Lia Chang: ‘Designing Women’ Star Meshach Taylor, Veteran of Stage, Screen and TV, Dies at 67

June 29, 2014, 12:07 am

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Meshach Taylor at his 67th birthday party at the home of Arlene and Joe Mantegna in Toluca Lake, CA, with his daughters Esme Taylor, Yasmine Taylor, Tamar Lashae Taylor, and his son Tariq Taylor. Photo by Lia Chang

Meshach Taylor at his 67th birthday party in Toluca Lake, CA, with his daughters Esme Taylor, Yasmine Taylor, Tamar Lashae Taylor, and his son Tariq Taylor. Photo by Lia Chang

Meshach Taylor at his 67th birthday party in Toluca Lake, CA on April 12, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

Meshach Taylor has lost his 2 year bout with cancer. The 67-year-old actor, who died late Saturday, was surrounded by family when he passed away peacefully in hospice care at home in Altadena, CA, at 10:47 p.m., his daughter Esme said.

On Friday, June 27, 2014, Taylor’s family posted this message on his Facebook page.

It is with love and gratitude that we sorrowfully announce that our darling, amazingly brilliant and dynamic, Meshach, the incredible father, husband, son and friend has begun his grand transition. Our friends who know and love us, please offer your prayers for his peace and blazing light as he ascends to the heavens. Those who need to call the family please do. Those who desire to post memories, we are open and graciously accepting all gestures of peace.

Love, the Taylor Family Tariq Taylor, Yasmine Taylor, Tamar Lashae Taylor, Esme Taylor

While Taylor was best known for his Emmy-nominated turn as lovable ex-con turned law student Anthony Bouvier on the CBS sitcom “Designing Women” and for his portrayal of Hollywood Montrose, a flamboyant window dresser in the 1987 box office hit and cult classic romantic comedy film Mannequin and the 1991 sequel Mannequin 2: On the Move, his earliest roles were on the stage.

Meshach Taylor © Lia Chang

Meshach Taylor was born in Boston, MA, on April 11, 1947, but was raised in New Orleans, Louisiana, and Indianapolis, IN. His parents, Hertha Mae Ward and Joseph T. Taylor were college professors. In 1967, Taylor’s father became the first black dean of Indiana University’s downtown campus, and after the merger that created Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis in 1969, he became the first dean of the new institution’s school of liberal arts.

Meshach Taylor, Jose Martinez, Dennis Franz and Joe Mantegna in Wonderful Ice Cream Suit (1973). Photo courtesy of Joe Mantegna

Taylor caught the acting bug in high school, then studied drama at Ohio’s Wilmington College, before transferring to Florida A&M University in Tallahassee, FL. A few credits short of completing his studies, Taylor returned to Indianapolis to work at a local radio station as a State House political correspondent. Taylor would return 20 years later to Florida A&M to complete his remaining requirements, and graduated on May 1, 1993.

Taylor’s first professional gig was touring for two years in the musical Hair. The final stop was Chicago, and when the run concluded, Taylor stayed and honed his craft in repertory theater for eight years as a member of Chicago’s Goodman Theatre, and the Organic Theater Company alongside Joe Mantegna, André De Shields, Dennis Franz, John Heard, Keith Szarabajka, Jack Wallace, and director Stuart Gordon. While in Chicago, he appeared in Streamers, Native Son (1979 Joseph Jefferson Award Nomination for Actor in a Principal Role in a Play), The Island, and Sizwe Banzi Is Dead, for which he garnered the 1977 Joseph Jefferson Award for Actor in a Principal Role in a Play. He received a Chicago Emmy Award for his role as Jim in the WTTV production of “Huckleberry Finn,” and hosted a Chicago television show “Black Life,” on the local NBC affiliate.

An Organic Theater Reunion at Meshach Taylor’s 67th birthday in Toluca Lake, CA on April 12, 2014. From left to right: Joe Mantegna, Ina Jaffe, Arlene Mantegna, Jack Wallace, Meshach Taylor, Carolyn Gordon, John Heard, Lenny Kleinfeld, Keith Szarabajka, Josephine Paoletti, Vinny Guastaferro, Stuart Gordon, Dennis Franz, Roberta Custer. Photo by Lia Chang

Promotional portrait of the cast of the television series, ‘Designing Women,’ c. 1987. Clockwise from bottom left: Jean Smart, Alice Ghostley, Delta Burke, Dixie Carter, Annie Potts and Meshach Taylor. (Photo by Fotos International/Courtesy Getty Images)

In 1978, Taylor moved to Los Angeles, where he crafted a gallery of memorable characters in film and on television. In May 1981, the ninth season of “M*A*SH,” Taylor was seen as a corpsman in the final episode, “The Life You Save,” and appeared as Tony in the short-lived NBC sitcom Buffalo Bill opposite Dabney Coleman. From 1986 – 1993, Taylor played lovable ex-con turned law student Anthony Bouvier, on the CBS sitcom “Designing Women” starring Dixie Carter, Delta Burke, Annie Potts, and Jean Smart. In 1989, he received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.

From 1993 – 1997, he portrayed plastic surgeon Sheldon Baylor on the CBS sitcom “Dave’s World” with Harry Anderson and Shadoe Stevens. From 2004-2007, Taylor played Alastair Wright, the history teacher turned school principal, and appeared on Nickelodeon’s “Ned’s Declassified School Survival Guide”.

He appeared on “The Unit” (CBS), “Jessie” (Disney Channel),”“Hannah Montana” (Disney Channel), “The Drew Carey Show” (ABC), “Static Shock” (Kids WB!), “Caroline in the City” (NBC), “Aaahh!!! Real Monsters” (Nickelodeon), “Women of the House” (CBS), “In the Heat of the Night” (NBC), “Punky Brewster” (NBC), “What’s Happening Now!”, “Hill Street Blues” (NBC), “ALF” (NBC), “Melba” (CBS), “The Golden Girls” (NBC), “Cagney & Lacey” (CBS), “Barney Miller” (ABC), “M*A*S*H” (CBS), “Lou Grant” (CBS), “The White Shadow” (CBS), “The Incredible Hulk” (CBS), and “Barnaby Jones”(CBS). His made-for-TV movies include The Right Connections with MC Hammer, Sidney Sheldon’s Nothing Lasts Forever with Brooke Shields, Virtual Seduction, Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child and Double, Double, Toil and Trouble with the Olsen Twins.

In 1996, Taylor hosted his own series on HGTV,”The Urban Gardener with Meshach Taylor,” and in 1998, he hosted “Meshach Taylor’s Hidden Caribbean” on the Travel Channel. He was a regular panelist on the 2000 revival of the television game show ”To Tell the Truth”. He co-hosted “Living Live! with Florence Henderson” on Retirement Living TV; in 2008, the program was revamped as “The Florence Henderson Show”.

Meshach Taylor and Toni Braxton in the Broadway production of Beauty and the Beast at the Palace Theatre in New York (1998). Photo courtesy of Playbill.com vault

In 1998, Taylor made his Broadway debut as Lumiere in Beauty and the Beast, starring alongside Toni Braxton and James Barbour.

Hello dolly … Andrew McCarthy and Meshach Taylor in Mannequin Photograph: Allstar/20th Century Fox/Sportsphoto

Taylor appeared in the feature films Mannequin and Mannequin Two: On the Move, Damien: Omen II, The Howling, Jacks or Better, Kid ‘N Play’s Class Act, How to Murder a Millionaire, David Mamet’s House of Games, The Allnighter, The Last Innocent Man with Ed Harris, Explorers, Friends and Family, The Secret of NIMH 2: Timmy to the Rescue, One More Saturday Night, Warning Sign,Wigger, and Inside Out with Tom Hanks and Jackie Gleason.

Keliher Walsh and Meshach Taylor in Year of the Rabbit. Photo by Betsy Newman

Taylor last appeared onstage at Ensemble Studio Theater-LA in Keliher Walsh’s Year of the Rabbit in 2012, playing Vietnam vet JC Bridges, who upon returning from his first tour in Vietnam in 1967, experienced hatred and racism in the turbulent States. Taylor’s last television guest-starring appearances include two episodes of “Criminal Minds” (CBS) opposite Joe Mantegna (Rossi) as Harrison Scott, Rossi’s former Marine sergeant with whom he served in Vietnam on the episode, “The Fallen,” which aired in November, 2012. He reprised this role in the episode “The Road Home,” helmed by Joe Mantegna, which aired in January, 2014.

Meshach Taylor and Joe Mantegna in Criminal Minds - "The Fallen". Photo: Screen Grab/CBS © 2012 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.

The Criminal Minds Team: Joe Mantegna, Meshach Taylor and Dan Ramm at Taylor’s 67th birthday party in Toluca Lake, CA on April 12, 2014. Dan Ramm co-wrote the first episode of Criminal Minds that Taylor appeared in on November, 2012. Photo by Lia Chang

Click below to see clips of Meshach Taylor on CRIMINAL MINDS, “The Road Home”.

Taylor is survived by his wife, Bianca Ferguson, his daughters Tamar Lashae Taylor, Yasmine Taylor, Esme Taylor, his son Tariq Taylor, his mother Hertha Mae Ward, his sister Judith Taylor, his brother Hussain Taylor, and his four grandchildren.

Other Articles by Lia Chang:
Reports of Designing Women star Meshach Taylor’s Death are Premature

Click to view slideshow.

Photos: Meshach Taylor Celebrates 67th Birthday with Arlene and Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, Jean Smart, Dennis Franz, Ernie Hudson, John Heard, Keith Szarabajka, Stuart Gordon, Shadoe Stevens and More
indystar: Longtime IPS Teacher Celebrates 100th Birthday
Jan. 22: Emmy Award-Nominated Actor Meshach Taylor (“Designing Women”) Guest Stars on Criminal Minds as Rossi’s Former Marine Sergeant, Harrison Scott
Criminal Minds: The Road Home
hollywoodreporter.com: ‘Criminal Minds’: Joe Mantegna on Rossi’s Military Past, Teases Season Mystery
brittany-frederick.com: Interview with Joe Mantegna Happy Birthday Meshach Taylor
tvline.com: Joe Mantegna: Criminal Minds’ Tribute to War Veterans Packs an Emmy-Caliber Performance
hollywoodreporter.com: ‘Criminal Minds’: Joe Mantegna on Rossi’s Military Past, Teases Season Mystery
xfinity.comcast.net: Joe Mantegna Thrilled About His ‘Criminal Minds’ Marine Storyline Emmy Award-Nominated Actor Meshach Taylor (“Designing Women”) Guest Stars on Criminal Minds as Rossi’s Former Marine Sergeant, Harrison Scott on November 14, 2012
Meshach Taylor talks Wigger on Wendy Williams Show Playbill.com: Beauty’s Meshach Taylor and Nine’s Myra Lucretia Taylor Take Flight in L.A.By Ernio Hernandez (Jan. 22, 2005)
Playbill.com: Braxton-Taylor-Barbour Beast Begins Sept. 9 By Robert Simonson and Robert Viagas (Aug. 21, 1998)
Los Angeles Times: And Then There Was Anthony … : ‘DESIGNING WOMEN’S’ MESHACH TAYLOR ENDS THE SERIES AS HE BEGAN–WITH DIGNITY (May 23, 1993)
People: Designing Women’s Man (May 18, 1992)

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July 6: Memorial Service to Celebrate ‘Designing Women’ Star Meshach Taylor at Forest Lawn – Hollywood Hills

July 3, 2014, 5:57 pm

≫ Next: Lia Chang: Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, President Bill Clinton and More Remember Meshach Taylor

≪ Previous: Lia Chang: ‘Designing Women’ Star Meshach Taylor, Veteran of Stage, Screen and TV, Dies at 67

Meshach Taylor at his 67th birthday party in Toluca Lake, CA on April 12, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

Friends, family and fans of actor Meshach Taylor, who lost his battle with cancer last month at the age of 67, will honor his life and legacy at a memorial service in Los Angeles on Sunday, July 6, 2014 at Forest Lawn – Hollywood Hills, 6300 Forest Lawn Drive in Los Angeles, CA 90068. The memorial service will be held in the Old North Church at noon, and is open to the public. If you are not able to attend, you can watch the live streamed webcast of the service by clicking here at noon.

Taylor’s career, which spanned over four decades on television, in films and on the Broadway and regional stage, became a household name with his Emmy-nominated turn as lovable ex-con turned law student Anthony Bouvier during seven seasons from 1986 – 1993, on the CBS sitcom “Designing Women,” and for his portrayal of Hollywood Montrose, a flamboyant window dresser in the 1987 box office hit and cult classic romantic comedy film Mannequin and the 1991 sequel Mannequin 2: On the Move.

Meshach Taylor with his wife Bianca Ferguson Taylor at his 67th birthday party in Toluca Lake, CA, on April 12, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

The beloved actor, devoted husband and father, was surrounded by his wife Bianca Ferguson Taylor, his 100-year-old mother Hertha Ward Taylor, his daughters, Tamar Lashae Taylor, Yasmine Taylor, Esme Taylor, and his son Tariq Taylor, when he passed away peacefully in hospice care at home in Altadena, CA. on June 28, 2014.

On Friday, June 27, 2014, Taylor’s family posted this message on his Facebook page.

Meshach Taylor at his 67th birthday party in Toluca Lake, CA on April 12, with his daughters Esme Taylor, Yasmine Taylor, Tamar Lashae Taylor, and his son Tariq Taylor. Photo by Lia Chang

Meshach Taylor was born in Boston, MA, on April 11, 1947, but was raised in New Orleans, LA, and Indianapolis, IN. His parents, Hertha Ward Taylor and Joseph T. Taylor were college professors. In 1967, Taylor’s father became the first black dean of Indiana University’s downtown campus, and after the merger that created Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis in 1969, he became the first dean of the new institution’s school of liberal arts.
indystar: Longtime IPS Teacher Celebrates 100th Birthday

Meshach Taylor, Jose Martinez, Dennis Franz and Joe Mantegna in Wonderful Ice Cream Suit (1973). Photo courtesy of Joe Mantegna

Meshach Taylor in the Goodman Theatre’s production of Huck Finn (c. 1976). Photo courtesy of the Goodman Theatre Archives

Meshach Taylor in the Goodman Theatre’s 1978 production of Native Son. Photo courtesy of the Goodman Theatre Archive

Lionel Smith and Meshach Taylor in the Goodman Theatre’s production of Sizwe Banzi is Dead. Photo courtesy of the Goodman Theatre Archives

Taylor caught the acting bug while attending Crispus Attucks High School. He graduated in 1964, then studied drama at Ohio’s Wilmington College, before transferring to Florida A&M University in Tallahassee, FL. A few credits short of completing his studies, Taylor returned to Indianapolis to work at a local radio station as a State House reporter for AM radio station WIFE (now WTLC), where he used the on-air name Bruce Thomas, and as the host of a community-affairs program on television station WLWI (now WTHR), as Bruce Taylor.

Taylor would return 20 years later to Florida A&M to complete his remaining requirements, and graduated on May 1, 1993. In 2011, Taylor was enshrined into the College of Arts and Sciences’ Thomas DeSaille Tucker Hall’s Gallery of Distinction at FAMU. It is one of the highest honors the university bestows upon one of its graduates, and specifically honors the contributions alumni have made to their disciplines, organizations, and communities at the local, national, or international level.

While in Chicago, Taylor appeared in Streamers, Native Son (1979 Joseph Jefferson Award Nomination for Actor in a Principal Role in a Play), The Island, and Athol Fugard’s politically charged Sizwe Banzi Is Dead, for which he garnered the 1977 Joseph Jefferson Award for Actor in a Principal Role in a Play. He received a Chicago Emmy Award for his role as Jim in the WTTV production of “Huckleberry Finn,” and hosted a Chicago television show “Black Life,” on the local NBC affiliate.
goodmantheatre.com: Goodman Theatre Remembers Meshach Taylor (July 1, 2014)

In 1978, Taylor moved to Los Angeles, where over the next 36 years he worked steadily, crafting a gallery of memorable characters in film and on television. In May 1981, the ninth season of “M*A*SH,” Taylor was seen as a corpsman in the final episode, “The Life You Save,” and appeared as Tony in the short-lived NBC sitcom “Buffalo Bill” opposite Dabney Coleman. From 1986 – 1993, Taylor played Anthony Bouvier, on the CBS sitcom “Designing Women” starring Dixie Carter, Delta Burke, Annie Potts, and Jean Smart. In 1989, he received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.

Taylor’s other TV guest starring appearances included roles on “The Unit” (CBS), “Jessie” (Disney Channel),”“Hannah Montana” (Disney Channel), “The Drew Carey Show” (ABC), “Static Shock” (Kids WB!), “Caroline in the City” (NBC), “Aaahh!!! Real Monsters” (Nickelodeon), “Women of the House” (CBS), “In the Heat of the Night” (NBC), “Punky Brewster” (NBC), “What’s Happening Now!”, “Hill Street Blues” (NBC), “ALF” (NBC), “Melba” (CBS), “The Golden Girls” (NBC), “Cagney & Lacey” (CBS), “Barney Miller” (ABC), “M*A*S*H” (CBS), “Lou Grant” (CBS), “The White Shadow” (CBS), “The Incredible Hulk” (CBS), and “Barnaby Jones”(CBS).

Hello dolly … Andrew McCarthy and Meshach Taylor in Mannequin Photograph: Allstar/20th Century Fox/Sportsphoto

Taylor also appeared in the feature films Damien: Omen II, The Howling, Jacks or Better, Kid ‘N Play’s Class Act, How to Murder a Millionaire, David Mamet’s House of Games, The Allnighter, The Last Innocent Man with Ed Harris, Explorers, Friends and Family, The Secret of NIMH 2: Timmy to the Rescue, One More Saturday Night, Warning Sign,Wigger, and Inside Out with Tom Hanks and Jackie Gleason.

Meshach Taylor © Lia Chang

Taylor had the opportunity to indulge two of his passions – gardening and travel – hosting his own series on HGTV, “The Urban Gardener with Meshach Taylor” in 1996, and on the Travel Channel, “Meshach Taylor’s Hidden Caribbean” in 1998. He was a regular panelist on the 2000 revival of the television game show ”To Tell the Truth”. He co-hosted “Living Live! with Florence Henderson” on Retirement Living TV; in 2008, the program was revamped as “The Florence Henderson Show”.

Meshach Taylor and Toni Braxton in the Broadway production of Beauty and the Beast at the Palace Theatre in New York (1998). Photo courtesy of Playbill.com vault

James Barbour, Toni Braxton and James Babour in the Broadway production of Beauty and the Beast. Photo courtesy of Playbill.com

In 1998, Taylor made his Broadway debut as Lumiere in Beauty and the Beast, starring alongside Toni Braxton and James Barbour.

Taylor’s last TV guest-starring appearances included two episodes of “Criminal Minds” (CBS) opposite Joe Mantegna (Rossi) as Harrison Scott, Rossi’s former Marine sergeant with whom he served in Vietnam on the episode, “The Fallen,” which aired in November, 2012. He reprised this role in the episode “The Road Home,” in series star Joe Mantegna’s directorial debut, which aired in January, 2014.

Taylor is survived by his wife, Bianca Ferguson Taylor, his daughters Tamar Lashae Taylor, Yasmine Taylor, Esme Taylor, his son Tariq Taylor, his mother Hertha Ward Taylor, his sister Judith Taylor, his brother Hussain Taylor, and his four grandchildren.

Click to view slideshow.

Lia Chang Photo by GK

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Lia Chang: Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, President Bill Clinton and More Remember Meshach Taylor

July 8, 2014, 12:40 pm

≫ Next: July 14-Aug. 8: Reflections And Devotion By Ching Valdes-Aran & Nicole Valdes Schorr at Philippine Center Gallery

≪ Previous: July 6: Memorial Service to Celebrate ‘Designing Women’ Star Meshach Taylor at Forest Lawn – Hollywood Hills

Meshach Taylor © Lia Chang

More than 400 friends, family and fans of actor and activist Meshach Taylor, who lost his battle with cancer last month at the age of 67, honored his life and legacy at his homegoing memorial service in the Old North Church at Forest Lawn – Hollywood Hills in Los Angeles, on Sunday, July 6, 2014.

Taylor, whose career spanned over four decades on television, in films and on the Broadway and regional stage, became a household name with his Emmy-nominated turn as lovable ex-con turned law student Anthony Bouvier during seven seasons from 1986 – 1993, on the CBS sitcom “Designing Women,” and for his portrayal of Hollywood Montrose, a flamboyant window dresser in the 1987 box office hit and cult classic romantic comedy film Mannequin and the 1991 sequel Mannequin 2: On the Move.

Meshach Taylor at his 67th birthday party in Toluca Lake, CA on April 12, with his daughters Esme Taylor, Yasmine Taylor, Tamar Lashae Taylor, and his son Tariq Taylor. Photo by Lia Chang

Meshach Taylor with his wife Bianca Ferguson Taylor at his 67th birthday party in Toluca Lake, CA, on April 12, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

The beloved actor, devoted husband and father, was surrounded by his wife Bianca Ferguson Taylor, his 100-year-old mother Hertha Ward Taylor, his daughters, Tamar Lashae Taylor, Yasmine Taylor, Esme Alana Taylor, and his son Tariq Taylor, when he passed away peacefully in hospice care at home in Altadena, CA. on June 28, 2014.

