic talent and achievements of the field and promote a larger public understanding of, and appreciation for, the theatre. http://www.tcg.org.

Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang_photo by Garth Kravits

Lia Chang is an actor, a multi-media content producer and co-founder of Bev’s Girl Films, making films that foster inclusion and diversity on both sides of the camera. Bev’s Girl Films’ debut short film, Hide and Seek was a top ten film in the Asian American Film Lab’s 2015 72 Hour Shootout Filmmaking Competition, and she received a Best Actress nomination. BGF collaborates with and produces multi-media content for artists, actors, designers, theatrical productions, composers,  musicians and corporations. Lia is also an internationally published and exhibited photographer, a multi-platform journalist, and a publicist. Lia has appeared in the films Wolf, New Jack City, A Kiss Before Dying, King of New York, Big Trouble in Little China, The Last Dragon, Taxman and Hide and Seek. She is profiled in Jade Magazine and Playbill.com.

The cast of ALLEGIANCE at their first preview curtain call at the Longacre Theatre in New York on October 6, 2015. Photo by Lia Chang

“George Takei’s Allegiance: The Broadway Musical On The Big Screen” is in movie theaters nationwide for one night on Tuesday, December 13 at 7:30 p.m. local time. The event will begin with an exclusive introduction from Takei, and following the production, audiences will see special behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with the cast and creators.

Lea Salonga, George Takei, Telly Leung , Michael K. Lee and company. Photo by Matthew Murphy

George Takei. Photo by Lia Chang

“Allegiance has been a passion project from the beginning,” said star Takei. “This deeply-moving story based on my family’s experiences could not be more timely, or poignant, considering the current political climate. So many people around the globe have never heard about this dark part of our nation’s history, and it is an honor and privilege for me to help tell this story, so that we can avoid repeating the mistakes of the past. I am deeply grateful that almost 120,000 people experienced the Broadway production during its run, an eerie reflection of the number of Japanese Americans who were directly impacted by the events depicted in Allegiance. This event – with ALLEGIANCE coming to cinema screens all around the country – will give to so many more the opportunity to experience and see this musical, which I consider my legacy.”

Katie Rose Clarke, George Takei, Lea Salonga and Telly Leung attend the ALLEGIANCE live performance and CD Signing at Barnes and Noble in New York on Feb. 5, 2016. Photo by Lia Chang

Allegiance illuminates one of American history’s lesser known chapters as it tells the story of Sam Kimura (Takei), transported back nearly six decades to when his younger self (Telly Leung, Godspell, “Glee”) and his sister Kei (Tony Award-winner Lea Salonga, Miss Saigon, Mulan) fought to stay connected to their heritage, their family and themselves after Japanese Americans were wrongfully imprisoned during World War II. An important story told with great resonance and intimacy, Allegiance explores the ties that bind us, the struggle to persevere and the overwhelming power of forgiveness and, most especially, love.

Tickets for “George Takei’s Allegiance: The Broadway Musical On The Big Screen” can be purchased online from www.FathomEvents.com or at participating theater box offices (theaters and participants are subject to change).

George Takei, Lorenzo Thione, Jay Kuo and Marc Acito celebrate the release of the ALLEGIANCE Original Cast recording at the Barnes and Noble CD Signing event in New York on Feb. 5, 2016. Photo by Lia Chang

Allegiance features a book by Marc Acito, Jay Kuo, and Lorenzo Thione with music and lyrics by Jay Kuo. Olivier Award nominee Stafford Arima directs, in his Broadway debut. Andrew Palermo serves as choreographer.

The cast of ‘Allegiance’. Photo by Matthew Murphy

The cast is as follows: George Takei as Sam Kimura/Ojii San; Lea Salonga as Kei Kimura; Telly Leung as Sammy Kimura; Katie Rose Clarke as Hannah Campbell, Michael K. Lee as Frankie Suzuki, Christópheren Nomura as Tatsuo Kimura; and Greg Watanabe as Mike Masaoka. The ensemble will feature Aaron J. Albano, Belinda Allyn, Marcus Choi, Janelle Toyomi Dote, Dan Horn, Owen Johnston, Darren Lee, Kevin Munhall, Manna Nichols, Rumi Oyama, Shea Renne, Catherine Ricafort, Momoko Sugai, Sam Tanabe, Elena Wang, Scott Watanabe and Tony winner Scott Wise.

The cast of ALLEGIANCE. Photo by Matthew Murphy

“We are excited to bring this wonderful Broadway show to a national audience and to extend its relevant message beyond the stage to the big screen,” Fathom Events Vice President of Programming Kymberli Frueh said. “And to be able to showcase Lea Salonga’s incredible talent again following the Miss Saigon 25th Anniversary event.”

Stafford Arima and Lorenzo Thione. Photo by Lia Chang

“We are beyond thrilled that we were able to preserve the original Broadway production of Allegiance, featuring its entire original cast, in this beautiful and fully-immersive version created for the big screen,” said ALLEGIANCE producer Lorenzo Thione. “Beyond that, we are truly excited that the story, music and message of ALLEGIANCE will now reach many more people, in many more cities than ever before, continuing to move, educate and inspire, and truly fulfilling George’s legacy.”

Lia Chang_photo by Garth Kravits

Lia Chang is an actor, a multi-media content producer and co-founder of Bev’s Girl Films, making films that foster inclusion and diversity on both sides of the camera. Bev’s Girl Films’ debut short film, Hide and Seek was a top ten film in the Asian American Film Lab’s 2015 72 Hour Shootout Filmmaking Competition, and she received a Best Actress nomination. BGF collaborates with and produces multi-media content for artists, actors, designers, theatrical productions, composers,  musicians and corporations. Lia is also an internationally published and exhibited photographer, a multi-platform journalist, and a publicist. Lia has appeared in the films Wolf, New Jack City, A Kiss Before Dying, King of New York, Big Trouble in Little China, The Last Dragon, Taxman and Hide and Seek. She is profiled in Jade Magazine and Playbill.com.