The 2 1/2 hour service officiated by Reverend Queen Esther Thomas in the Old North Church, featured scripture readings from the Old Testament-Daniel 3:28 and the New Testament-John 14:1-3; Navajo Prayers for Peace; two video tributes; solo performances of “Mary, Did You Know?” sung by Helen Baylor, Charlie Wilson’s “Without You”, sung by Leslie Smith and an impromptu rendition of “I Know Who Holds Tomorrow”, sung by Louis Price. Poetry readings included Maya Angelou’s “Ailey, Baldwin, Floyd, Killens, and Mayfield,” read by Charlayne Woodard, and W.H. Auden’s “Stop All the Clocks,” read by Keith Szarabajka. The service ended with a releasing of the doves ceremony.

During the service, there were many who chose to share their remembrances of Meshach. Below are transcripts of tributes by Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke and Gerald McRaney, in addition to letters from Linda Bloodworth-Thomason and Harry Thomason, executive producers of “Designing Women” and President Bill Clinton; a statement from GLAAD; and a resolution of tribute from Taylor’s alma mater FAMU.

Joe Mantegna shares memories of their 44 year friendship.

Gia Mantegna, Joe Mantegna, Mia Mantegna, Arlene Mantegna, Meshach Taylor. Photo by Lia Chang

“44 years. That’s how long Meshach Taylor was a part of the lives of both my wife Arlene and myself.

The year was 1970. Arlene and I had just gotten together as a couple a few months earlier after being cast in our first professional acting job in the play Hair in Chicago, IL. During that year in 1970, a production of Hair was due to open in Indianapolis, IN, and since their opening occurred on our show’s day off, they bussed our entire cast to Indianapolis for their opening. Playing the role of Hud in that production was the man we would go on to spend a lifetime with as Meshach Taylor. Of everyone in the cast, it was he that we gravitated to after the performance, and I remembered him introducing us to his new baby girl Tam. We said our goodbyes and hoped to meet again.

As fate would have it, within a year, both of our productions closed. The national tour was started with a variety of performers from various Hair companies. Arlene and I joined that company and to our delight, Meshach was a member of it. We toured the country for a while. My father died early in 1971 and Arlene and I decided it was time to move on, so we left the show and moved back to Chicago. We told Meshach we hoped to see him again before too long. And it wasn’t.

Meshach Taylor, Jose Martinez, Dennis Franz and Joe Mantegna in Wonderful Ice Cream Suit (1973). Photo courtesy of Joe Mantegna

Meshach Taylor in the Goodman Theatre’s production of Huck Finn (c. 1976). Photo courtesy of the Goodman Theatre Archives

That next year of 1972, the Hair tour ended and I finished a production of Godspell and a musical I’d written was about to be produced in Chicago. In that musical, was a part for Meshach to play. We contacted him. He agreed to come to Chicago for the play, and he wound up staying for the next five years. During that time, both he and I and Arlene became members of the Organic Theatre Company and spent the remaining years during a myriad of new and exciting productions, some of which we were able to perform in some of the major capitals of Europe, including Meshach’s award winning performance of Jim in Huckleberry Finn.

In 1977, Meshach headed west to California in a production of Sizwe Banzi is Dead along with his friend Lionel Smith. And now Los Angeles got of taste of the incredible acting talent that Meshach possessed. Arlene and I move to Los Angeles that following year and from then until now, along with many of you people who are here today, collectively created the tapestry of our life here in California. Those years, as well as the years prior, were filled with a multitude of memories. Meshach found success on film and in television. He met Bianca, which begat Yamine, Tariq, Esme, granddaughter Zahra and papa’s boy Dylon. Shach became the godfather to my children; I to his.

Two years ago, I presented the producers of my series “Criminal Minds” with an idea for an episode where I would discover that my commanding sergeant from Vietnam (a man who saved my life), I would discover was now homeless on the streets of Los Angeles. My assistant Dan wrote a rough draft of the script, and the producers agreed to film the episode. My only requirement was that the only actor to be considered for the role of my sergeant had to be Meshach Taylor or no one. They agreed and Meshach turned in a performance of a lifetime. It was only weeks after shooting that episode that he was diagnosed with his disease.

The Criminal Minds Team: Joe Mantegna, Meshach Taylor and Dan Ramm at Taylor’s 67th birthday party in Toluca Lake, CA on April 12, 2014. Dan Ramm co-wrote the first episode of Criminal Minds that Taylor appeared in on November, 2012. Photo by Lia Chang

For the next year he fought that disease with a vigor and strength that was remarkable, so much so that when my series then asked me to direct an episode that following season, I again hit them with the idea that I would do it if they agreed to let me bring back Meshach’s character, as we all knew that the chance to work again would be the best medicine anyone could offer him. In the throes of his chemotherapy, he once again turned in a performance of a lifetime. How blessed am I that I was able to watch his first performance as a professional actor in 1970, and then be able to direct and act beside him in his last.

Meshach Taylor, Les Smith and T-Connection. Photo by Lia Chang

44 years. He was in my life 20 years longer than I knew my own father. I would have to stand here for days on end to recount all the memories. The times we all lived in the same building in Chicago and had our morning salons with all of us contributing whatever dishes we could, including the fried chicken I learned how to make from his mother Hertha. Or meeting his grandmother Minnie when she came to visit from Boston who was then in her 90’s and lived to be 114. The special events, the holidays.

This past April, B and the kids called and asked if we would throw him a birthday party because it was becoming clear that there may not be others. Arlene went into her full party mode and those of you who were present for it will recount, it was a birthday to remember. There were his favorite Jamaican foods, people flew in from all over the country, the Coakley brothers band played reggae on the stage in our backyard and in the midst of all this, Meshach walked on the stage and with tears in his eyes, thanked each and every one present for making this birthday, and these were his own words, “the happiest day of my life.”

Meshach with his son Tariq Taylor at Taylor’s 67th birthday party at the home of Arlene and Joe Mantegna in Toluca Lake, CA. Photo by Lia Chang

44 years of memories. One thing that came to my mind these past few days, was a time Shach and I were joking with one another and he asked me, “what did I think was the thinnest book in the world?” I thought for a minute and I answered, “Italian Americans Who Ever Were or Who Would Ever Be President of the United States”. Meshach smiled at me and said, “Notable Negroes in the Yachting World”. Now, I remember that. I remembered that at this moment because I would have a different response today for the world’s thinnest book. It would be titled, “People Who Have Met Meshach Taylor and Did Not Instantly Fall in Love with Him”. That book would win because it would have no pages.

Meshach Taylor, Joe Mantegna and Arlene Mantegna. Photo by Lia Chang

As that 50’s song said, “To know him is to love him.” He was liked the Pied Piper, men, women, children, animals, one and all, they would flock around him because he exuded joy, because he was the world’s best storyteller, and he would always make you feel you were the only person in the world he was talking to. And if you know his children, you know he was the best father anyone could have ever had.

Meshach Taylor and his family at his 67th birthday in Toluca Lake, CA on April 12, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

I remember explaining to someone who I had just met, who Meshach was and they said, “Oh yes, I know who he is. He’s that wonderful black actor.” And I remember I had to stop myself from correcting him because I realized at that moment I never thought of Meshach as having a color. His list of friends was like the role call at the UN. He was a proud black man, yes, but the color doesn’t exist that could define who he was. And in a world of black and white and brown and yellow and red, isn’t that the essence of how mankind should be defined? He was the son of educators, the grandson of college graduates, the great-grandson of a man who was the child of a slaveowner, the great-great-grandson of a man who was on the last slave ship to arrive in this country. His 100-year-old mother Hertha told me that information just a few days ago. The same 100-year-old mother who sat by his side with his wife and children, and rested her hand on his head and sang to him as he took his last breath. No one chooses to pass with their mother at their side. But is there not something spiritual about being surrounded by your family and having their hands, as well as the woman who gave you life, pass you off to eternity?

Let me leave you with this. Because in this moment of sorrow and reflection, of sadness and mourning, I did find a ray of sunshine and hope, and maybe even joy, that I want to share with you. When my family and I visited Meshach this Thursday past, we knew the end was near. We said our goodbyes and then on Friday, took off to a house we rented on the California coastline to spend the week to refresh, repair and to await the inevitable. On Saturday night we got the call. The Great One had passed. Early last Sunday morning, I sat out by myself on our deck overlooking the Pacific. It was a typical June gloom day with a heavy overcast and a cool breeze coming over the ocean. It made me reflect on another time, another day, just like this one.

Over 40 years ago, when my father passed, I visited his graveside to say one last personal goodbye after they had installed his headstone. Now anyone that knows me well, knows that I am not the most religious person in dodge, but I do like to think I’m spiritual. I do believe there is someone or something behind all of this, I’m just not sure what his or her name is. So I did something that day at my father’s gravesite that I had never done before. I lay flat on it like a bed. And with my eyes closed I said something to the effect of, “Dad I don’t know if you or your soul or your life force can hear me, but if you can, just send me a sign and I’ll know that you are with me and at peace.” Within a few moments, an intense heat radiated on my face and a red glow shown through my eyelids. I almost levitated from the shock of that moment but with my heart racing, I opened my eyes and realized at that very moment, that totally gray and overcast day had decided to open up for a moment and shine this blinding ray of light on me. Without question I felt I had my sign.

Joe Mantegna gave his brother Meshach Taylor a 67th birthday party at his home in Toluca Lake, CA on April 12, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

Now here I was on a deck on the same kind of day. I did what I had done only once before, 40 years prior. I looked to the sea and sky and said, “Shach, if you can here me, just send me a sign, and I’ll know you’re with me and at peace. I waited. The clouds did not part. The sun did not shine, but I did feel the message had been sent.

Later that day, two dear friends came to visit and sure enough the June gloom dissipated, and it turned out to be a picture perfect day at the seaside, blue sky, sun and surf. Arlene, and I, our friends took a moment to look out at this incredible vista, when we all noticed something bobbing in the water. We had seen dolphins earlier in the week, so we thought it might be them. No it was just a solitary figure, it never moved below the surface. Then we thought maybe it was sea lion, because we had also seen one of them earlier in the week following the surfers. But there was not a surfer, nor a soul in sight. It continued it’s journey from God knows where, slowly but surely made its way closer and closer to the shore, right in front of us. Each wave brought it a little closer until finally it became apparent that it was heading towards this little rock covered with moss that Arlene had declared was her favorite thing on the beach below us as it was such a unique formation. And because my wife leaves no mystery unexplored, she hurried down the stairs to retrieve the object which was indeed intent on coming ashore to that rock. We all smiled and took pictures of her and the object that took that moment in time, that place on the largest body of water on the planet, to arrive at that precise moment that we would be there to see it and retrieve it. The beach and the horizon were empty. We know not from where it came. And this is what she pulled from out of the water (a mylar happy birthday balloon). “The Happiest Day of My Life.” I had gotten my sign. Now we’ve all gotten our sign. He lives around us. He lives within us. I loved him like a brother in every sense of the word, because one should love their brother unconditionally and completely. Rest well my brother. Until we meet again.”

Delta Burke, Taylor’s co-star on “Designing Women,” talks about her best friend and brother, Meshach.

Delta Burke with her best friend and brother Meshach Taylor at Taylor’s 67th birthday in Toluca Lake, CA, on April 12, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

“Hi, I’m Delta Burke,

I had the honor of working with Meshach Taylor on “Designing Women”. He came on for just one guest episode and he was so brilliant, he stayed for seven years. He was there longer than I was. I want to say that I never had such a great acting partner. We were sorta like cops, you know, we had each other’s back. Meshach always had my back, onstage and off stage.

During “Designing Women,” I went through a very bad time, and suffered great depression and had very debilitating panic attacks, which was very humiliating and frightening to me, and confusing to everyone involved. But Meshach, when it would hit me, and I would start to fall, he would catch me and he would take me back to my room, and he would comfort me.

Meshach was there for me in a way no one has ever been there for me, aside from my husband. He was my best friend. Meshach was everyone’s best friend. He was more than that, he was a brother to me.

And I just want to tell Meshach that I love him, and he was the finest man who ever lived on this earth. Now that he’s passed from this world, I miss that I will never hear his voice again or see his face. But I know that he is up there, he will always be with all of us.

And I thank you Bianca, for bringing me into your family. You have the most loving, wonderful family, that Meshach of course, would have such a great family. Thank you and all my prayers are with you.”

Bianca Taylor Ferguson, Meshach Taylor, Delta Burke and Gerald McRaney. Photo by Lia Chang

Burke’s husband, Gerald McRaney said, “To me, Meshach was and is the definition of a man. He was and is gentle, kind, loving and strong, and only when need be, tough as nails. I am reminded of a line in Hamlet, “Take him for all and all, he was a man. I shall not look upon his like again.”

McRaney then shared this letter from Linda Bloodworth-Thomason and Harry Thomason, executive producers of “Designing Women”.

Meshach,

We are thinking of you and wishing you so much peace and strength right now. Thank you for sharing your many gifts. Thank you for your friendship. Thank you for being so damned talented. You are and were a whirling dervish of a comedian and actor…always making every painstakingly right choice. And like Lucy and all the greats, making the audience afraid to breathe because they might miss the next genius thing you do. And yes, you gave four of the greatest actresses to ever grace a television screen, a colossal run for their money. And thank you for breaking the mold for African American men on television, especially Southern African American men. Thank you for bringing what was originally a lightly sketched character to full and blazing glory. Thank you for sharing your humanity, your irrepressible spirit and blazing talent with all of us. You not only won our respect and admiration, but you have forever enriched the landscape of American comedy.

With love and gratitude,

Linda and Harry

Taylor’s son Tariq praised his father, and read the letter below from President Clinton, sharing that his father was a huge part of the campaigning force for Clinton’s 1992 and 1996 elections, and even hosted the 1996 Inaugural Ball in President Clinton’s home state of Arkansas.

Dear Bianca, Tamar, Yasmine, Esme-Alana and Tariq,

I was saddened to hear that Meshach passed away, and I extend my heartfelt condolences to you and your loved ones. Meshach will long be remembered for his big talent-and even bigger heart-both onscreen and off. I will always be grateful for the kindness and support he showed Hilary and me, and how much fun we had on our campaigns. I’ll never forget Meshach and Hilary dancing at the Arkansas inaugural ball.

He excelled on the stage, in movies, and television. For me, of course, he’ll always be “the man” in “Designing Women”. Hilary and I join all of you in celebrating his wonderful life and homegoing. Our prayers are with you.

Sincerely,

President Bill Clinton

The day after Meshach’s homegoing service, President Bill Clinton called the family personally to offer his condolences.

Meshach Taylor was born in Boston, MA on April 11, 1947, to Joseph Thomas Taylor and Hertha Ward Taylor. He was raised in New Orleans, LA and Indianapolis, IN. His parents Hertha Ward Taylor and Joseph T. Taylor were educators. Meshach was raised on Historical Black college campuses which included Dillard, Fisk and Florida A&M. The flickering images that entranced Meshach himself into an acting career came from the movie screens on the college campuses where his father was an administrator at Indiana University, Florida A&M, Auburn State, and Dillard University in New Orleans, LA. In 1967, Meshach’s father became the first black dean of Indiana University’s downtown campus, and after the merger that created University-Purdue University Indianapolis in 1969, he became the dean of the new institution’s school of liberal arts. His childhood was spent in New Orleans, LA., which imprinted on him a life time love of Cajun and Zydeco Music, and the International culture of New Orleans. After many years he returned triumphantly to his favorite city, New Orleans, as a professional actor, staying at his favorite hotel “The Windsor”, to promote “Designing Women” into syndication.

indystar: Longtime IPS Teacher Celebrates 100th Birthday
Meshach became interested in acting in earnest while attending Florida A&M. His most precious memories there was his participation with the “Verse Choir” directed by Mom’s Edmonds and his major role in “The Day of Absence”. While attending Florida A&M, Meshach married and became the father of his first daughter, Tamar Lashae.

Meshach Taylor in the Goodman Theatre’s 1978 production of Native Son. Photo courtesy of the Goodman Theatre Archive

Lionel Smith and Meshach Taylor in the Goodman Theatre’s production of Sizwe Banzi is Dead. Photo courtesy of the Goodman Theatre Archives

Caleb Szarabajka, Meshach Taylor and Keith Szarabajka. Photo by Lia Chang

A few credits short of completing his studies, Meshach returned to Indianapolis to take care of his family, and found work at a local radio station as a State House political correspondent.

It was during this time that Meshach read about an audition for the musical Hair. He auditioned with the song “Aquarius” and was the only voice chosen that day. Taylor’s first professional job was touring for two years in the musical Hair. It was with the touring company Hair that he first met his friends, Joe Mantegna, and Arlene. They performed in national theaters in Canada, the Netherlands, Germany, England and Hawaii to name a few.

The final stop for Hair was Chicago. When the run concluded, Meshach stayed and honed his craft in Repertory Theater for eight years. According to an article written by Richard K. Shaull which appeared in the Indianapolis News in 1981, entitled, “In Fiery Furnace Called Hollywood” “Mainstreaming” “Then it occurred to him that he was isolating himself by staying with the purely ethnic groups. With this revelation, he forced himself into the theatrical mainstream of Chicago turning out to audition for major plays. Meshach was indeed a good actor and soon he was taking plum roles in major productions there.”

His buddy, Joe Mantegna, persuaded Meshach to stay in Chicago to do Ely. After that, he never stopped working on stage. As a member of Chicago’s Goodman Theatre, he appeared in Streamers, Native Son (1979 Joseph Jefferson Award Nomination for Actor in a Principal Role in a Play), The Island, and Sizwe Banzi is Dead, for which he garnered the 1977 Joseph Jefferson Award for Actor in a Principal Role in a Play. He also performed as Jim in the production Huckleberry Finn, and was interviewed on opening night by Ted Koppel critiquing Mark Twain. He received a Chicago Emmy Award for his role as Jim in the WTTV production of Huckleberry Finn. He created and starred in many productions of the Organic Theatre with his friends Joe Mantegna, Tommy Toles, Dennis Franz, John Heard, Keith Szarabajka, Jack Wallace, Ian Patrick Williams, and director Stuart and Carolyn Gordon, before traveling to California in the production of Athol Fugard’s Sizwe Banzi is Dead, directed by Greg Mosher.
goodmantheatre.com: Goodman Theatre Remembers Meshach Taylor (July 1, 2014)

Meshach crafted a gallery of memorable characters in film and on television, including his Emmy nominated turn as Anthony Bouvier in the CBS sitcom “Designing Women” for seven seasons from 1986 – 1993. In 1989, he received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. From 1993 – 1997, he portrayed plastic surgeon Sheldon Baylor on the CBS sitcom “Dave’s World” with Harry Anderson and Shadoe Stevens. From 2004-2007, Taylor played Alastair Wright, the history teacher turned school principal, and appeared on Nickelodeon’s “Ned’s Declassified School Guide”.

Hello dolly … Andrew McCarthy and Meshach Taylor in Mannequin Photograph: Allstar/20th Century Fox/Sportsphoto

GLAAD’s Statement on Meshach Taylor
Back when too many people were fearful of supporting the gay and lesbian community, or silent about the HIV/AIDS crisis, Meshach made his voice loud and clear. He was an ardent supporter of the community even before it was acceptable to be an ally, because Meshach only cared about what was right-and so he spoke out about the fact that we should all be accepted and loved for who we are. He showed his support through both advocacy work such as hosting AIDS walks in California, and of course, through his art. Who could ever forget Hollywood Montrose from Mannequin. Most people will never forget him because Hollywood was likely one of the first gay men they ever saw on film. Thanks to Meshach who bravely took on the character, Hollywood was lovable, caring and fiercely fabulous. At a time when gay and lesbian people were nearly invisible, there was Hollywood Montrose. Out and proud. But to the gay and lesbian community, Meshach was more than the fiercely fabulous Hollywood-he was a friend. And we will deeply miss him.

Taylor also appeared in the feature films Damien: Omen II, The Howling, Jacks or Better, Kid ‘N Play’s Class Act, How to Murder a Millionaire, David Mamet’s House of Games, Stoney Island, The Allnighter, The Last Innocent Man with Ed Harris, Explorers, Friends and Family, The Secret of NIMH 2: Timmy to the Rescue, One More Saturday Night, Warning Sign,Wigger, and Inside Out with Tom Hanks and Jackie Gleason.

Meshach Taylor and Toni Braxton in the Broadway production of Beauty and the Beast at the Palace Theatre in New York (1998). Photo courtesy of Playbill.com vault

James Barbour, Toni Braxton and James Babour in the Broadway production of Beauty and the Beast. Photo courtesy of Playbill.com

In 1998, he made his Broadway debut as the first and only African American “Lumiere” in Beauty and the Beast, where he starred alongside James Barbour as the “Beast” and Toni Braxton as “Belle”. He gave a luminous performance. He finished his theatrical career with Flight by Charlayne Woodard at the Kirk Douglas Theatre at CTG in 2010 and The Year of the Rabbit, 2012, at ESTLA.

Taylor would return 20 years later to Florida A&M to complete his remaining requirements, and graduate on May 1, 1993. In 2011, Taylor was enshrined into the College of Arts and Sciences’ Thomas DeSaille Tucker Hall’s Gallery of Distinction at FAMU. It is one of the highest honors the university bestows upon one of its graduates, and specifically honors the contributions alumni have made to their disciplines, organizations, and communities at the local, national, or international level.

FAMU’s Resolution of tribute to the life of the late Meshach Taylor (July 6, 2014)
He will live in the hearts of the friends he made
And be known always for the Foundation he laid,
Because Goodness and Fairness never
They go shining on like sun in the sky,
Just as Honor and Truth endure forever,
Death is powerless to destroy or to sever…
So his gallant soul has taken flight
Into a land where there is no night,
He is not dead, he has only gone on
To a brighter, more wonderful dawn
-Helen Steiner Rice

WHEREAS, God, the Creator of all, in His infinite wisdom has called home an outstanding alumnus of Florida A&M University (FAMU), Meshach Taylor; and

WHEREAS, Meshach Taylor was a graduate of FAMU who earned international acclaim for his talent and life’s work; and

WHEREAS, Meshach Taylor was an award winning actor who appeared in numerous productions from Broadway to Hollywood. Among his most
celebrated performances included roles in the CBS sitcom “Designing Women” and the box office hit “Mannequin”; and

WHEREAS, Meshach Taylor will be remembered by those who knew him best as a loving father, husband, son and friend; and

WHEREAS, his life displayed the virtues of a true community servant, Meshach Taylor lived his life as an example of service and inspiration to millions of adoring fans who admired his craft.

NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the administration, faculty, students and staff of Florida A&M University express deepest sympathy for the great loss of Meshach Taylor. The good works of his life will continue to live on in the hearts of those he so graciously touched.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that a copy of this resolution be submitted to the family and that a copy be retained for the University’s files.

Humbly Submitted,

FLORIDA A&M UNIVERSITY
Elmira Mangum, Ph.D.
President

Gia Mantegna, Joe Mantegna, Mia Mantegna, Arlene Mantegna, Esme Taylor, Meshach Taylor, Don,Yasmine Taylor, Tariq Taylor, Tamar Taylor at Taylor’s 67th birthday in Toluca Lake, CA on April 12, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

Meshach is survived by his devoted loving wife, partner and colleague of 31 years, Bianca Ferguson Taylor, his three daughters Tamar Lashae Taylor, Yasmine Taylor, Esme-Alana Taylor, his treasured and only son Tariq Anwar Joseph Thomas Taylor, mother Hertha Ward Taylor, Indianapolis, IN, sister Judith Taylor, Indianapolis, IN, brother Hussain Taylor, Indianapolis, IN, grandchildren Briana, Kobie, Deriq, Dylon and Zahra Jae Marie Taylor, who lived with him all of her life, parents-in-love James and Queen Thomas, Gary, IN; nieces Renette, Tivonna, Chavonne, LaShae, grand-niece Maraya, nephews James and Shaun, grand-aunts Mary Lucille Jordan, Gary, IN, and Elease Stanton, Three Rivers, MI, cousins, family and friends. He was honored to be the Godfather of Mia, Gia, Shane, Caleb and Jack, precious sister friends, Arlene, Josephine, Leona, Delta.

Click here for the complete video webcast of Meshach Taylor’s Memorial Service.
Click here for Meshach Taylor’s tribute page.
Click below to see the memorial tribute for Meshach commissioned by Wigger filmmaker Omowale Akintunde and produced by Victoria White.

Other Articles about Meshach Taylor:
vulture.com: Meshach Taylor Tribute – Designing Women
July 6: Memorial Service for ‘Designing Women’ Star Meshach Taylor at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills
‘Designing Women’ Star Meshach Taylor, Veteran of Stage, Screen and TV, Dies at 67
Reports of Designing Women star Meshach Taylor’s Death are Premature
Photos: Meshach Taylor Celebrates 67th Birthday with Arlene and Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, Jean Smart, Dennis Franz, Ernie Hudson, John Heard, Keith Szarabajka, Stuart Gordon, Shadoe Stevens and More
Click here for more articles on Meshach.

Lia Chang Photo by GK

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Remembering Frank Trenholm Lyman III, 1968-2014; Fund Established for The Lyman Children
Remembering Civil Rights Activist Yuri Kochiyama, 1921-2014
Ruby Dee, Actress and Activist, 1922 – 2014
July 31-Aug. 3: Drama Desk Nominee Joel de la Fuente stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at ACT, Helmed by Lisa Rothe
June 22 – July 27: Blair Underwood, Richard Thomas and Kristen Connolly Lead the Cast of The Old Globe’s Othello, helmed by Barry Edelstein
Late Night Singing with Garth Kravits at 54 Below with The Skivvies, at Jim Caruso’s Cast Party at Birdland and Michael Raye’s Soul Gathering
Photos & Video: The Wiz’s André De Shields Sang “So You Wanted to Meet the Wizard” in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
Photos and Video: Ben Vereen Performs at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos and Video: Obba Babatunde and cast members from the original cast of Dreamgirls perform at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
June 23: André De Shields, Billy Porter, Chuck Cooper, Brandon Victor Dixon, Clifton Davis, Norm Lewis, Chapman Roberts and More Set for The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
Bryan Cranston, Audra McDonald, Neil Patrick Harris, Jessie Mueller, Lena Hall, Sophie Okonedo, Kenny Leon, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder, All The Way, A Raisin in the Sun, Hedwig and the Angry Inch and More Take Home 2014 Tony Awards
Lucille Lortel Awards for Here Lies Love, Fun Home, The Open House, Good Person of Szechwan
Branden Jacob-Jenkins’ Appropriate, Lisa Kron’s Fun Home, Sonya Tayeh, Emmanuel Brown, Mia Katigbak, K. Todd Freeman, John Earl Jelks Among 2014 OBIE Award Winners
Photos: André Braugher, Ami Brabson, Christine Toy Johnson, Antoinette LaVecchia, Richard Topol, Victor Williams, Nikkole Salter, Elizabeth Van Dyke at Oni Faida Lampley’s Tough Titty at the Paradise Factory
Signature Theatre to Be Honored with the 2014 Regional Theatre Tony Award
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Fred Korematsu, American Hero and Civil Rights Activist Dies at 86
Celebrating my mom – AN ACTIVE VISION: BEVERLY UMEHARA…LABOR ACTIVIST…1945-1999
Crafting a Career
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. Lia recently starred as Carole Barbara in Lorey Hayes’ Power Play at the 2013 National Black Theatre Festival in Winston-Salem, N.C., with Pauletta Pearson Washington, Roscoe Orman, Lorey Hayes, Marcus Naylor and Phynjuar, and made her jazz vocalist debut in Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz “LADY” at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York. She is profiled in Jade Magazine.

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July 14-Aug. 8: Reflections And Devotion By Ching Valdes-Aran & Nicole Valdes Schorr at Philippine Center Gallery

July 13, 2014, 5:39 pm

≫ Next: July 23-26: 2g’s Workshop Production of Galois at the New Ohio Theatre’s Ice Factory Festival 2014; Donate to Indiegogo.com Campaign

≪ Previous: Lia Chang: Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, President Bill Clinton and More Remember Meshach Taylor

Ching Valdes-Aran

Obie- award winning stage, TV, and film actor and accomplished director Ching Valdes-Aran, alongside her niece, artist Nicole Valdes Schorr, will present an exhibition of paintings in a compelling collective show entitled REFLECTIONS AND DEVOTION. The work will be hosted by the Philippine Center gallery in New York City from July 14 through August 8. The Philippine Center Gallery is located at 556 Fifth Avenue, between West 45th and 46th Streets in New York.

Join the pair at their opening reception, sponsored by San Miguel Beer, on Monday, July 14th from 6:00-9:00pm.

A veteran and in demand actress who has worked with famed directors including Michael Greif (Dogeaters), George C. Wolfe (The Wild Party), and Moises Kaufman (Macbeth), and is currently appearing in celebrated director Lav Diaz’s Mula Sa Kung Ano Ang Noon as well as appearing in countless movies (Across the Universe and Sex and The City 1,), Valdes-Aran has been painting for many years. Her first U.S solo show, entitled CHING VALDES-ARAN: NEW AND SELECTED WORKS, premiered at the Philippine Center in 2012.

Nicole Valdes Schorr

For this exhibit, Valdes-Aran focuses on the ethereal and intangible quality of memory. Her exquisite paintings plunge the viewer into the experience of reflection. In company with Valds-Aran, there will be works on display by emerging painter, Nicole Valdes-Schorr. Valdes Schorr’s works suggests the passion and devotion of a love story through prayer. Her magnetic portraiture presents a juxtaposition against Valdes-Aran’s classic impressionist style Valdes Schorr infusing a unique and vibrant take on traditional catholic archetypes.

Ching valdes-Aran was born in San Nicolas, IIlocos Norte, Philippines. She lives and works in New York City. Her niece, Nicole Valdes-Schorr, is a New York native who graduated from the Rhode Island School of Design. She currently works as a visual arts teacher.

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Photos: Ching Valdes-Aran: New and Selected Work on View at the Philippine Center Gallery in New York, October 22-November 2, 2012
July 24: Sold to Open 37th Asian American International Film Festival in New York
Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, President Bill Clinton and More Remember Meshach Taylor
Photos: Meshach Taylor Celebrates 67th Birthday with Arlene and Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, Jean Smart, Dennis Franz, Ernie Hudson, John Heard, Keith Szarabajka, Stuart Gordon, Shadoe Stevens and More
June 22 – July 27: Blair Underwood, Richard Thomas and Kristen Connolly Lead the Cast of The Old Globe’s Othello, helmed by Barry Edelstein
Late Night Singing with Garth Kravits at 54 Below with The Skivvies, at Jim Caruso’s Cast Party at Birdland and Michael Raye’s Soul Gathering
Photos and Video: Ben Vereen Performs at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos and Video: Obba Babatunde and cast members from the original cast of Dreamgirls perform at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos & Video: The Wiz’s André De Shields Sang “So You Wanted to Meet the Wizard” in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
June 23: André De Shields, Billy Porter, Chuck Cooper, Brandon Victor Dixon, Clifton Davis, Norm Lewis, Chapman Roberts and More Set for The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
Bryan Cranston, Audra McDonald, Neil Patrick Harris, Jessie Mueller, Lena Hall, Sophie Okonedo, Kenny Leon, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder, All The Way, A Raisin in the Sun, Hedwig and the Angry Inch and More Take Home 2014 Tony Awards
Lucille Lortel Awards for Here Lies Love, Fun Home, The Open House, Good Person of Szechwan
Branden Jacob-Jenkins’ Appropriate, Lisa Kron’s Fun Home, Sonya Tayeh, Emmanuel Brown, Mia Katigbak, K. Todd Freeman, John Earl Jelks Among 2014 OBIE Award Winners
Photos: André Braugher, Ami Brabson, Christine Toy Johnson, Antoinette LaVecchia, Richard Topol, Victor Williams, Nikkole Salter, Elizabeth Van Dyke at Oni Faida Lampley’s Tough Titty at the Paradise Factory
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Celebrating my mom – AN ACTIVE VISION: BEVERLY UMEHARA…LABOR ACTIVIST…1945-1999
Crafting a Career
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang Photo by GK

↧

July 23-26: 2g’s Workshop Production of Galois at the New Ohio Theatre’s Ice Factory Festival 2014; Donate to Indiegogo.com Campaign

July 14, 2014, 1:06 pm

≫ Next: Hemlock Grove’s Joel de la Fuente stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at ACT, Helmed by Lisa Rothe, July 31-Aug. 3

≪ Previous: July 14-Aug. 8: Reflections And Devotion By Ching Valdes-Aran & Nicole Valdes Schorr at Philippine Center Gallery

Second Generation Productions (2g) is presenting a full-length workshop production of a new musical, Galois written by Sung Rno, composed by Aaron Jones, and directed by Victor Maog, from July 23-26, 2014, at the New Ohio Theatre’s Ice Factory Festival 2014. The New Ohio is located at 154 Christopher Street, inside the landmark Archive Building, between Greenwich Street and Washington Street in the West Village. Performances are at 7 p.m. Tickets are $18 General Admission / $15 Students/Seniors, and can be purchased by clicking here.

Galois is a rock-mathematical-musical expression of the chaotic, revolutionary, and brief life of the historical figure, Evariste Galois. Galois was a French mathematician whose breakthrough advancements in the field of polynomial equations and group theory went firmly against the popularly accepted knowledge of his day. He discovered a branch of mathematics as a precocious teenager, yet died too young at 21 in a duel over a woman. Galois gives voice to the contradictory passions of this math rock star: he was a genius of abstraction, but also a fervent revolutionary; he was brilliantly cerebral, yet madly in love; he was a gifted prodigy, yet unappreciated by the establishment.

The cast features Julian Cihi, Diane Phelan, Jonathan David, Robbie Tann, Shelley Thomas and Andrew Guilarte. The creative team includes J. Oconer Navarro (The Adding Machine, Minetta Lane Theater; Barrio Grrrl!, The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts) as music director, and Camille A. Brown (A Streetcar Named Desire, Broadway; tick, tick…BOOM!, Encores! at City Center; the upcoming Fortress of Solitude, The Public Theater) as choreographer. The design team includes Mikiko Suzuki MacAdams (Sets), Yael Lubetsky (Lights), and Josh Liebert (Sound), with Shae Candelaria (Production Stage Manager), Courtney Golden (Production Manager), and Nikki Chalas (Associate Producer).

2g, a New York City-based Asian American theater company that commissions, develops, and produces new plays and musicals, has launched an Indiegogo.com campaign to support the workshop production of Galois at the Ice Factory Festival 2014, which has had presentations at New Dramatists, 54 Below, and Second Stage Uptown. I just donated to the campaign, which has raised $5100, and ends on July 15, 2014 at 11:59pm. You can contribute by clicking here.

To celebrate the close of this campaign and the show, 2g is throwing a Bastille Day party on the evening of Monday, July 14th at Von, 3 Bleecker Street at 9pm. All are invited to join the creative team and cast to raise a glass to the storming of the Bastille.

Directions to The New Ohio

The New Ohio is located at 154 Christopher Street, inside the landmark Archive Building, between Greenwich Street and Washington Street in the West Village.

By car: We are just minutes from the Holland Tunnel. From the Holland Tunnel, take West Street (9A) north and take a right onto Christopher Street. Head east to Washington Street. There is street parking in the area and an underground lot inside the Archive Building at the Washington Street entrance, just south of Christopher.

By Subway: Take the 1, A, C, E, B, D, F, or M.

* 1-train to Christopher Street – walk west three blocks to the theatre.

* A, C, E, B, D, F, M – trains to West 4th Street- walk northwest along West 4th Street for one block to Christopher, take a left, proceed three blocks to the theatre.

More about 2g

Led by Artistic Director Victor Maog and Managing Director Jane Jung, 2g is dedicated to creating contemporary, world-class Asian American theater that reaches across cultural and racial boundaries. 2g has partnered with some of the country’s most prestigious theatre companies to co-produce world premieres of new Asian American plays. Since its inception, Second Generation has supported several hundred artists, through full productions of new plays and community-based events, as well as grassroots developmental work in service of cultivating new generations of excellence in Asian American dramatic arts. The goal of 2g is to commission Asian American playwrights and provide them with a cycle of development from initial workshop to final production.

Second Generation Productions is supported by NYSCA, DCA, and the ART/NY Creative Space Grant and Nancy Quinn Fund. Galois is funded by The Ensemble Studio Theatre/Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Science & Technology project

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Other articles by Lia Chang:
July 24: Sold to Open 37th Asian American International Film Festival in New York
Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, President Bill Clinton and More Remember Meshach Taylor
Photos: Meshach Taylor Celebrates 67th Birthday with Arlene and Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, Jean Smart, Dennis Franz, Ernie Hudson, John Heard, Keith Szarabajka, Stuart Gordon, Shadoe Stevens and More
June 22 – July 27: Blair Underwood, Richard Thomas and Kristen Connolly Lead the Cast of The Old Globe’s Othello, helmed by Barry Edelstein
Late Night Singing with Garth Kravits at 54 Below with The Skivvies, at Jim Caruso’s Cast Party at Birdland and Michael Raye’s Soul Gathering
Photos and Video: Ben Vereen Performs at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos and Video: Obba Babatunde and cast members from the original cast of Dreamgirls perform at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos & Video: The Wiz’s André De Shields Sang “So You Wanted to Meet the Wizard” in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
June 23: André De Shields, Billy Porter, Chuck Cooper, Brandon Victor Dixon, Clifton Davis, Norm Lewis, Chapman Roberts and More Set for The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
Remembering Frank Trenholm Lyman III, 1968-2014; Fund Established for The Lyman Children
Remembering Civil Rights Activist Yuri Kochiyama, 1921-2014
Ruby Dee, Actress and Activist, 1922 – 2014
Fred Korematsu, American Hero and Civil Rights Activist, Dies at 86
July 31-Aug. 3: Drama Desk Nominee Joel de la Fuente stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at ACT, Helmed by Lisa Rothe
Bryan Cranston, Audra McDonald, Neil Patrick Harris, Jessie Mueller, Lena Hall, Sophie Okonedo, Kenny Leon, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder, All The Way, A Raisin in the Sun, Hedwig and the Angry Inch and More Take Home 2014 Tony Awards
Lucille Lortel Awards for Here Lies Love, Fun Home, The Open House, Good Person of Szechwan
Branden Jacob-Jenkins’ Appropriate, Lisa Kron’s Fun Home, Sonya Tayeh, Emmanuel Brown, Mia Katigbak, K. Todd Freeman, John Earl Jelks Among 2014 OBIE Award Winners
Photos: André Braugher, Ami Brabson, Christine Toy Johnson, Antoinette LaVecchia, Richard Topol, Victor Williams, Nikkole Salter, Elizabeth Van Dyke at Oni Faida Lampley’s Tough Titty at the Paradise Factory
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Celebrating my mom – AN ACTIVE VISION: BEVERLY UMEHARA…LABOR ACTIVIST…1945-1999
Crafting a Career
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang Photo by GK

↧

Hemlock Grove’s Joel de la Fuente stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at ACT, Helmed by Lisa Rothe, July 31-Aug. 3

July 14, 2014, 3:07 pm

≫ Next: July 23-Aug. 10: Randy Reyes Leads Cast of Mu Performing Arts’ Production of A Little Night Music, Helmed by Rick Shiomi at Park Square Theatre

≪ Previous: July 23-26: 2g’s Workshop Production of Galois at the New Ohio Theatre’s Ice Factory Festival 2014; Donate to Indiegogo.com Campaign

Drama Desk nominee Joel de la Fuente can currently be seen in the second season of the original series, “Hemlock Grove,” as Dr. Johann Pryce, exclusively available on Netflix. Click here to watch season 2 of “Hemlock Grove”.

From July 31 – August 3, 2014, you can see him on stage in his tour-de-force turn as Gordon Hirabayashi and 36 other characters in Hold These Truths by Jeanne Sakata, at the ACT Theatre Allen Arena, 700 Union Street, Seattle, WA, presented by Central Heating Lab at ACT.

Joel de la Fuente as Gordon Hirabayashi in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths. Photo by Lia Chang

Inspired by the true story of University of Washington student Gordon Hirabayashi, Hold These Truths follows Gordon during the U.S. Government’s decision to forcibly remove and incarcerate people of Japanese ancestry during World War II.

Hirabayashi openly defied the relocation and internment and refused to report for evacuation to an internment camp, instead turning himself in to the FBI to assert his belief that these practices were racially discriminatory. Consequently, he was convicted by a U.S. Federal District Court in Seattle of defying the exclusion order and violating curfew. Hirabayashi appealed his conviction all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled against him in 1943. Following World War II and his imprisonment, Hirabayashi obtained a doctoral degree in sociology and became a professor. In 1987, his conviction was overturned by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

Helmed by Lisa Rothe, Joel de la Fuente will reprise his role as Gordon Hirabayashi and 36 other characters in Hold These Truths, which had its New York premiere in October 2012 in a production by Epic Theatre Ensemble at the Theatre at the 14th Street Y. Sakata’s solo show tells the story of Gordon Hirabayshi as he fights to reconcile his country’s betrayal and to maintain his passionate belief in the U.S. Constitution. In Hold These Truths we witness Hirabayashi as he journeys toward a greater understanding of America’s triumphs – and a confrontation with its failures.

In the dressing room with Joel de la Fuente, who stars as Gordon Hirabayashi in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at The Theatre at the 14th Street Y in New York on November 24, 2012. Joel is holding a photo of Esther Schmoe and Gordon Hirabayashi on their wedding day. Photo by Lia Chang

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.

“One of the stunning things about Joel de la Fuente’s performance in Jeanne Sakata’s gripping one-man show is how completely he embodies the real-life character of Gordon Hirabayashi….de la Fuente, under the direction of Lisa Rothe, also plays many other characters—but his portrayal of Hirabayashi, whom President Obama just this year posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, feels eerily true to life.”
The New Yorker, October 2012

Joel de la Fuente as Gordon Hirabayashi in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths. Photo by Lia Chang

“Jeanne Sakata’s eloquent one-man drama about civil rights giant Gordon Hirabayashi provides a concise examination of a fascinating chapter in American history….Joel de la Fuente plays Hirabayashi wtih buoyant, magnetic enthusiasm, under the direction of Lisa Rothe.”
The Washington Post/API, October 2012

“The astounding performance that Joel de la Fuente delivers as Gordon Hirabayashi is reason enough to recommend Hold These Truths…with Jeanne Sakata at the helm, we are treated to a dazzling, literary script that’s full of humor.”
New York Times Readers’ Review, October 2012

“Moving, instructive, thrilling….Travel downtown to be inspired by script, actor, and history in equal measure….Culled to its human and emotional essence, we hold Hirabayashi’s story as we must all ‘hold these truths.’”
Urban Excavations, October 2012

“Resonates with vitality and power….This is what living, breathing theater is about. Unforgettable.”
Technorati, October 2012

Joel de la Fuente comments: “Gordon’s story teaches us that the actions of one individual can have tremendous power. Gordon believed long enough to remind us of what it means to be American. As history teaches us, this is a lesson so important that it cannot be learned just once. We must always be willing to learn it again.

“Perhaps the biggest blessing of doing Jeanne Sakata’s HOLD THESE TRUTHS is that not only do I get to be an instrumental part in telling the story of a remarkable hero, but I am being asked to draw on my experiences as an AMERICAN. Gordon Hirabayashi is of Asian heritage, but he is also a citizen of the United States. Asian American actors so rarely get an opportunity to be seen on our stages as Americans, so to do so while telling such a remarkable story has been one of the most satisfying artistic experiences of my life.”
Sponsored by the Tateuchi Foundation, this production will bring the Drama Desk Award nominated performance of Joel de la Fuente to Seattle for the first time. ACT Theatre is pleased to partner with the Wing Luke Museum to present additional immersion activities surrounding the play and Hold These Truths is also supported with additional funding from the John Graham Foundation.

The creative team features Set Design by Mikiko Suzuki McAdams; Lighting Design by Cat Tate Starmer; Costume Design by Meg Weedon; and Sound Designer/Composer Daniel Kluger.

Hold These Truths Performances:

Thursday, July 31, 7:30pm (Post-show discussion)

Friday, August 1, 7:30pm (Post-show Panel – with Steve Sumida, Frank Abe, and Jeanne Sakata)

Saturday, August 2, 7:30pm (Post-show discussion)

Sunday, August 3, 2:00pm (Post-show discussion)

Additional Immersion Events:

· Saturday August 2, 2:00pm – “From Page to Stage” Playwright Jeanne Sakata will share her experiences in researching and writing the play Hold These Truths.

Jeanne Sakata (Photo by Lia Chang)

· August 9 Conscience and the Constitution a documentary by Frank Abe at Wing Luke Museum

Tickets: Adults: Single tickets start at $20. Also included on the monthly ACTPass Membership. Call (206) 292-7676 or visit www.acttheatre.org.

About The Central Heating Lab: Launched in 2007, The Central Heating Lab at ACT serves as an incubator and catalyst for new works. ACT cultivates, produces, and presents artists working in all performance genres and provides an artistic home for a variety of local performance groups and artists. Relationships develop daily with individual actors, performers and playwrights while established partnerships with groups such as the Azeotrope, The Seagull Project, 14/48, and Icicle Creek Theatre Festival grow and develop. New programs are added throughout the year. With year-round programming produced by The Central Heating Lab at ACT alongside ACT’s Mainstage plays, ACT offers its patrons a unique opportunity to maximize their theatre experience-the ACTPass: all you can see for only $30 per month. ACTPass Members can attend nearly all ACT produced performances.

Joel de la Fuente. Photo by Lia Chang

Joel de la Fuente (actor, Hold These Truths) Onstage, Joel most recently performed the solo drama, Hold These Truths for its New York premiere at Epic Theater (Drama Desk Nomination), for a sold-out run in Hawaii at the prestigious Honolulu Theatre for Youth, as part of the 10th Annual soloNOVA Arts Festival and at Playmaker’s Rep in Chapel Hill, NC. On screen, he stars in the feature film Brief Reunion, currently available on iTunes (garnering Audience Choice Award, Gotham International Film Festival; Best Narrative Film Award, University Film and Video Association).

Selected New York theatrical credits include: Ivanov in Ivanov (Mint Theater/NAATCO, Jonathan Bank, dir.); The Downtown Plays (Tribeca Theater Festival, John Rando, dir.); Claudio in Beatrice and Benedict with the New York Philharmonic (conducted by Sir Colin Davis); The Square (Lisa Petersen, dir.); America Dreaming (Michael Mayer, dir.); Valentine in The Two Gentlemen of Verona (NYSF, Adrian Hall, dir.).

In 2005, Joel served as the Artistic Associate of the National Asian American Theater Company. In addition to Ivanov, Joel has also appeared with NAATCO in the world premiere of Cowboy v. Samurai; Caryl Churchill’s, a number; Fuente Ovejuna (David Herskovitz, dir.); and as Iago in Othello, among others.

Other theatrical credits include: Vershinin in The Three Sisters (Chautauqua Theatre Conservatory, Brian Mertes, dir.); Ariel in The Tempest (Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey); Florizel in The Winter’s Tale (Williamstown Theatre Festival, Darko Tresjnak, dir.); Chay Yew’s Wonderland (La Jolla Playhouse, Lisa Petersen, dir.); Liu Mengmei in the Peter Sellars’ production of The Peony Pavilion which performed in Vienna, Rome, Paris, and London’s Barbican Centre.

On television, Joel spent ten seasons appearing as TARU technician Ruben Morales in “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit”. He was a series regular on the Fox drama, “Space: Above & Beyond”; and has had recurring roles on: “E.R.”; “High Incident”; and the Sidney Lumet series, “100 Centre Street”.

Joel de la Fuente as Dr. Johann Pryce in Netflix’s Hemlock Grove. Photo: Netflix

Additional film credits include: Personal Velocity (Sundance Jury Prize Winner, Best Film); The Adjustment Bureau; The Happening; Heights; Return to Paradise; From Other Worlds; and Forgetting the Girl.

As a writer, Joel’s essay on his experiences as an Asian American actor is published in Pyong Gap Min’s “Struggle for Ethnic Identity,” and he is a co-writer of Life Document 2: Identity with Pulitzer Prize winner, Ayad Akthar, which won the Columbia Students Award for Best Film in 2002.

Joel is an alumnus oF Brown University and the Graduate Acting Program at N.Y.U. and resides in New Jersey with his wife and two daughters.

Lisa Rothe

Lisa Rothe (Director) most recently directed Hold These Truths by Jeanne Sakata for Epic Theatre Ensemble (nominated for a Drama Desk award for Best Solo Performance) and Honolulu Theatre for Youth; Penelope by Ellen McLaughlin & Sarah Kirkland Snider at Playmakers Repertory Company and this summer, she will be directing Cat on a Hot Tin Roof for the Chautauqua Theater Company. She is also currently developing a new opera about Ada Byron (Ada) by composer Kim Sherman and librettist Margaret Vandenburg, which was presented last spring as a part of the Center for Contemporary Opera’s Development Series. Lisa has workshopped, developed and directed over one hundred new plays and musicals, working with many award winning writers. In NY, she has directed and/or developed work with Lark Play Development Center, New York Theatre Workshop, The Public Theater , Epic Theatre Ensemble, New Georges, The Women’s Project, The Foundry, Ensemble Studio Theatre, 52nd Street Project, Naked Angels, BAM, Summer Play Festival, NYMF, Midtown InterNational Theatre Festival (Best Director), National Actors Theater, Keen Company (Keen Teens), Orchard Project, Voice & Vision, HERE, Dixon Place, among others. Regionally, she has worked with Indiana Repertory Theatre, Milwaukee Shakespeare Theatre, Vermont Stage Company, The New Harmony Project, Synchronicity Theatre, Chautauqua Theatre, Riverside Theatre. Lisa has worked with the World Wide Orphan Foundation (WWO) in Ethiopia, creating theatre with local children and teens and has taught and directed at many theatre programs around the country including NYU’s Graduate Acting Program, Yale School of Drama, The Juilliard School, Chautauqua Conservatory and many others. She is a graduate of NYU’s Graduate Acting Program and Director’s Lab, as well as a Drama League alum, Fox Fellow, member of the Women’s Project Director’s Lab and is currently serving on the boards of the League of Professional Theatre Women and the Theatre World Awards. Lisa is also the director of Offsite Programs and Partnerships at the Lark Play Development Center where she deals with providing expanded opportunities for playwrights, aimed at advancing new work to production nationally and globally.

Jeanne Sakata. Photo by Lia Chang

Jeanne Sakata’s (Playwright) Hold These Truths (formerly Dawn’s Light: The Journey of Gordon Hirabayashi), had its world premiere in 2007 at Los Angeles’ East West Players, co-presented by the UCLA Department of Asian American Studies, the UCLA Asian American Studies Center, and the Japanese American National Museum. In its 2012 New York premiere at the Epic Theatre Ensemble, Hold These Truths opened to unanimous rave reviews from The New Yorker, The Washington Post/API, and many other theatre critics, resulting in a Drama Desk Nomination for Outstanding Solo Performance, and a subsequent Hawaiian premiere, co-presented by Daniel Dae Kim and the Honolulu Theatre For Youth. Developed by the Lark Play Development Center and the New York Theatre Workshop, it has also been performed at Chicago’s Pritzker Pavilion with Silk Road Rising/Millennium Park, the University of California at Riverside and the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, where it served as the inspiration and theatrical centerpiece of the civil rights symposium Civil Liberties, National Security and the Legacies of the Japanese Removal and Incarceration. With the East West Players Theatre For Youth program in 2008 and 2010, the play has twice toured high schools and junior high schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District. Hold These Truths is now part of the Jeanne Sakata Collection in the Library of Congress Playwrights Archive, Asian American Pacific Islander Collection, Washington DC. (www.holdthesetruths.info, www.facebook.com/holdthesetruths)

Hold These Truths’ star Joel de la Fuente and playwright Jeanne Sakata on the red carpet of The Drama Desk Awards at The Town Hall in New York on May 19, 2013. Photo by Lia Chang

Jeanne is also a renowned actress whose acclaimed “cross-gender” portrayal of Master Hua in Chay Yew’s RED at East West Players earned her the LA Ovation Award for Best Lead Actress. She has performed across the country at the The Public Theater, Lincoln Center Theater, Kennedy Center, Mark Taper Forum, La Jolla Playhouse, South Coast Rep, American Conservatory Theater, Northlight Theatre, Intiman Theatre, Berkeley Rep, A Contemporary Theatre, Portland Center Stage, Syracuse Stage and the Arizona Theatre Company, and developed new works with The Sundance Institute Theatre Lab and the Ojai Playwrights Festival. Screen credits include “NCIS Los Angeles,” “Tyler Perry’s Meet the Browns,” “Desperate Housewives,” “ER,” “Threat Matrix,” “Line of Fire,” “Presidio Med,” “American Family,” “Numb3rs,” John Ridley’s “I Got You,” the MOW’s “The Reading Room,” “Hiroshima,” “Consensual Relations,” and the feature films The Babymakers, XXX2: State of the Union and American Fusion.

Jeanne recently received a Best Actress Award for her role in Adultolescence at the Monaco Charity Film Festival and in December 2011, she was honored with an Outstanding Artist Award for her career achievements by Los Angeles’ Asian Pacific American Friends of the Theatre. (www.jeannesakata.com)

(www.facebook.com/holdthesetruths, www.holdthesetruths.info)

Below are interviews with Hold These Truths‘ playwright Jeanne Sakata, star Joel de la Fuente and director Lisa Rothe.

Hold These Truths‘ playwright Jeanne Sakata talks about her inspiration to write Gordon Hirabayashi’s life story, how she did her research, why she chose the solo show format and what she hopes audiences will take away from de la Fuente’s performance.

Hold These Truths‘ star Joel de la Fuente talks about the challenges of playing 30+ characters and the impact playing Gordon Hirabayashi has had for him.

Director Lisa Rothe discusses how she first became involved with Hold These Truths, her history with Joel de la Fuente, how attending a Quaker meeting influenced her design and concept of the set, her prior knowledge of Gordon Hirabayashi, and her exposure to the internment camps.

Other Hold These Truths Articles:
July 31-Aug. 3: Drama Desk Nominee Joel de la Fuente stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at ACT, Helmed by Lisa Rothe
Apr. 23-27: Joel de la Fuente Stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at PlayMaker’s Repertory Company
dailytarheel.com: One-man show ‘Hold These Truths’ feels like an ensemble production
triangleartsandentertainment.org: “Hold These Truths” Is Mesmerizing and Multidimensional
indyweek.com: Theater review: PlayMakers’ Hold These Truths
Mar. 17: Reading of Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths starring Joel de la Fuente at People’s Light & Theatre
Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Hold These Truths Opening Night at Honolulu Theatre for Youth’s Tenney Theatre with Daniel Dae Kim, Joel de la Fuente and Jeanne Sakata
Brief Reunion Starring Joel de la Fuente, Alexie Gilmore and Scott Shepherd, Opens in NY & L.A. on January 18, 2013
Hold These Truths Video Feature: Playwright Jeanne Sakata, Star Joel de la Fuente and Director Lisa Rothe
Video: Interview with Lisa Rothe, Director of Critically Acclaimed Hold These Truths by Jeanne Sakata, starring Joel de la Fuente
Video: Q & A with Jeanne Sakata, Award Winning Actress Makes Playwrighting Debut Telling Story of Gordon Hirabayashi with Hold These Truths
Photos and Video: Daniel Dae Kim, Ann Harada, Greg Watanabe and More at Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths starring Joel de la Fuente
Photos: Opening Night with Hold These Truths’ Playwright Jeanne Sakata and Star Joel de la Fuente, a Revelation as Gordon Hirabayashi; Performances Extended through November 25, 2012
Epic Theatre Ensemble Presents New York Premiere of Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths Starring Joel de la Fuente at the Theatre at the 14th Street Y, October 12-November 18, 2012
Remembering Civil Rights Leader Gordon Hirabayashi,1918- 2012
President Obama Names Asian American Civil Rights Hero Gordon Hirabayashi Recipient of Presidential Medal of Freedom
Reading of Jeanne Sakata’s Dawn’s Light: The Journey of Gordon Hirabayashi Starring Joel de la Fuente in New York
Thom Sesma Stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Dawn’s Light: The Journey of Gordon Hirabayashi

Other articles by Lia Chang:
July 24: Sold to Open 37th Asian American International Film Festival in New York
Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, President Bill Clinton and More Remember Meshach Taylor
Photos: Meshach Taylor Celebrates 67th Birthday with Arlene and Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, Jean Smart, Dennis Franz, Ernie Hudson, John Heard, Keith Szarabajka, Stuart Gordon, Shadoe Stevens and More
June 22 – July 27: Blair Underwood, Richard Thomas and Kristen Connolly Lead the Cast of The Old Globe’s Othello, helmed by Barry Edelstein
Late Night Singing with Garth Kravits at 54 Below with The Skivvies, at Jim Caruso’s Cast Party at Birdland and Michael Raye’s Soul Gathering
Photos and Video: Ben Vereen Performs at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos and Video: Obba Babatunde and cast members from the original cast of Dreamgirls perform at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos & Video: The Wiz’s André De Shields Sang “So You Wanted to Meet the Wizard” in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
June 23: André De Shields, Billy Porter, Chuck Cooper, Brandon Victor Dixon, Clifton Davis, Norm Lewis, Chapman Roberts and More Set for The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
Remembering Frank Trenholm Lyman III, 1968-2014; Fund Established for The Lyman Children
Remembering Civil Rights Activist Yuri Kochiyama, 1921-2014
Ruby Dee, Actress and Activist, 1922 – 2014
Fred Korematsu, American Hero and Civil Rights Activist, Dies at 86
Bryan Cranston, Audra McDonald, Neil Patrick Harris, Jessie Mueller, Lena Hall, Sophie Okonedo, Kenny Leon, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder, All The Way, A Raisin in the Sun, Hedwig and the Angry Inch and More Take Home 2014 Tony Awards
Lucille Lortel Awards for Here Lies Love, Fun Home, The Open House, Good Person of Szechwan
Branden Jacob-Jenkins’ Appropriate, Lisa Kron’s Fun Home, Sonya Tayeh, Emmanuel Brown, Mia Katigbak, K. Todd Freeman, John Earl Jelks Among 2014 OBIE Award Winners
Photos: André Braugher, Ami Brabson, Christine Toy Johnson, Antoinette LaVecchia, Richard Topol, Victor Williams, Nikkole Salter, Elizabeth Van Dyke at Oni Faida Lampley’s Tough Titty at the Paradise Factory
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Celebrating my mom – AN ACTIVE VISION: BEVERLY UMEHARA…LABOR ACTIVIST…1945-1999
Crafting a Career
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang Photo by GK

↧

July 23-Aug. 10: Randy Reyes Leads Cast of Mu Performing Arts’ Production of A Little Night Music, Helmed by Rick Shiomi at Park Square Theatre

July 15, 2014, 2:49 am

≫ Next: Aug. 17: David Henry Hwang, Adriane Lenox, Chuck Cooper, Kevin Carolan, Stephanie J. Block, Caissie Levy & More will Sleep on the Streets for Covenant House’s Sleep Out: Broadway Edition

≪ Previous: Hemlock Grove’s Joel de la Fuente stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at ACT, Helmed by Lisa Rothe, July 31-Aug. 3

Rick Shiomi (Photo by Lia Chang)

Mu Performing Arts is presenting A Little Night Music, the company’s second foray into Sondheim’s work following its recent record-setting production of Into the Woods (2012), from July 23 – August 10, 2014, at Park Square Theatre, 20 W. 7th Place, St. Paul, MN 55102. Inspired by an Ingmar Bergman film, the musical features the beloved songs “Send in the Clowns”, and “A Weekend in the Country,” and follows the exploits of several affluent Swedish families as they rekindle old flames and extinguish dreams on a beautiful country estate. Mu’s former Artistic Director Rick Shiomi makes his first appearance as director since stepping down in September 2013.

“Returning to Mu to direct A Little Night Music is a wonderful opportunity to play with Sondheim and a great cast again, having fun with the humor and music with a fresh perspective. As someone who has come to Sondheim a little later in life, I really appreciate his sardonic style and insight into human foibles.”

~ Rick Shiomi, director

Appearing as Fredrik Egerman, celebrated Twin Cities actor Randy Reyes (Mu Performing Arts, Guthrie Theater, Ten Thousand Things, Mixed Blood Theatre) leads a talented cast of Mu regulars including Sheena Janson (Mu: Into the Woods, Little Shop of Horrors; Theater Latte Da) as Desiree Armfeldt, Suzie Juul (Mu: Into the Woods, The Mikado, Park Square Theatre: Ragtime) as Anne Egerman, and Alex Galick (Mu: Into the Woods; Utah Shakespeare Festival) as Count Carl-Magnus Malcom. The cast also features talented newcomers Wes Mouri (Chanhassen Dinner Theatres; Ordway) as Henrik, and Meghan Kreidler (Mu: Kung Fu Zombies Vs. Cannibals) as Charlotte. Appearing in supporting roles are Stephanie Bertumen, Alice McGlave, Michael Sung-Ho, Lara Trujillo, and Danielle Wong as well as the quintet featuring Momoko Tanno, Corissa Leonard, Arnold Felizardo, Jennifer Kelley, and Joey Clark.

Randy Reyes has played lead roles in many of Mu’s musical productions and now has the unique position of both acting in the shows as well as leading the vision of the company at large.

“The current Artistic Director acting in a musical directed by the former Artistic Director could pose a tricky situation in another theater company, but for us it actually feels more like ‘the good ol’ days’. This is the fifth musical that Rick and I have collaborated on as director and actor, and our second Sondheim. Being back in the rehearsal room with will be great because of how well we work together.”

~ Randy Reyes, Artistic Director

The creative team includes Music Director Jason Hansen, Penelope Freeh as choreographer, with lighting by Karin Olson, costumes by Lynn Farrington and sets by Theresa Akers.

PREVIEWS

July 23 and 24 at 7:30 PM ($20–$25)

Park Square Theatre
20 W. 7th Place, St. Paul, MN 55102

PERFORMANCES
Friday, July 25 at 7:30 PM
Saturday, July 26 at 7:30 PM
Sunday, July 27 at 2:00 PM
Wednesday, July 30 at 7:30 PM
Thursday, July 31 at 7:30 PM
Friday, August 1 at 7:30 PM
Saturday, August 2 at 7:30 PM
Sunday, August, 3 at 2:00 PM
Wednesday, August 6 at 7:30 PM
Thursday, August 7 at 7:30 PM
Friday, August 8 at 7:30 PM
Saturday, August 9 at 7:30 PM
Sunday, August, 10 at 2:00 PM

Tickets ($30–$40) are available online at www.muperformingarts.org or by calling the Park Square Theatre Box Office at 651-291-7005 (Toll Free: 877-291-7001). Students can purchase $10 tickets for any performance by presenting their valid student ID at the box office. Groups receive 10% off regular adult tickets off groups of 10+ (Cannot be combined with any other discounts)

Other articles by Lia Chang:
July 24: Sold to Open 37th Asian American International Film Festival in New York
Hemlock Grove’s Joel de la Fuente Stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at ACT, Helmed by Lisa Rothe, July 31-Aug. 3
Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, President Bill Clinton and More Remember Meshach Taylor
Photos: Meshach Taylor Celebrates 67th Birthday with Arlene and Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, Jean Smart, Dennis Franz, Ernie Hudson, John Heard, Keith Szarabajka, Stuart Gordon, Shadoe Stevens and More
June 22 – July 27: Blair Underwood, Richard Thomas and Kristen Connolly Lead the Cast of The Old Globe’s Othello, helmed by Barry Edelstein
Late Night Singing with Garth Kravits at 54 Below with The Skivvies, at Jim Caruso’s Cast Party at Birdland and Michael Raye’s Soul Gathering
Photos and Video: Ben Vereen Performs at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos and Video: Obba Babatunde and cast members from the original cast of Dreamgirls perform at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos & Video: The Wiz’s André De Shields Sang “So You Wanted to Meet the Wizard” in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
June 23: André De Shields, Billy Porter, Chuck Cooper, Brandon Victor Dixon, Clifton Davis, Norm Lewis, Chapman Roberts and More Set for The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
Remembering Frank Trenholm Lyman III, 1968-2014; Fund Established for The Lyman Children
Remembering Civil Rights Activist Yuri Kochiyama, 1921-2014
Ruby Dee, Actress and Activist, 1922 – 2014
Fred Korematsu, American Hero and Civil Rights Activist, Dies at 86
Bryan Cranston, Audra McDonald, Neil Patrick Harris, Jessie Mueller, Lena Hall, Sophie Okonedo, Kenny Leon, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder, All The Way, A Raisin in the Sun, Hedwig and the Angry Inch and More Take Home 2014 Tony Awards
Lucille Lortel Awards for Here Lies Love, Fun Home, The Open House, Good Person of Szechwan
Branden Jacob-Jenkins’ Appropriate, Lisa Kron’s Fun Home, Sonya Tayeh, Emmanuel Brown, Mia Katigbak, K. Todd Freeman, John Earl Jelks Among 2014 OBIE Award Winners
Photos: André Braugher, Ami Brabson, Christine Toy Johnson, Antoinette LaVecchia, Richard Topol, Victor Williams, Nikkole Salter, Elizabeth Van Dyke at Oni Faida Lampley’s Tough Titty at the Paradise Factory
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Celebrating my mom – AN ACTIVE VISION: BEVERLY UMEHARA…LABOR ACTIVIST…1945-1999
Crafting a Career
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang Photo by GK

↧

Aug. 17: David Henry Hwang, Adriane Lenox, Chuck Cooper, Kevin Carolan, Stephanie J. Block, Caissie Levy & More will Sleep on the Streets for Covenant House’s Sleep Out: Broadway Edition

July 20, 2014, 12:57 pm

≫ Next: Diane Phelan and Julian Cihi Lead Cast of 2g’s Galois at the New Ohio Theatre’s Ice Factory Festival 2014, July 23-26

≪ Previous: July 23-Aug. 10: Randy Reyes Leads Cast of Mu Performing Arts’ Production of A Little Night Music, Helmed by Rick Shiomi at Park Square Theatre

David Henry Hwang. Photo by Lia Chang

On Sunday, August 17, 2014, Tony Award winning playwright David Henry Hwang, who was recently appointed to the playwriting faculty of Columbia University School of the Arts Theatre program as the new director of the Playwrighting Concentration and as an associate professor of Theatre in Playwriting, will be sleeping on the streets with “other crazy folks” from the Broadway community to support Covenant House, to which over 7,000 homeless kids will turn for shelter this year.

Below is a message from Hwang’s Facebook page.

“We’ll spend an evening with these kids, hear their stories, and learn how they’re making new lives for themselves. Then, in solidarity, we’ll be given sleeping bags and head outside to find a place for the night (in a safe, enclosed area). So please visit my personal fundraising page and make a tax-deductible donation. No amount is too small, or too large. Many of us came to New York with a dream, but we needed others to help make it come true. Please help these kids. Thanks for your generous consideration.”

I donated in his name. Click here so you can make a donation too.

Adriane Lenox. Photo by Lia Chang

Sebastian Arcelus, Adriane Lenox, Caissie Levy, Rory O’Malley, Darius de Haas, Rita Harvey, Cameron Adams, Rachel Brosnahan, Rosalind Brown, Dana Marie Ingraham, Tamika Lawrence, Jason Ralph, Gayle Rankin, Dennis Stowe, Tad Wilson, Kevin Carolan, Brian Carson, Anastacia McCleskey, Melissa Mitchell, Karla Mosley, Brooke Rowzee, Rachel Stern and Rachel Sussman will be among the members of the Broadway community participating in the Second Annual Covenant House Sleep Out: Broadway Edition.

The Executive Committee Members of Covenant House’s Sleep Out: Broadway Edition is made up of Stephanie J. Block, Jeff Calhoun, Capathia Jenkins, Denis O’Hare, Tom Schumacher and Keala Settle.

“These are stars who have selflessly decided they want to walk in our kids’ shoes, and experience, if only for one night, some of what our kids go through,” said Covenant House President Kevin Ryan. “Their actions are an incredible show of support for the thousands of young people struggling to survive every night on our streets.”

Covenant House’s Sleep Out: Broadway Edition is open to any member of the theatrical community who has worked on Broadway, Off-Broadway or a National Tour, in any capacity. To reserve your sleeping bag, contact Colgan McNeil at colgan@polkandco.com or 917.261.3988.

More about Covenant House: Founded in 1972, Covenant House is the largest privately funded agency in the Americas helping homeless kids, providing 24/7 crisis care and ongoing support at 21 facilities. For more information, visit www.covenanthouse.org. 6,900 homeless kids will step toward a new life with Covenant House New York this year. Some were born here. Some were brought to the city against their will. Some came seeking the bright lights and brilliant sounds of the Great White Way. All of them need love, care, and another chance at life.

Covenant House provides food, shelter, immediate crisis care, and essential services to homeless, throwaway, and runaway kids in 21 cities throughout the United States, Canada and Latin America. We strive to move each young person forward to an independent adulthood, free from the risk of future homelessness.

David Henry Hwang’s work includes the plays M. Butterfly, Chinglish, Yellow Face, Golden Child, The Dance and the Railroad, and FOB, as well as the Broadway musicals Aida (co-author), Flower Drum Song (2002 revival), and Tarzan. Upcoming productions include two new musicals: The Forgotten Arm, with music and lyrics by Aimee Mann and Paul Bryan, for the Public Theater; and Pretty Dead Girl, with music and lyrics by Anne-Marie Milazzo. As America’s most-produced living opera librettist, he has written four pieces with composer Philip Glass, including The Voyage (Metropolitan Opera, 1992), as well as Osvaldo Golijov’s Ainadamar (two 2007 Grammy Awards), Bright Sheng’s The Silver River (1997), Unsuk Chin’s Alice in Wonderland (2007 “World Premiere of the Year” by Opernwelt magazine), Howard Shore’s The Fly (2008) and Huang Ruo’s An American Soldier (2014). Upcoming operas include Through the Looking Glass with Unsuk Chin for the Royal Opera House Covent Garden and Dream of the Red Chamber with Bright Sheng for the San Francisco Opera. Mr. Hwang penned the screenplays for M. Butterfly (1993), starring Jeremy Irons and John Lone; Golden Gate (1994), starring Matt Dillon and Joan Chen; and Possession (co-writer, 2002), starring Gwyneth Paltrow and Aaron Eckhart. With the pop star Prince, he co-wrote the song “Solo,” released on Prince’s 1994 gold album Come. He is currently writing a feature film for Dreamworks Animation and the film adaptation of Chinglish, to be directed by Justin Lin (Better Luck Tomorrow, the Fast & Furious franchise), as well as creating an original television series, “Shanghai,” for Lions Gate and Bravo. Hwang is a Tony Award® winner and three-time nominee, a three-time Obie Award winner, and a two-time Finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. He received the 2011 PEN/Laura Pels Award, the 2012 William Inge Award, the 2012 Steinberg “Mimi” Award, and the 2014 Doris Duke Artist Award, and recently completed his the Residency One Playwright term at NYC’s Signature Theatre, which produced a season of his plays, including the world premiere of his newest work Kung Fu in February 2014. He serves as President of Young Playwrights Inc, and sits on the boards of the Lark Play Development Center, The American Theatre Wing, and The Actors Fund.

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, President Bill Clinton and More Remember Meshach Taylor
Photos: Meshach Taylor Celebrates 67th Birthday with Arlene and Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, Jean Smart, Dennis Franz, Ernie Hudson, John Heard, Keith Szarabajka, Stuart Gordon, Shadoe Stevens and More
Hemlock Grove’s Joel de la Fuente Stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at ACT, Helmed by Lisa Rothe, July 31-Aug. 3
Late Night Singing with Garth Kravits at 54 Below with The Skivvies, at Jim Caruso’s Cast Party at Birdland and Michael Raye’s Soul Gathering
Photos: Artist Arlan Huang, One Brush Stroke at a Time
Photos and Video: Ben Vereen Performs at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos and Video: Obba Babatunde and cast members from the original cast of Dreamgirls perform at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos & Video: The Wiz’s André De Shields Sang “So You Wanted to Meet the Wizard” in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
Ruby Dee, Actress and Activist, 1922 – 2014
Bryan Cranston, Audra McDonald, Neil Patrick Harris, Jessie Mueller, Lena Hall, Sophie Okonedo, Kenny Leon, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder, All The Way, A Raisin in the Sun, Hedwig and the Angry Inch and More Take Home 2014 Tony Awards
July 31-Aug. 3: Drama Desk Nominee Joel de la Fuente stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at ACT, Helmed by Lisa Rothe
Signature Theatre to Be Honored with the 2014 Regional Theatre Tony Award
Remembering Civil Rights Activist Yuri Kochiyama, 1921-2014
Branden Jacob-Jenkins’ Appropriate, Lisa Kron’s Fun Home, Sonya Tayeh, Emmanuel Brown, Mia Katigbak, K. Todd Freeman, John Earl Jelks Among 2014 OBIE Award Winners>
Lucille Lortel Awards for Here Lies Love, Fun Home, The Open House, Good Person of Szechwan
Photos: Backstage with Michi Barall and the cast of Regina Taylor’s stop.reset. at Signature Theatre
Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang Photo by GK

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. Lia made her jazz vocalist debut in Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz “LADY” at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York. All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 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 liachangpr@gmail.com

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Diane Phelan and Julian Cihi Lead Cast of 2g’s Galois at the New Ohio Theatre’s Ice Factory Festival 2014, July 23-26

July 23, 2014, 7:26 am

≫ Next: July 23-27: Thom Sesma and Sklyer Adams Star in Music Theatre Wichita’s Catch Me If You Can

≪ Previous: Aug. 17: David Henry Hwang, Adriane Lenox, Chuck Cooper, Kevin Carolan, Stephanie J. Block, Caissie Levy & More will Sleep on the Streets for Covenant House’s Sleep Out: Broadway Edition

Diane Phelan

Julian Cihi

Julian Cihi (Romeo and Juliet, Classic Stage Company) and Diane Phelan (Bernarda Alba, Lincoln Center) lead the cast of Second Generation Productions (2g)’s, commissioned musical, Galois, by Sung Rno and Aaron Jones, directed by Victor Maog and produced by Jane Jung. Second Generation Productions (2g) is a major incubator and producer of Asian American theater. The creative team also includes Music Director J. Oconer Navarro (The Adding Machine), Choreographer Camille A. Brown (tick, tick…BOOM!) and Fight Director Jacob Grigolia-Rosenbaum (Peter and the Starcatcher).

Galois is part of New Ohio Theatre’s 2014 ICE FACTORY Festival, located at 154 Christopher Street between Greenwich and Washington Streets in New York City. Performances are Wednesday through Saturday, July 23 to 26, 2014, at 7pm. The Ice Factory is an OBIE Award-winning summer festival of new work that has been called “the summer festival with the hippest downtown cred.” (TimeOut NY) Tickets are $18 and $15 for students and seniors, and can be purchased online at www.NewOhioTheatre.org or by calling the Vendini ticket line at 1-888-596-1027.

Galois is a rock-mathematical-musical expression of the chaotic, revolutionary, and brief life of the historical figure, Evariste Galois. Galois was a French mathematician whose breakthrough advancements in the field of polynomial equations and group theory went firmly against the popularly accepted knowledge of his day. He discovered a branch of mathematics as a precocious teenager, yet died too young at 21 in a duel over a woman. Galois gives voice to the contradictory passions of this math rock star: he was a genius of abstraction, but also a fervent revolutionary; he was brilliantly cerebral, yet madly in love; he was a gifted prodigy, yet unappreciated by the establishment.

Jonathan-David (A Civil War Christmas, NYTW), Shelley Thomas (Brooklyn, Zanna Don’t), Andrew Guilarte (Invasion, Play Company) and Robbie Tann (The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, New Victory Theater) complete the cast. Designers include Mikiko Suzuki MacAdams (sets), Yael Lubetzky (lights), Sidney Shannon (costumes) and Josh Liebert (sound). Shae Candeleria is production stage manager and Nikki Chalas is Associate Producer.

Bookwriter-Lyricist Sung Rno, an NEA/TCG Playwriting Fellow, New Dramatists alumni, and founder of Ma-Yi Writer’s Lab, studied physics at Harvard and poetry at Brown. Composer-Lyricist Aaron Jones, a graduate of NYU’s Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program, recently created Hamelin with legendary director-choreographer Otis A. Sallid (Smokey Joe’s Cafe) and played “The Late Show with David Letterman” with the band Luscious Jackson. Maog introduced the writing team to each other in May 2013.

“We believe that a “math musical”, written by a Korean American playwright, about a French revolutionary will subvert the expectations of 2g’s culturally specific work and expand what constitutes an Asian American theater work,” said Producer Jane Jung.

“Sung Rno and Aaron Jones were strangers to one another a year ago. They’re some of the most brilliant artists I know and having a stellar team gather around their work is a testament to the chemistry of this unlikely pairing. We’re honored to be part of a festival that has produced some of the industry’s best talent,” said Galois Director Victor Maog.

Visit www.2g.org for more information.

BIOS
Sung Rno’s plays include Galois, Happy, wAve, Yi Sang Counts to Thirteen, Behind the Masq, Weather, Cleveland Raining, Gravity Falls From Trees, Drizzle and Other Stories, New World and The Trajectory of a Heart, Fractured. His work has been produced and developed by Pan Asian Repertory, East West Players, Thick Description, Asian American Theater Company, Northwest Asian American Theatre, San Diego Asian American Repertory Theater, Dance Theater Workshop, Immigrants’ Theatre Project, Seoul International Theatre Festival, New York International Fringe Festival, Sanctuary Playwrights Theatre, Second Generation, Changgo Theater (Seoul), Yellow Earth Theatre (London), Silk Road Theatre Project, Public Theater, Mark Taper Forum, Arena Stage, Foundry Theatre, Mabou Mines/Suite, and Ma-Yi Theater Company. As an NEA/TCG Resident Playwright with Ma-Yi Theater Company, Sung founded the Ma-Yi Writers’ Lab which has grown to support the next generation of boundary-pushing voices. Other honors include the New Dramatists Whitfield Cook Prize, a New York Fringe Festival Best Overall Production Award, two Van Lier Fellowships (with New Dramatists and New York Theatre Workshop) and first prize in the Seattle Multicultural Playwrights’ Festival.

His work is anthologized in Savage Stage; Seven Contemporary Plays from the Korean Diaspora in the Americas; Version 3.0; But Still, Like Air, I’ll Rise; Premonitions; Echoes Upon Echoes and The Nuyorasian Anthology. His screenplay for Crumple (directed by C.S. Lee, featuring Paul H. Juhn) won the first annual 64-hour AAFF Film Shootout. He has a BA in physics, Harvard College, an MFA in creative writing from Brown University and is a New Dramatists Alumnus.

Aaron Jones is a composer/performer based out of Brooklyn. Recently commissioned by Waterwell, Jones is working with legendary director-choreographer Otis Sallid (Smokey Joe’s Cafe) on a new musical called Hamelin. He performs experimental theatre art-rock performances with his band, SWAMS. With his wife/writing partner, Anna, he also has a band, called Banana Baron, that performs music for kids. In addition to playing with the alternative rock group Luscious Jackson, he is the author of numerous operas, musicals, and plays, and creates music for dance, theatre and film. Aaron holds an MFA from NYU’s Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program.

Victor Maog, 2g artistic director and Jane Jung, 2g managing director at The Steinberg Awards at Lincoln Center in New York on November 18, 2013. Photo by Lia Chang

Led by Artistic Director Victor Maog and Managing Director Jane Jung, SECOND GENERATION PRODUCTIONS (2g) is dedicated to creating contemporary, world-class Asian American theater that reaches across cultural and racial boundaries. 2g has partnered with some of the country’s most prestigious theatre companies to co-produce world premieres of new Asian American plays. Since its inception, Second Generation has supported several hundred artists, through full productions of new plays and community-based events, as well as grassroots developmental work in service of cultivating new generations of excellence in Asian American dramatic arts. The company aims to develop and produce full-length works. The goal of 2g is to commission Asian American playwrights and provide them with a cycle of development from initial workshop to final production.

Second Generation Productions is supported by NYSCA, DCA, and the ART/NY Creative Space Grant and Nancy Quinn Fund. Galois is funded by The Ensemble Studio Theatre/Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Science & Technology project. For more information, visit www.2g.org.

NEW OHIO THEATRE strengthens, nurtures and promotes a community of independent theatre artists and theatre companies by curating and presenting new work in New York City. With its Ice Factory summer festival New Ohio offers emerging and established companies a prime forum in which to develop their work. Ice Factory prides itself on maintaining extraordinary aesthetic diversity along with an unequaled standard for intelligent, imaginative theater. New York Magazine praises the Ice Factory as “New York’s #1 Summer Theatre Festival” and The New York Times applauds the festival’s “focus on risky and imaginative new work.” The New Ohio is accessible from the #1 train to Christopher St. or A, B, C, D, E, F or M train to West 4th St. For info visit http://www.NewOhioTheatre.org.

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Other articles by Lia Chang:
July 23-26: 2g’s Workshop Production of Galois at the New Ohio Theatre’s Ice Factory Festival 2014; Donate to Indiegogo.com Campaign
July 24: Sold to Open 37th Asian American International Film Festival in New York
Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, President Bill Clinton and More Remember Meshach Taylor
Photos: Meshach Taylor Celebrates 67th Birthday with Arlene and Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, Jean Smart, Dennis Franz, Ernie Hudson, John Heard, Keith Szarabajka, Stuart Gordon, Shadoe Stevens and More
June 22 – July 27: Blair Underwood, Richard Thomas and Kristen Connolly Lead the Cast of The Old Globe’s Othello, helmed by Barry Edelstein
Late Night Singing with Garth Kravits at 54 Below with The Skivvies, at Jim Caruso’s Cast Party at Birdland and Michael Raye’s Soul Gathering
Photos and Video: Ben Vereen Performs at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos and Video: Obba Babatunde and cast members from the original cast of Dreamgirls perform at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos & Video: The Wiz’s André De Shields Sang “So You Wanted to Meet the Wizard” in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
June 23: André De Shields, Billy Porter, Chuck Cooper, Brandon Victor Dixon, Clifton Davis, Norm Lewis, Chapman Roberts and More Set for The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
Remembering Frank Trenholm Lyman III, 1968-2014; Fund Established for The Lyman Children
Remembering Civil Rights Activist Yuri Kochiyama, 1921-2014
Ruby Dee, Actress and Activist, 1922 – 2014
Fred Korematsu, American Hero and Civil Rights Activist, Dies at 86
July 31-Aug. 3: Drama Desk Nominee Joel de la Fuente stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at ACT, Helmed by Lisa Rothe
Bryan Cranston, Audra McDonald, Neil Patrick Harris, Jessie Mueller, Lena Hall, Sophie Okonedo, Kenny Leon, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder, All The Way, A Raisin in the Sun, Hedwig and the Angry Inch and More Take Home 2014 Tony Awards
Lucille Lortel Awards for Here Lies Love, Fun Home, The Open House, Good Person of Szechwan
Branden Jacob-Jenkins’ Appropriate, Lisa Kron’s Fun Home, Sonya Tayeh, Emmanuel Brown, Mia Katigbak, K. Todd Freeman, John Earl Jelks Among 2014 OBIE Award Winners
Photos: André Braugher, Ami Brabson, Christine Toy Johnson, Antoinette LaVecchia, Richard Topol, Victor Williams, Nikkole Salter, Elizabeth Van Dyke at Oni Faida Lampley’s Tough Titty at the Paradise Factory
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Celebrating my mom – AN ACTIVE VISION: BEVERLY UMEHARA…LABOR ACTIVIST…1945-1999
Crafting a Career
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang Photo by GK

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July 23-27: Thom Sesma and Sklyer Adams Star in Music Theatre Wichita’s Catch Me If You Can

July 23, 2014, 8:58 am

≫ Next: Ralph B. Peña and Leigh Silverman Among Six Mid-Career Directors Selected for Sundance Institute’s Theatre Directors Retreat in Arles, France

≪ Previous: Diane Phelan and Julian Cihi Lead Cast of 2g’s Galois at the New Ohio Theatre’s Ice Factory Festival 2014, July 23-26

Thom Sesma and Skyler Adams. Photo by Christopher Clark

Continuing the 43rd season for Music Theatre Wichita, the fourth of this summer’s five large-scale productions is the Kansas premiere of Catch Me If You Can, at Century II Concert Hall, 225 W Douglas Ave, Wichita, KS, with performances Wednesday, July 23-27, 2014. Click here to purchase tickets.

Thom Sesma (The Times They Are A-Changin‘, Miss Saigon, Sweeney Todd), who starred in The King and I last summer at Music Theatre Wichita, returns to star as FBI agent Carl Hanratty, opposite Skyler Adams (Pippin understudy in the upcoming national tour of Pippin) as Frank Jr. Featured as Frank’s dysfunctional parents are Broadway veterans David Hess (Ragtime, Sweeney Todd) and Paula Leggett Chase (Curtains, Crazy for You). Carolyn Anne Miller portrays love interest Brenda, a role she recently essayed at the Wagon Wheel Playhouse, and Wichita-based actors Karen L. Robu and Timothy W. Robu portray her parents.

Thom Sesma and Skyler Adams. Photo by Christopher Clark

With book by Terrence McNally and a score by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, Catch Me If You Can is based on the autobiography of teenaged con man Frank Abagnale Jr., and on the DreamWorks motion picture directed by Steven Spielberg. Before reaching the age of 21, Abagnale had forged checks worth millions of dollars, but eluded the FBI by assuming different personas, including a lawyer, an emergency room doctor, and a Pan Am pilot.

Kevin Clay and Thom Sesma. Photo by Christopher Clark

Other artistic collaborators on the Wichita edition of Catch Me If You Can include Thomas W. Douglas as musical director, set designer Robert Andrew Kovach, costume designer Dixon Reynolds, hair and wig designer Alena Sellers, sound designer David Muehl, and lighting designer David Neville.

More information, including a video Sneak Peek, can be found at www.mtwichita.org.

Thom Sesma

THOM SESMA (Carl Hanratty) is absolutely delighted to return to MTWichita, where he appeared last season playing one of the title roles in the immortal R&H classic The King and I, and where he appeared in Paint Your Wagon (1992) and Gigi (1994). He is particularly thrilled to be working with director Wayne Bryan for the first time since they met when Wayne directed him in a San Diego high school production of You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown in 1973, excited for another chance to get it right after all these years. Last year, Thom was nominated for a Helen Hayes Award for his performance as The Engineer in Eric Schaeffer’s new and re-imagined production of Miss Saigon at the Signature Theatre in DC. Other theatre credits include leading roles on Broadway and on tour in The Times They Are A-Changin’, The Lion King, Search & Destroy, Titanic, and Chu Chem. Off-Broadway credits include NSYF/Public Theatre, the Roundabout, Second Stage, The Drama Department, The Mint, NAATCO, Epic Theatre and, most recently, playing a harried travel agent and 17 insane clients in the hit comedy Craving for Travel at the Peter Jay Sharp Theatre at Playwrights Horizon. Numerous regional credits include many plays, musicals and classical theatre at The Old Globe, Yale Rep, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Cincinnati Playhouse, The McCarter, Two River Theatre Co., Arena Stage, Baltimore Center Stage, many more. Some TV and Film credits: “The Good Wife,” “Single Ladies,” “Third Watch,” “Law & Order,” “Canterbury’s Law,” “Over/Under,” “Lay The Favorite,” “Building Girl,” and getting shot point-blank in the head in “Person of Interest.” Directing credits include Jennifer Camp’s Natural History (Walnut Street Theatre), Life (x) 3 (Repertory Theatre of St. Louis), and Outcry (NAATCO), along with Hair, Lend Me a Tenor, The Drawer Boy, Once in a Lifetime, Waiting for Lefty, Phantom!, Me and My Girl, and others in various regional, university and stock theatres across the country.

Other articles on Thom Sesma:
Thom Sesma and Michele Ragusa Star in Greg Edwards & Andy Sandberg’s Craving for Travel through February 9, 2014
Photos: Backstage Q & A with Thom Sesma and the cast of Signature’s Miss Saigon
Jan. 9 – Feb. 9: Thom Sesma and Michele Ragusa to Star in Off-Broadway World Premiere of CRAVING FOR TRAVEL at Peter J. Sharp Theater
A Summer in Bangkok for Thom Sesma, Star of Signature’s Miss Saigon
Production Photos: Music Theatre of Wichita’s The King and I Starring Thom Sesma, Kim Huber, Alan Ariano, Karl Josef Co, Kay Trinidad, Tami Swartz at Century II Performing Arts Center through July 14, 2013
Christine Toy Johnson, Thom Sesma, Ali Ewolt, Jose Llana, Ann Harada, Telly Leung and More Set for The Asian American Composers and Lyricists Project at The Alice Griffin Jewel Box Theatre on May 19, 2013
Thom Sesma, Francis Jue, Robin de Jesus and John Tartaglia set for MUNY’s Aladdin, July 5-13
Thom Sesma is the keynote speaker for the Library of Congress celebration of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month (APAHM) at the Mary Pickford Theater on May 17
Photos & Video Disney’s The Lion King Las Vegas-In the Makeup Chair with Thom Sesma
Spotlight on Shanghai Moon’s Thom Sesma
Photos: Highlights of Shinsai: Theaters for Japan (3pm) with Andre Bishop, Mary Beth Hurt, Jennifer Lim, Angela Lin, Philip Kan Gotanda, Thom Sesma, Sab Shimono, Richard Thomas, Jay O. Sanders, and more
Photos: Highlights of Shinsai: Theaters for Japan (8pm) with Oskar Eustis, Patti LuPone, Lisa Emery, Ann Harada, Paolo Montalban, Thom Sesma, Sab Shimono, Henry Stram, Richard Thomas, John Weidman and more
Extended through 8/23- “In Rehearsal” Lia Chang Theater Portfolio at Library of Congress Featuring Robert Lee and Leon Ko’s Heading East Starring BD Wong, Thom Sesma as Scar in The Lion King Las Vegas
Photos: On the town with Rick Shiomi, Co-Editor of “Asian American Plays for a New Generation”, in D.C. & NY
Backstage at The Lion King Las Vegas with Thom Sesma
Thom Sesma as Scar in The Lion King at Mandalay bay
Thom Sesma, Peter Kim and Andrew Cristi star in Durango
Thom Sesma Stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Dawn’s Light: The Journey of Gordon Hirabayashi
Thom Sesma in The Epic Theatre Ensemble’s A HARD HEART

Lia Chang Photo by GK

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Ralph B. Peña and Leigh Silverman Among Six Mid-Career Directors Selected for Sundance Institute’s Theatre Directors Retreat in Arles, France

July 23, 2014, 10:20 am

≫ Next: The Orphan of Zhao starring BD Wong, Sab Shimono, Julyana Soelistyo, Stan Egi, Orville Mendoza, Paolo Montalban and More at La Jolla Playhouse through August 3, 2014

≪ Previous: July 23-27: Thom Sesma and Sklyer Adams Star in Music Theatre Wichita’s Catch Me If You Can

Congratulations to Ralph B. Peña and Leigh Silverman, who are among six mid-career directors selected for Sundance Institute’s Theatre Directors Retreat in Arles, France. They will be joined by Mark Brokaw, Juliette Carillo, Anne Kauffman, and Les Waters at the second Sundance Institute | LUMA Foundation Theatre Directors Retreat, July 29 through August 11, 2014. The Retreat is one of 10 residential programs hosted by Sundance Institute this summer, collectively representing 15 weeks of support and mentorship for promising independent artists in theatre and film from the United States and around the world.

Under the supervision of Theatre Program Artistic Director Philip Himberg, Producing Director Christopher Hibma and Program Associate Anne Kauffman, the Retreat is the only theatre director-centered residency of its kind. The Retreat complements other initiatives of the Theatre Program by providing resources to mid-career theatre directors and grew out of a need expressed by directors for an immersive forum in which to exchange ideas and best practices with peers; review and discuss new work, and participate in intensive discussions led by experienced arts professionals.

Philip Himberg, Artistic Director of the Sundance Institute Theatre Program, said,”The Directors Retreat offers a truly rare opportunity for theatre directors to focus inward, to investigate, research and plan new projects, and to reinvigorate their creative spirits. This also comprises a unique experience for these stage artists to be in dialogue with their peers, and to engage in rigorous conversation about the contemporary field.”

Directors selected for the 2014 Sundance Institute | LUMA Foundation Theatre Directors Retreat are:
Mark Brokaw recently directed the Broadway production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella. Other Broadway credits include The Lyons, After Miss Julie, Cry-Baby, The Constant Wife, and Reckless. New York premieres include works by David Auburn, Lynda Barry (The Good Times Are Killing Me), Douglas Carter Beane (As Bees in Honey Drown), Keith Bunin, Charles Busch (Olive and the Bitter Herbs), Julia Cho, Lisa Kron (2.5 Minute Ride), Kenneth Lonergan (This Is Our Youth, Lobby Hero), Craig Lucas (The Dying Gaul), Eduardo Machado, Nicky Silver (Too Much Sun, The Lyons), Paula Vogel (How I Learned to Drive, Long Christmas Ride Home) and Wendy Wasserstein (Old Money). Mark has collaborated with Noah Haidle and Laura Jacqmin at past Sundance Institute Theatre Labs. He has directed at London’s Donmar Warehouse and Menier Chocolate Factory, Dublin’s Gate Theatre and the Sydney Opera House. Mark is the Artistic Director of the Yale Institute for Music Theatre. Mark is also an Artistic associate at Roundabout Theatre.

Juliette Carillo most recently worked as director and choreographer on The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Regionally, Juliette has directed Lydia (Mark Taper Forum, Yale Repertory Theatre, Denver Center Theatre Company); The Brothers Size, The Cook (Seattle Repertory Theatre); Plumas Negras (as writer), It’s All Bueno, Touch The Water, Lethe, As Vishnu Dreams, Los Faustinos (Cornerstone Theater Company); References to Salvador Dalí Make Me Hot, Anna in the Tropics, California Scenarios, Nostalgia, The Countess, Sidney Bechet Killed a Man, Jane of the Jungle (South Coast Repertory); Cloud Tectonics (Alliance Theatre); The Eviction, Eyes For Consuela (Magic Theatre); Sonia Flew (Laguna Playhouse); El Paso Blue (Summer Play Festival, New York); The Play That Knows What You Want (Women’s Project. Juliette has received various awards, including: Gypsy Rose Lee Awards, Seattle Repertory Theatre (The Brothers Size); Examiner Awards, Arizona Theatre Company (The Glass Menagerie). GLAAD award, Mark Taper Forum (Lydia); Ovation Awards, Henry Awards, Denver Center Theatre Company (Lydia); finalist, Alan Schneider Award for Directing, Drama-Logue Awards, NEA/TCG Directing Fellowship, Princess Grace Award. Juliette received her MFA at the Yale School of Drama.

Anne Kauffman has directed at most major New York non-profit and regional theaters. Her recent credits include Lisa D’Amour’s Pulitzer Prize finalist play Detroit, Smokefall by Noah Haidle at South Coast Rep and The Goodman Theater, 100 Days by The Bengsons at Z Space in San Francisco, Somewhere Fun by Jenny Schwartz at the Vineyard Theater, Amy Herzog’s Belleville for Yale Rep, NY Theatre Workshop and Steppenwolf (Lortel Nomination for Best Director), Chloe Moss’s This Wide Night starring Edie Falco for Naked Angels (Lortel Nomination for Best Director), and Greg Pierce’s Slowgirl for LCT3. She is Program Associate at Sundance Institute, a Usual Suspect at New York Theatre Workshop, an alumna of the Soho Rep Writers and Directors Lab, a current member of Soho Rep’s Artistic Council, Lincoln Center Directors Lab, The Drama League of New York, a founding member of The Civilians, an Associate Artist with Clubbed Thumb and member of New Georges Kitchen Cabinet. From 2000-2006, Anne was on the directing faculty at NYU. She received her MFA in directing from UCSD, and a BA in Slavic Languages and Literature and Theater from Stanford University. Anne’s many awards include the Joan and Joseph Cullman Award for Exceptional Creativity from Lincoln Center, the Alan Schneider Director Award, several Barrymore Awards, Obie Award, and the Lilly Award in Direction.

Ralph B. Peña is the artistic director of Ma-Yi Theatre Company. Recent directing credits include developing a new musical at ACT in San Francisco, Lloyd Suh’s The Wong Kids in the Secret of the Space Chupacabra Go! (Children’s Theater Co. and Ma-Yi, Off Broadway Alliance Award), Joshua Conkel’s Curmudgeons in Love (EST Marathon), Mike Lew’s microcrisis (Youngblood, Ma-Yi), Ruth Margraff’s Centaur Battle of San Jacinto, and House/Boy (Dublin and Singapore Theater Festivals). He received an Obie Award for his work on The Romance of Magno Rubio. Ralph serves on the board of TCG, and is a member of Ensemble Studio Theater.

Leigh Silverman was nominated for Best Director of a Musical for Violet. Other Broadway credits include Chinglish and Well. Off-Broadway, Leigh has directed several shows, including American Hero (Second Stage and Williamstown Theater Festival); Kung Fu (Signature Theatre); The (curious case of the) Watson Intelligence (Playwrights Horizons); The Call (Playwrights Horizons); The Madrid (MTC); Golden Child (Signature Theatre); No Place to Go (Public Theater; Two River Theatre); In the Wake (Center Theatre Group/Berkeley Rep and Public Theater, Obie Award, Lortel nomination); Go Back to Where You Are (Playwrights Horizons, Obie Award); From Up Here (MTC, Drama Desk nomination); Yellow Face (Center Theatre Group/Public Theater); Coraline (MCC/True Love); Blue Door (Playwrights Horizons); Well (Public Theater; Huntington Theatre; ACT); Danny and the Deep Blue Sea (Second Stage Theatre). Recent regional productions include: Chinglish (Goodman Theater, Jeff nomination; West Coast/Hong Kong tour).

Les Waters recently directed Thornton Wilder’s Our Town, Will Eno’s Gnit, Todd Almond’s Girlfriend and Eugene O’Neill’s Long Day’s Journey into Night at Actors Theatre. Waters also previously directed Big Love by Charles L. Mee at the 2000 Humana Festival, and Naomi Iizuka’s At the Vanishing Point. From 2003 to 2011, he served as Associate Artistic Director at Berkeley Repertory Theatre. His shows have ranked among the year’s best in The New Yorker, The New York Times, Time Magazine and USA Today. His productions have been seen in New York at The Public Theater, Second Stage, Manhattan Theatre Club, Connelly Theater and Clubbed Thumb, and regionally at theatres such as Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Goodman Theatre, Yale Repertory Theatre, American Conservatory Theater, La Jolla Playhouse and American Repertory Theater. In 2009, he made his Broadway debut with In the Next Room or the vibrator play. Led the the MFA directing program at UCSD from 1995 to 2003. Les is also an associate artist of The Civilians.

The Sundance Institute Theatre Program is supported by an endowment from Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, with generous additional support from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, John and Marcia Price Family Foundation, Time Warner Foundation, LUMA Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, The Shubert Foundation, Inc., The Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust, and Karen Lauder.

Sundance Institute Theatre Program
The Theatre Program has been a core component of Sundance Institute since Robert Redford founded the Institute in 1981. The Theatre Program identifies and assists emerging theatre artists, contributes to the creative growth of established artists, and encourages and supports the development of new work for the stage. Under the guidance of Artistic Director Philip Himberg and Producing Director Christopher Hibma, the Theatre Program is one of the leading play development programs in the United States. Titles such as Appropriate, Fun Home, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, Circle Mirror Transformation, An Iliad, The Lily’s Revenge, The Good Negro, The Light in the Piazza, Passing Strange, Stuck Elevator, Spring Awakening, The Laramie Project and I Am My Own Wife have gone from Theatre Program Labs to production from coast to coast and internationally, garnering multiple Pulitzers, Tonys, OBIEs and other recognition. The Theatre Program’s East Africa initiative is the only professional program of its type on the continent, offering Labs, cross-cultural exchange, mentorship and exposure to artists in six African countries and now expanding to include the MENA region. The Theatre Program’s newest initiative is the Theatre Directors Retreat in France. www.sundance.org/theatre

Sundance Institute
Founded by Robert Redford in 1981, Sundance Institute is a global, nonprofit organization dedicated to nurturing independent artists and introducing audiences to their new work. Internationally recognized for its Sundance Film Festival, the Institute annually supports over 200 artists with more than a dozen labs for directors, screenwriters, documentary editors, composers, playwrights, producers and New Frontier artists and grants more than $2 million to artists. The Institute has supported projects including Fruitvale Station, Ain’t Them Bodies Saints, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Question Bridge, Wadjda, God Loves Uganda, Gideon’s Army, Spring Awakening, Appropriate and Fun Home.

The LUMA Foundation
The LUMA Foundation was created in 2004 to promote challenging artistic projects combining a particular interest in environmental issues, human rights, education and culture in the broadest sense. The conceptualisation of its initial programming has been spear headed by Maja Hoffmann and a Core Team, which includes Tom Eccles, Liam Gillick, Hans Ulrich Obrist, Philippe Parreno, and Beatrix Ruf. The LUMA Foundation’s current focus is the development of a new creative campus in Arles (France) with its Core Team working together with architects Frank Gehry and Annabelle Selldorf. This ambitious project for the production of exhibitions, research, education and archives is supported by a growing number of public and private partnerships. www.luma-arles.org

Lia Chang Photo by GK

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The Orphan of Zhao starring BD Wong, Sab Shimono, Julyana Soelistyo, Stan Egi, Orville Mendoza, Paolo Montalban and More at La Jolla Playhouse through August 3, 2014

July 23, 2014, 11:10 am

≫ Next: Jun. 28: Jane Ann Valentine of The Daisy Collective and More to Perform in Cherry POP: Fluid Edition at Cherry Lane Theatre

≪ Previous: Ralph B. Peña and Leigh Silverman Among Six Mid-Career Directors Selected for Sundance Institute’s Theatre Directors Retreat in Arles, France

Tony Award winner BD Wong stars as Cheng Ying in ‘The Orphan of Zhao’. Photo by Kevin Berne.

Tony Award winner BD Wong (M. Butterfly), last seen at La Jolla Playhouse in Herringbone, stars as “Cheng Ying” in The Orphan of Zhao, adapted by James Fenton, and directed by Carey Perloff, through August 3 in the Mandell Weiss Theatre, 2910 La Jolla Village Drive La Jolla, CA. The Orphan of Zhao is a co-production between La Jolla Playhouse and American Conservatory Theatre.

Preview performances for The Orphan of Zhao began on July 8, and the production officially opened on July 11. Tickets are available by calling Playhouse Patron Services at (858) 550-1010 or at LaJollaPlayhouse.org.

The Orphan of Zhao is a classic Chinese legend that has its roots in the fourth century BCE. It’s an epic story of self‐sacrifice and revenge. In the aftermath of a political coup, a country doctor is forced to sacrifice his own son in order to save the last heir of a noble and massacred clan. Often described as the Chinese Hamlet, this enduring tale was the first Chinese play to be translated in the West nearly 300 years ago and has inspired countless operas, plays, and movies. The London Guardian praised Fenton’s adaptation as “haunting. [A] drama hewn out of a myth that speaks across the centuries.”

Joining Wong for The Orphan of Zhao are Marie-France Arcilla as “The Princess,” Stan Egi as “Tu’an Gu,” Philip Estrera as “Chu Ni/Ghost of Cheng Ying’s Son,” Nick Gabriel as “Zhao Dun,” Cindy Im as “Princess’s Maid,” Orville Mendoza (Playhouse’s The Wiz) as “Wei Jiang,” Paolo Montalban as “The Ballad Singer/The Emperor,” Brian Rivera as “Demon Mastiff/ General Han Jue,” Sab Shimono (Playhouse’s Wonderland) as “Gongsun Chujiu,” Julyana Soelistyo as “Cheng Ying’s Wife,” and Daisuke Tsuji (Playhouse’s American Night) as “Ti Miming/ Cheng Bo.”

The Emperor (Paolo Montalban) stands atop his newly finished Crimson Cloud Tower in American Conservatory Theater’s production of 'The Orphan of Zhao' at The Geary Theater. Photo by Kevin Berne.

The aged Princess (Marie-France Arcilla) in American Conservatory Theater’s production of 'The Orphan of Zhao' at The Geary Theater. Photo by Kevin Berne.

BD Wong received the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, Theater World, Clarence Derwent, and Tony Awards for his Broadway debut in M. Butterfly-an unprecedented achievement. His television credits include “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” “All-American Girl,” “Oz,” “And the Band Played On,” and “Awake”. On film, Wong can be seen in Jurassic Park, The Freshman, Father of the Bride, Seven Years in Tibet, Executive Decision, The Salton Sea, Stay, and Mulan. On Broadway, Wong has performed in You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown and Pacific Overtures. Regional theater credits include, Herringbone (Williamstown Theatre Festival, McCarter Theatre, La Jolla Playhouse). Upcoming projects include Focus (Warner Bros.), “The Normal Heart” (HBO), and Jurassic World (Universal). He is also the author of the critically acclaimed memoir “Following Foo…” (Harper Entertainment). Wong is a San Francisco native.

Gongsun Chujiu (Sab Shimono) in ‘The Orphan of Zhao.’ Photo by Kevin Berne.

Carey Perloff is celebrating her 21st year as artistic director of A.C.T., and is known for championing innovative productions of classics and new writing for the theater. Perloff has directed a wide range of work at A.C.T., most recently including Elektra, Endgame and Play, Scorched, The Homecoming, Tosca Cafe (cocreated with Val Caniparoli and recently toured Canada), A.C.T.-commissioned translations/adaptations of Hecuba, The Misanthrope, and her own play The Colossus of Rhodes (Susan Smith Blackburn Award finalist). Her latest play, Higher, won the 2011 Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation Theatre Visions Fund Award and received its world premiere in 2012. Before joining A.C.T., Perloff was artistic director of Classic Stage Company in New York, which won numerous OBIE awards under her leadership. A recipient of the Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres and the National Corporate Theatre Fund’s 2007 Artistic Achievement Award, Perloff received a B.A. Phi Beta Kappa in classics and comparative literature from Stanford University and was a Fulbright Fellow at Oxford. She will provide oversight and input throughout the project, disseminate the research findings to the theater community at large, organize the final convening, and formulate and oversee implementation for any next steps identified by the research.

Cheng Bo (Daisuke Tsuji) and the Palace Guards in ‘The Orphan of Zhao.’ Photo by Kevin Berne.

The creative team for The Orphan of Zhao includes Daniel Ostling, Scenic Designer; Linda Cho (Playhouse’s Chaplin), Costume Designer; Lap Chi Chu (Playhouse’s Ruined), Lighting Designer; Jake Rodriguez, Sound Designer; Byron Au Yong, Original Music; Stephen Buescher, Movement Director; Jonathan Rider, Fight Director and Michael Paller, Dramaturg.

General Wei Jiang (Orville Mendoza), Gongsun Chujiu (Sab Shimono) and Zhao Dun (Nick Gabriel) in The Orphan of Zhao. Photo by Kevin Berne.

Cheng Ying’s wife (Julyana Soelistyo) and the cast of American Conservatory Theater’s production of ‘The Orphan of Zhao’ at The Geary Theater. Photo by Kevin Berne.

The nationally-acclaimed, Tony Award-winning La Jolla Playhouse is known for its tradition of creating some of the most exciting and adventurous new work in regional theatre. The Playhouse was founded in 1947 by Gregory Peck, Dorothy McGuire and Mel Ferrer, and is considered one of the most well-respected not-for-profit theatres in the country. Twenty-five Playhouse productions have moved to Broadway, earning 35 Tony Awards, including the currently-running hit Jersey Boys, as well as Big River, The Who’s Tommy, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, A Walk in the Woods, Billy Crystal’s 700 Sundays, the Pulitzer Prize-winning I Am My Own Wife, Thoroughly Modern Millie, The Farnsworth Invention, 33 Variations, Memphis, Bonnie & Clyde, Chaplin, Peter and the Starcatcher and Hands on a Hardbody. Located on the UC San Diego campus, La Jolla Playhouse is made up of three primary performance spaces: the Mandell Weiss Theatre, the Mandell Weiss Forum Theatre and the Joan and Irwin Jacobs Center for La Jolla Playhouse, a state-of-the-art theatre complex which features the Sheila and Hughes Potiker Theatre. La Jolla Playhouse is led by Artistic Director Christopher Ashley and Managing Director Michael S. Rosenberg.

Cheng Bo (Daisuke Tsuji) threatens Tu’an Gu (Stan Egi) in American Conservatory Theater’s production of 'The Orphan of Zhao'. Photo by Kevin Berne.

Tu’an Gu (Stan Egi) trains the Demon Mastiff (Brian Rivera) in American Conservatory Theater’s production of 'The Orphan of Zhao' at The Geary Theater. Photo by Kevin Berne. Photo by Kevin Berne.

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, President Bill Clinton and More Remember Meshach Taylor
Photos: Meshach Taylor Celebrates 67th Birthday with Arlene and Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, Jean Smart, Dennis Franz, Ernie Hudson, John Heard, Keith Szarabajka, Stuart Gordon, Shadoe Stevens and More
June 22 – July 27: Blair Underwood, Richard Thomas and Kristen Connolly Lead the Cast of The Old Globe’s Othello, helmed by Barry Edelstein
Late Night Singing with Garth Kravits at 54 Below with The Skivvies, at Jim Caruso’s Cast Party at Birdland and Michael Raye’s Soul Gathering
Photos and Video: Ben Vereen Performs at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos and Video: Obba Babatunde and cast members from the original cast of Dreamgirls perform at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos & Video: The Wiz’s André De Shields Sang “So You Wanted to Meet the Wizard” in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
June 23: André De Shields, Billy Porter, Chuck Cooper, Brandon Victor Dixon, Clifton Davis, Norm Lewis, Chapman Roberts and More Set for The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
Remembering Frank Trenholm Lyman III, 1968-2014; Fund Established for The Lyman Children
Remembering Civil Rights Activist Yuri Kochiyama, 1921-2014
Ruby Dee, Actress and Activist, 1922 – 2014
Fred Korematsu, American Hero and Civil Rights Activist, Dies at 86
July 31-Aug. 3: Drama Desk Nominee Joel de la Fuente stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at ACT, Helmed by Lisa Rothe
Bryan Cranston, Audra McDonald, Neil Patrick Harris, Jessie Mueller, Lena Hall, Sophie Okonedo, Kenny Leon, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder, All The Way, A Raisin in the Sun, Hedwig and the Angry Inch and More Take Home 2014 Tony Awards
Lucille Lortel Awards for Here Lies Love, Fun Home, The Open House, Good Person of Szechwan
Branden Jacob-Jenkins’ Appropriate, Lisa Kron’s Fun Home, Sonya Tayeh, Emmanuel Brown, Mia Katigbak, K. Todd Freeman, John Earl Jelks Among 2014 OBIE Award Winners
Photos: André Braugher, Ami Brabson, Christine Toy Johnson, Antoinette LaVecchia, Richard Topol, Victor Williams, Nikkole Salter, Elizabeth Van Dyke at Oni Faida Lampley’s Tough Titty at the Paradise Factory
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Celebrating my mom – AN ACTIVE VISION: BEVERLY UMEHARA…LABOR ACTIVIST…1945-1999
Crafting a Career
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Other articles on BD Wong:
A.C.T.’s Production Photos of The Orphan of Zhao starring BD Wong, Sab Shimono, Julyana Soelistyo, Stan Egi, Orville Mendoza, Paolo Montalban and More through June 29
Jun. 4-29: Tony Award–winner BD Wong Leads Cast of A.C.T.’s U.S. Premiere of Orphan of Zhao, a co-production with La Jolla Playhouse
May 19: The Orphan of Zhao’s BD Wong and A.C.T. Artistic Director Carey Perloff in Conversation at A.C.T.’s Geary Theater
In Rehearsal with BD Wong at Dixon Place for Live Concert Recording of Herringbone
BD Wong Creates Kickstarter Campaign for his Live Concert Recording of HERRINGBONE, to be performed May 21-22 as a Benefit for Dixon Place
BD Wong to Star in Live Concert Recording of HERRINGBONE for Two Nights Only as a Benefit for Dixon Place, May 21-22
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Oskar Eustis, BD Wong, Brian d’Arcy James, Francis Jue, Jennifer Lim and Leigh Silverman at WNYC’s The Greene Space
Photos: BD Wong, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Brandon Victor Dixon, Tom Viola at “Passing It On: An Evening of Mentorship to Benefit Rosie’s Theater Kids”
Photos: BD Wong in Rehearsal for “Passing It On: An Evening of Mentorship to Benefit Rosie’s Theater Kids”
The SFIAAFF30 Kicks Off with World Premiere of White Frog Featuring Booboo Stewart, Harry Shum, Jr., Joan Chen, Kelly Hu and BD Wong, at the Castro Theater on March 8
Tony award-winning actor BD Wong stars in NBC’s Awake; video preview and interview
Cindy Cheung Debuts SPEAK UP CONNIE…Her Solo Show, directed by BD Wong at Stage Left Studio, January 17-25, 2012
Extended through 8/23- “In Rehearsal” Lia Chang Theater Portfolio at Library of Congress Featuring Robert Lee and Leon Ko’s Heading East Starring BD Wong, Thom Sesma as Scar in The Lion King Las Vegas
OCA Awards Gala Photos: David Henry Hwang, Tamlyn Tomita, BD Wong, Dr. Bobby Fong & Tammy Duckworth
Dr. Bobby Fong, BD Wong and Tammy Duckworth to Receive Awards at National OCA Convention in NY on 8/6
Photo Preview of BD Wong and the Cast of Heading East at the Asia Society, 5/24-26
Broadwayworld.com Photo Flash: Library of Congress’ IN REHEARSAL Exhibit
Multimedia: BD Wong, Anastasia Barzee, Clarke Thorell, Cindy Cheung and Orville Mendoza at Rattlestick Playwrights Theaters’ Musical Mix ‘n’ Mingle
BD Wong, Anastasia Barzee, Cindy Cheung and Orville Mendoza in Rattlestick’s Musical Mix ‘n’ Mingle
BD Wong Stars in the La Jolla Playhouse Production of Herringbone, August 1-30
David Henry Hwang, Kathryn Layng and BD Wong at the Asian American Writers Workshop Literary Awards

Lia Chang Photo by GK

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Jun. 28: Jane Ann Valentine of The Daisy Collective and More to Perform in Cherry POP: Fluid Edition at Cherry Lane Theatre

July 24, 2014, 8:26 pm

≫ Next: Photo: Writer Maxine Hong Kingston Receives 2013 National Medal of Arts from President Barack Obama

≪ Previous: The Orphan of Zhao starring BD Wong, Sab Shimono, Julyana Soelistyo, Stan Egi, Orville Mendoza, Paolo Montalban and More at La Jolla Playhouse through August 3, 2014

The Daisy Collective member Jane Ann Valentine. Photo by Lia Chang

Cherry Lane Theatre’s Junior Board presents Cherry POP: Fluid Edition, Monday, July 28, 2014, at 7pm in the Studio at Cherry Lane Theatre, 38 Commerce Street in the West Village. Tickets for Cherry POP are suggested donation of $10 at the door. Space is limited, so RSVP to secure your spot is recommended. Please RSVP to lrodriguez@cherrylanetheatre.org

Cherry POP is a brand new series for a new Cherry Lane audience. A collection of theater groups and individual performers will each create a 5-10 minute piece around a common theme/word revealed to them a month prior to the event.

Cherry POP: Fluid Edition features The Shelter, The Daisy Collective, Small Claims Court, NY Madness, singer Emily Rupp, multi-hyphenate artist Eric Schmalenberger, stand-up comic Lex Singer, actor Lillian Rodriguez, “With All the Kids Saying” by, Diana Oh is GOING ROGUE, and comedy improve troupe FUCT.

Jane Ann Valentine is an actor, filmmaker and playwright. Her first screenplay Portrait, which she directed and starred in, won the AAFilmLab’s Best Short Scriptwriting Contest. A co-creator of the first AAFilmLab’s 64-Hour Film Shootout Competition in 2004 (now “72-Hour ShootOut” in its 10th year), Jane recently wrote and performed her solo show Cancer: A Love Story at the TheaterLab and Actors Theater of America and was selected to read her prose alongside acclaimed writers at the Asian American Writers Workshop. She worked behind the camera as an Assistant Director, Associate Producer, Art Director, Script Supervisor, and Production Assistant in films that have screened at the Tribeca Film Festival, Woodstock Film Festival, the Hamptons Film Festival, the Asian American International Film Festival, CineWomen NY, the ImaginAsian Network and the Independent Film Channel.

Leta Tremblay directs a live theatrical event set to the music of Diana Oh is GOING ROGUE’s original song, “All The Kids Saying” featuring performers Kevin Bunge, Katelyn Collins, Brian Dunlop, Kim Gainer, Jesse Geguzis, Lauren Hennessy, and Homa Hynes. Originally presented at The Brick Theater as part of the first Live Action Music Video Festival curated by Mariah MacCarthy.

NYMadness: The primary goal of NYMadness is the development of modern theatre with a focus on bold new plays, emerging artists, and building collaborations. We provide a platform to broaden the national conversation on issues that concern us, within a structured exploration of the form, among a growing and supportive community.

The Shelter is a family of artists creating original theatre for the New York stage. The Shelter premieres Dave Lankford’s TRANSMISSION – a stellar tour-de-fource starring Belle Caplis and directed by Meghan E. Jones, in which Commander Abby Graham records her final transmission before reaching the outer bounds of the solar system.

Lillian Rodriguez is an actor and a writer, premiering a new short piece based on a collection of interviews with her mother J.J.Brown.

Emily Rupp is a Midwestern gal who has performed her various talents on stages all across the United States. She acts on film, she acts on stage, she writes poems, she writes songs, she sings, and plays a bunch of cool instruments.

Lex Singer is a young and talented stand up comic.

FUCT is New York’s most outrageous comedy group.

Other articles by Lia Chang:
May 22-23: The Daisy Collective is Presenting New Plays by Jane Ann Valentine, Kristen Acimovic, Ellena Chmielewski, Mary Eden and Shamikah Christina Martinez at The Cherry Lane
Dinner with André De Shields at Chez Josephine
Photos: Artist Arlan Huang, One Brush Stroke at a Time
The Dish on Susur Lee and Shang
Photos & Video: The Wiz’s André De Shields Sang “So You Wanted to Meet the Wizard” in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
June 23: André De Shields, Billy Porter, Chuck Cooper, Brandon Victor Dixon, Clifton Davis, Norm Lewis, Chapman Roberts and More Set for The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, President Bill Clinton and More Remember Meshach Taylor
Photos: Meshach Taylor Celebrates 67th Birthday with Arlene and Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, Jean Smart, Dennis Franz, Ernie Hudson, John Heard, Keith Szarabajka, Stuart Gordon, Shadoe Stevens and More
June 22 – July 27: Blair Underwood, Richard Thomas and Kristen Connolly Lead the Cast of The Old Globe’s Othello, helmed by Barry Edelstein
Late Night Singing with Garth Kravits at 54 Below with The Skivvies, at Jim Caruso’s Cast Party at Birdland and Michael Raye’s Soul Gathering
Photos and Video: Ben Vereen Performs at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos and Video: Obba Babatunde and cast members from the original cast of Dreamgirls perform at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Remembering Civil Rights Activist Yuri Kochiyama, 1921-2014
Ruby Dee, Actress and Activist, 1922 – 2014
Fred Korematsu, American Hero and Civil Rights Activist, Dies at 86
July 31-Aug. 3: Drama Desk Nominee Joel de la Fuente stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at ACT, Helmed by Lisa Rothe
Bryan Cranston, Audra McDonald, Neil Patrick Harris, Jessie Mueller, Lena Hall, Sophie Okonedo, Kenny Leon, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder, All The Way, A Raisin in the Sun, Hedwig and the Angry Inch and More Take Home 2014 Tony Awards
Lucille Lortel Awards for Here Lies Love, Fun Home, The Open House, Good Person of Szechwan
Branden Jacob-Jenkins’ Appropriate, Lisa Kron’s Fun Home, Sonya Tayeh, Emmanuel Brown, Mia Katigbak, K. Todd Freeman, John Earl Jelks Among 2014 OBIE Award Winners Photos: André Braugher, Ami Brabson, Christine Toy Johnson, Antoinette LaVecchia, Richard Topol, Victor Williams, Nikkole Salter, Elizabeth Van Dyke at Oni Faida Lampley’s Tough Titty at the Paradise Factory
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards
Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Celebrating my mom – AN ACTIVE VISION: BEVERLY UMEHARA…LABOR ACTIVIST…1945-1999
Crafting a Career Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang Photo by GK

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist.

Lia made her jazz vocalist debut in Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz “LADY” at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York. All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 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 liachangpr@gmail.com

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Photo: Writer Maxine Hong Kingston Receives 2013 National Medal of Arts from President Barack Obama

July 29, 2014, 9:26 pm

≫ Next: Two-time Tony Nominee and Emmy Winner André De Shields Performs FREDERICK DOUGLASS: Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory and Speaks on The Wisdome of the Ancient Art of Storytelling at AFP 2014: Change Through Stories, Sept. 8-9, 2014

≪ Previous: Jun. 28: Jane Ann Valentine of The Daisy Collective and More to Perform in Cherry POP: Fluid Edition at Cherry Lane Theatre

On Monday, July 28, 2014, “The Women Warrior” author Maxine Hong Kingston, architects Billie Tsien and her partner Tod Williams, dancer-choreographer Bill T. Jones, singer Linda Ronstadt, Cabaret composer John Kander, and Jeffrey Katzenberg, Director and CEO of DreamWorks, were among 12 recipients presented with the 2013 National Medal of Arts by President Obama, who also presented the 2013 National Humanities Awards, in the East Room of the White House.

President Barack Obama presents the National Medal of Arts to writer Maxine Hong Kingston in a White House ceremony on July 28, 2014. Photo by Jocelyn Augustino.

The daughter of Chinese immigrants, Maxine Hong Kingston was born and raised in Stockton, California. Kingston, a poet, memoirist, fiction writer, a senior lecturer for creative writing and a professor emeritus at her alma mater, the University of California–Berkeley, resides in Oakland, California.

Kingston is the author of the book-length poem I Love a Broad Margin to My Life (2011). Kingston’s numerous nonfiction books include The Fifth Book of Peace (2003), To Be the Poet (2002), National Book Award–winner China Men (1980), and National Book Critics Circle Award–winner The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts (1976). She is also the author of the novel Tripmaster Monkey: His Fake Book(1989) and Hawai’i One Summer. She edited the anthology Veterans of War, Veterans of Peace (2006), compiled from the work of participants in the therapeutic poetry workshops she has led for more than 500 veterans of war.

In a statement released by the White House, Kingston was honored for “her contributions as a writer. Her novels and non-fiction have examined how the past influences our present, and her voice has strengthened our understanding of Asian American identity, helping shape our national conversation about culture, gender, and race.”

Kingston adds her 2013 National Medal of Arts Award to an impressive list of honors including including the National Book Award, the National Book Critics Circle Award for Nonfiction, the PEN West Award for Fiction, an American Academy of Arts and Letters Award in Literature, and a National Humanities Medal (presented by former President Bill Clinton), as well as the title of “Living Treasure of Hawai’i.”

Architects Billie Tsien and Tod Williams were honored for “their contributions to architecture and arts education. Whether public or private, their deliberate and inspired designs have a profound effect on the lives of those who interact with them, and their teaching and spirit of service have inspired young people to pursue their passions.”

The National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities were established by the Congress in 1965 as independent agencies of the Federal Government. To date, the NEA has awarded more than $5 billion to support artistic excellence, creativity, and innovation for the benefit of individuals and communities. The NEA extends its work through partnerships with State arts agencies, local leaders, other Federal agencies, and the philanthropic sector. The National Endowment for the Humanities supports research and learning in history, literature, philosophy, and other areas of the humanities by funding selected, peer-reviewed proposals from around the Nation. The Endowment brings high-quality historical and cultural experiences to large and diverse audiences in all 50 States, the District of Columbia, and five territories.

Below is the complete list of 2013 National of Arts Recipients and 2013 National Humanities Medal Recipients.

Official Citations for 2013 National Medal of Arts Recipients:

Julia Alvarez for her extraordinary storytelling. In poetry and in prose, Ms. Alvarez explores themes of identity, family, and cultural divides. She illustrates the complexity of navigating two worlds and reveals the human capacity for strength in the face of oppression.

Brooklyn Academy of Music for innovative contributions to the performing and visual arts. For over 150 years, BAM has showcased the works of both established visionaries and emerging artists who take risks and push boundaries.

Joan Harris for supporting creative expression in Chicago and across our country. Her decades of leadership and generosity have enriched our cultural life and helped countless artists, dancers, singers, and musicians bring their talents to center stage.

Bill T. Jones for his contributions as a dancer and choreographer. Renowned for provocative performances that blend an eclectic mix of modern and traditional dance, Mr. Jones creates works that challenge us to confront tough subjects and inspire us to greater heights.

John Kander for his contributions as a composer. For more than half a century, Mr. Kander has enlivened Broadway, television, and film through songs that evoke romanticism and wonder and capture moral dilemmas that persist across generations.

Jeffrey Katzenberg for lighting up our screens and opening our hearts through animation and cinema. Mr. Katzenberg has embraced new technology to develop the art of storytelling and transform the way we experience film.

Maxine Hong Kingston for her contributions as a writer. Her novels and non-fiction have examined how the past influences our present, and her voice has strengthened our understanding of Asian American identity, helping shape our national conversation about culture, gender, and race.

Albert Maysles for rethinking and remaking documentary film in America. One of the pioneers of direct cinema, he has offered authentic depictions of people and communities across the globe for nearly 60 years. By capturing raw emotions and representations, his work reflects the unfiltered truths of our shared humanity.

Linda Ronstadt for her one-of-a-kind voice and her decades of remarkable music. Drawing from a broad range of influences, Ms. Ronstadt defied expectations to conquer American radio waves and help pave the way for generations of women artists.

Billie Tsien and Tod Williams for their contributions to architecture and arts education. Whether public or private, their deliberate and inspired designs have a profound effect on the lives of those who interact with them, and their teaching and spirit of service have inspired young people to pursue their passions.

James Turrell for his groundbreaking visual art. Capturing the powers of light and space, Mr. Turrell builds experiences that force us to question reality, challenging our perceptions not only of art, but also of the world around us.

Click here for bios and photos of the 2013 National Medal of Arts recipients.

Official Citations for 2013 National Humanities Medal Recipients:

M. H. Abrams, literary critic, for expanding our perceptions of the Romantic tradition and broadening the study of literature. As a professor, writer, and critic, Dr. Abrams has traced the modern concept of artistic self-expression in Western culture, and his work has influenced generations of students.

David Brion Davis, historian, for reshaping our understanding of history. A World War II veteran, Dr. Davis has shed light on the contradiction of a free Nation built by forced labor, and his examinations of slavery and abolitionism drive us to keep making moral progress in our time.

Darlene Clark Hine, historian, for enriching our understanding of the African American experience. Through prolific scholarship and leadership, Dr. Hine has examined race, class, and gender and shown how the struggles and successes of African American women shaped the Nation we share today.

Anne Firor Scott, historian, for pioneering the study of southern women. Through groundbreaking research spanning ideology, race, and class, Dr. Scott’s uncharted exploration into the lives of southern women has established women’s history as vital to our understanding of the American South.

William Theodore De Bary, East Asian Studies scholar, for broadening our understanding of the world. Dr. de Bary’s efforts to foster a global conversation have underscored how the common values and experiences shared by Eastern and Western cultures can be used to bridge our differences and build trust.

Johnpaul Jones, architect, for honoring the natural world and indigenous traditions in architecture. A force behind diverse and cherished institutions, Mr. Jones has fostered awareness through design and created spaces worthy of the cultures they reflect, the communities they serve, and the environments they inhabit.

Stanley Nelson, producer and director, for documenting the story of African Americans through film. By turning a camera on both the well-known and unknown narratives of African Americans, Mr. Nelson has exposed injustice and triumph while revealing new depths of our Nation’s history.

Diane Rehm, radio host, for illuminating the people and stories behind the headlines. In probing interviews with pundits, poets, and Presidents, Ms. Rehm’s incisive, confident, and curious voice has deepened our understanding of our communities and our culture.

Krista Tippett, radio host and author, for thoughtfully delving into the mysteries of human existence. On the air and in print, Ms. Tippett avoids easy answers, embracing complexity and inviting people of all faiths, no faith, and every background to join the conversation.

American Antiquarian Society, historical organization, for safeguarding the American story. Through more than two centuries, the Society has amassed an unparalleled collection of historic American documents, served as a research center to scholars and students alike, and connected generations of Americans to their cultural heritage.

Click here for bios and photos of the National Humanities Medal recipients.
Click here to watch the video.
Other articles by Lia Chang:
Maxine Hong Kingston, Billie Tsien, Bill T. Jones, Linda Ronstadt, John Kander, Jeffrey Katzenberg Among 12 to Receive 2013 National Medal of Arts
Dinner with André De Shields at Chez Josephine
The Dish on Susur Lee and Shang
Photos: Artist Arlan Huang, One Brush Stroke at a Time
Photos & Video: The Wiz’s André De Shields Sang “So You Wanted to Meet the Wizard” in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
June 23: André De Shields, Billy Porter, Chuck Cooper, Brandon Victor Dixon, Clifton Davis, Norm Lewis, Chapman Roberts and More Set for The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, President Bill Clinton and More Remember Meshach Taylor
Photos: Meshach Taylor Celebrates 67th Birthday with Arlene and Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, Jean Smart, Dennis Franz, Ernie Hudson, John Heard, Keith Szarabajka, Stuart Gordon, Shadoe Stevens and More
June 22 – July 27: Blair Underwood, Richard Thomas and Kristen Connolly Lead the Cast of The Old Globe’s Othello, helmed by Barry Edelstein
Late Night Singing with Garth Kravits at 54 Below with The Skivvies, at Jim Caruso’s Cast Party at Birdland and Michael Raye’s Soul Gathering
Photos and Video: Ben Vereen Performs at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos and Video: Obba Babatunde and cast members from the original cast of Dreamgirls perform at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Remembering Civil Rights Activist Yuri Kochiyama, 1921-2014
Ruby Dee, Actress and Activist, 1922 – 2014
Fred Korematsu, American Hero and Civil Rights Activist, Dies at 86 July 31-Aug. 3: Drama Desk Nominee Joel de la Fuente stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at ACT, Helmed by Lisa Rothe
Bryan Cranston, Audra McDonald, Neil Patrick Harris, Jessie Mueller, Lena Hall, Sophie Okonedo, Kenny Leon, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder, All The Way, A Raisin in the Sun, Hedwig and the Angry Inch and More Take Home 2014 Tony Awards
Lucille Lortel Awards for Here Lies Love, Fun Home, The Open House, Good Person of Szechwan
Branden Jacob-Jenkins’ Appropriate, Lisa Kron’s Fun Home, Sonya Tayeh, Emmanuel Brown, Mia Katigbak, K. Todd Freeman, John Earl Jelks Among 2014 OBIE Award Winners Photos: André Braugher, Ami Brabson, Christine Toy Johnson, Antoinette LaVecchia, Richard Topol, Victor Williams, Nikkole Salter, Elizabeth Van Dyke at Oni Faida Lampley’s Tough Titty at the Paradise Factory
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards
Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Celebrating my mom – AN ACTIVE VISION: BEVERLY UMEHARA…LABOR ACTIVIST…1945-1999
Crafting a Career Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang Photo by GK

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist.

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Two-time Tony Nominee and Emmy Winner André De Shields Performs FREDERICK DOUGLASS: Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory and Speaks on The Wisdome of the Ancient Art of Storytelling at AFP 2014: Change Through Stories, Sept. 8-9, 2014

July 31, 2014, 8:37 pm

≫ Next: 8/9- 8/24: Christine Toy Johnson set for World Premiere of URBAN MOMFARE at 2014 New York Fringe Festival

≪ Previous: Photo: Writer Maxine Hong Kingston Receives 2013 National Medal of Arts from President Barack Obama

André De Shields. Photos by Lia Chang

On Monday, September 8, 2014, Two-time Tony Nominee and Emmy winner André De Shields performs his solo show, FREDERICK DOUGLASS: Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory, at Warren Enters Theatre, Upton Hall, SUNY Buffalo State, 1300 Elmwood Ave., Buffalo, NY 14201, at 7:00 PM, as part of AFP 2014: Change Through Stories, the annual conference of The Anne Frank Project (AFP). Call 716-878-5559, email theannefrankproject@buffalostate.edu or click here to R.S.V.P for tickets.

A story about brutality and deliverance—implausible yet historically accurate—that will captivate you with a slave ballet, hand-to-hand combat and impassioned singing. These are but a few of the elements that make up the journey from human bondage to freedom experienced by the young Douglass as performed by De Shields in his self-crafted solo performance depicting the Great Black Emancipator: FREDERICK DOUGLASS: My Eyes Have Seen The Glory. Gripping shackles, De Shields infuses his performance with dance, song and rousing spoken word as he transforms from embittered and illiterate slave to America’s incomparable orator and abolitionist right before the eyes of his audience. As performed by De Shields, Douglass’ ultimate escape from chains to freedom is full of hope and achievement as it is darkness and anger.

On Tuesday, September 9, 2014, De Shields will give a talk on The Wisdome of the Ancient Art of Storytelling in the Donald Savage Theatre from 9:25 AM – 11:05 AM.

In a career spanning more than forty years, André De Shields has distinguished himself as an unparalleled actor, director, choreographer and educator. He is best known for his show stopping performances in the original Broadway productions of four legendary musicals: THE FULL MONTY, for which he received Tony, Drama Desk and Astaire Award nominations, in addition to both the Outer Critics Circle and Drama League Awards; PLAY ON! (Tony nomination), AIN’T MISBEHAVIN’ (Emmy Award) and THE WIZ (title role). De Shields is the recipient of the 2012 Fox Foundation Fellowship/Distinguished Achievement, 2009 National Black Theatre Festival Living Legend Award, and the 2007 Village Voice OBIE Award for Sustained Excellence of Performance.

As an educator, Mr. De Shields has served as Visiting Artist/Lecturer, SUNY-Buffalo State College; Harold ClurmanVisiting Professor, CUNY-Hunter College; Adjunct Professor, Gallatin School of Individualized Study, NYU; Adjunct Professor, School of Education, Health, Nursing and Arts Professions (SEHNAP), NYU; Distinguished Visiting Professor, Meadows School of the Arts, Southern Methodist University (SMU), Dallas, TX; Algur H. Meadows Distinguished Visiting Professor (SMU); DR. Martin Luther King Jr.-Rosa Parks-Cesar Chavez Distinguished Visiting Professor, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor; Distinguished Visiting Professor, Morehouse College, Atlanta, GA, among others. He has taught a wide variety of courses ranging from Shakespeare to Masterpieces of Western Literature to Musical Theatre and an interdisciplinary arts workshop in Extreme Performance: From Ancient Africa to Postmodern America.

De Shields is currently in rehearsal for the world premiere new musical The Fortress of Solitude, a co-production with Dallas Theater Center and The Public Theater in New York City, which will have performances at The Public, September 30 – November 2, 2014. The Fortress of Solitude is based on the nationally best-selling novel of the same name by 2005 MacArthur Fellow Jonathan Lethem. The musical is conceived and directed by Daniel Aukin, with a book by Itamar Moses, and music and lyrics by Michael Friedman (Love’s Labour’s Lost, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson). The Fortress of Solitude is the extraordinary coming-of-age story about 1970s Brooklyn and beyond — of black and white, soul and rap, block parties and blackouts, friendship and betrayal, comic books and 45s. And the story of what would happen if two teenagers obsessed with superheroes believed that maybe, just maybe, they could fly.

Click here to learn more about The Fortress of Solitude.

www.andredeshields.com.

The Anne Frank Project (AFP) provides tools and vocabulary for conflict resolution, community building, and identity exploration through story-building. Multiple local, national and international initiatives provide a forum for honoring the life of Anne Frank as inspiration for a peaceful world, continuing to tell the stories of victims of injustice and exploring innovations in Human Rights education. It is a forum for artists, scholars, community leaders, and activists to tell stories that inspire change, engage people in the lessons of those stories, and provide tools and vocabulary that encourage people to change their world. www.annefrankproject.buffalostate.edu

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Dinner with André De Shields at Chez Josephine
Mar. 7-Apr. 6: André De Shields, Adam Chanler-Berat, Kyle Beltran, Kevin Mambo and More Set for DTC’s World Premiere Musical The Fortress of Solitude, A Co-Production with The Public Theater
Photos & Video: The Wiz’s André De Shields Sang “So You Wanted to Meet the Wizard” in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
June 23: André De Shields, Billy Porter, Chuck Cooper, Brandon Victor Dixon, Clifton Davis, Norm Lewis, Chapman Roberts and More Set for The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
May 8: New Dramatists Presents Reading of Lonnie Carter’s Bronzeville Featuring André De Shields, Nambi Evelyn Kelley, April Matthis, and Danyon Davis
André De Shields, Mary Zimmerman, Among 4 Elliot Norton Award Nominations for Huntington’s World Premiere of The Jungle Book, a co-production with The Goodman
André De Shields, Adam Chanler-Berat, Kyle Beltran, Kevin Mambo and More Set for DTC’s World Premiere Musical The Fortress of Solitude, A Co-Production with The Public Theater
André De Shields to receive 2014 Making Waves Award; will perform “Frederick Douglass: Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory” at Florida Atlantic University
Nov. 16: Conversations with the Divine with Owais Ahmed, Baize Buzan, Kathryn Cesarz, Kamal Hans, Brian Grey, Donica Lynn, Patrese McClain and Miranda Zola at Chicago’s Victory Gardens Theater
Photos: André De Shields, Michael Shannon, Rajiv Joseph, Christine Sherrill, Doug Peck, Alexis J. Rogers, Karen Ziemba and More Celebrate 2013 Jeff Equity Awards
André De Shields Delivers Keynote at the International Conference of Fine Arts Deans in New Orleans
Photos: André De Shields, Mary Zimmerman, Akash Chopra, Richard M. Sherman, Kevin Carolan, Larry Yando, Nehal Joshi and More Celebrate The Jungle Book Opening Night at Huntington Theatre in Boston
Click here for more articles on André De Shields.

Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, President Bill Clinton and More Remember Meshach Taylor
Photos: Meshach Taylor Celebrates 67th Birthday with Arlene and Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, Jean Smart, Dennis Franz, Ernie Hudson, John Heard, Keith Szarabajka, Stuart Gordon, Shadoe Stevens and More
Photos: Maxine Hong Kingston, Billie Tsien, Bill T. Jones, Linda Ronstadt, John Kander, Julia Alvarez, Jeffrey Katzenberg Receive 2013 National Medal of Arts from President Barack Obama
Golden Globe Winner James Shigeta, Veteran of Film and TV, Dies at 85; Excerpts of 2007 A/P/A Institute Q & A with Sukhdev Sandhu
Maxine Hong Kingston, Billie Tsien, Bill T. Jones, Linda Ronstadt, John Kander, Jeffrey Katzenberg Among 12 to Receive 2013 National Medal of Arts
Photos: Artist Arlan Huang, One Brush Stroke at a Time
June 22 – July 27: Blair Underwood, Richard Thomas and Kristen Connolly Lead the Cast of The Old Globe’s Othello, helmed by Barry Edelstein
Late Night Singing with Garth Kravits at 54 Below with The Skivvies, at Jim Caruso’s Cast Party at Birdland and Michael Raye’s Soul Gathering
Photos and Video: Ben Vereen Performs at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos and Video: Obba Babatunde and cast members from the original cast of Dreamgirls perform at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Remembering Frank Trenholm Lyman III, 1968-2014; Fund Established for The Lyman Children
Remembering Civil Rights Activist Yuri Kochiyama, 1921-2014
Ruby Dee, Actress and Activist, 1922 – 2014
Fred Korematsu, American Hero and Civil Rights Activist, Dies at 86
July 31-Aug. 3: Drama Desk Nominee Joel de la Fuente stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at ACT, Helmed by Lisa Rothe
Bryan Cranston, Audra McDonald, Neil Patrick Harris, Jessie Mueller, Lena Hall, Sophie Okonedo, Kenny Leon, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder, All The Way, A Raisin in the Sun, Hedwig and the Angry Inch and More Take Home 2014 Tony Awards
Lucille Lortel Awards for Here Lies Love, Fun Home, The Open House, Good Person of Szechwan
Branden Jacob-Jenkins’ Appropriate, Lisa Kron’s Fun Home, Sonya Tayeh, Emmanuel Brown, Mia Katigbak, K. Todd Freeman, John Earl Jelks Among 2014 OBIE Award Winners
Photos: André Braugher, Ami Brabson, Christine Toy Johnson, Antoinette LaVecchia, Richard Topol, Victor Williams, Nikkole Salter, Elizabeth Van Dyke at Oni Faida Lampley’s Tough Titty at the Paradise Factory
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Celebrating my mom – AN ACTIVE VISION: BEVERLY UMEHARA…LABOR ACTIVIST…1945-1999 Crafting a Career
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang Photo by GK

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. Lia made her jazz vocalist debut in Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz “LADY” at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York.

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8/9- 8/24: Christine Toy Johnson set for World Premiere of URBAN MOMFARE at 2014 New York Fringe Festival

August 4, 2014, 9:30 am

≫ Next: Aug. 14: André De Shields, Keith David, Tony Plana, Hill Harper, Armando Riesco, Kevin Mambo, Colman Domingo, and Peter McRobbie Set for Staged Reading of Lemon Andersen’s ToasT at Guild Hall

≪ Previous: Two-time Tony Nominee and Emmy Winner André De Shields Performs FREDERICK DOUGLASS: Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory and Speaks on The Wisdome of the Ancient Art of Storytelling at AFP 2014: Change Through Stories, Sept. 8-9, 2014

Christine Toy Johnson Photo by Bruce Alan Johnson

Christine Toy Johnson (The Music Man/Broadway), Tiffan Borelli (More Of Our Parts/The Kennedy Center), Cheryl Howard (The Sensational Josephine Baker/Theatre Row), Christiana Little (The Brady Bunch/Theatre at St. Clements), Sarah Rosenthal (Ragtime/Broadway) and Gretchen Wylder (Til Divorce Do Us Part/DR2) are set for the World Premiere of Urban Momfare at the 2014 New York International Fringe Festival.

The performance schedule for Urban Momfare is Saturday, August 9th @7pm, Thursday, August 14th @2pm, Sunday, August 17th @ 7:45pm, Friday, August 22nd @ 5:15pm, Sunday, August 24th @ 3:30pm. All performances take place at Theatre 80 (Venue #7), 80 St. Marks Place (between 1st and 2nd Avenue). Tickets are $18.00 in advance at www.fringenyc.org, $24 at the door.

This romp through motherhood on Manhattan’s Upper East Side spans 17 years: “Music For Gifted and Talented Babies” to bra straps and Bellinis features a book by Pamela Weiler Grayson and Alice Jankell, music and lyrics by Pamela Weiler Grayson, musical direction by Clare Cooper and directed by Alice Jankell. Urban Momfare is being produced by Emerging Artists Theatre Company’s (Artistic Director Paul Adams), who previously presented a workshop performance of the musical at their New Work Series in March of 2013.

The design team includes sets by Tim McMath, lighting by G. Ben Swope, costumes by Nicole Wee, sound by David Suarez and projections by David Bengali.

Subways: F to 2nd Ave, N/R to 8th Street, 6 to Astor Place.

For more info visit www.urbanmomfare.com or www.fringenyc.org.

Emerging Artists Theatre acts as an incubator for new voices from the page to the stage. EAT was founded 20 years ago to provide a dynamic home where playwrights and artists explore their work from their imagination and guide it through development towards full artistic realization. It is a process that involves audience interaction with the artists and enables the artists to be the key ingredient in the development of their work. EAT is proud to have given that opportunity to over 3000 artists since its inception.

Other articles by Lia Chang:
May 1-30: Eating Cultures, A Multidisciplinary Art Exhibition at SOMArts Cultural Center, Features Christine Toy Johnson, Cathy Lu, Genevieve Erin O’Brien, Kate Hers Rhee and More
May 22: Transcending- The Wat Misaka Story to Screen in South Pasadena Public Library Community Room
Photos: André Braugher, Ami Brabson, Christine Toy Johnson, Antoinette LaVecchia, Richard Topol, Victor Williams, Nikkole Salter, Elizabeth Van Dyke at Oni Faida Lampley’s Tough Titty at the Paradise Factory
Photos: Harriet Harris, John Tartaglia, Christine Toy Johnson, Alan Muraoka, James Saito and More celebrate Ann Harada’s Debut at Lincoln Center in the American Songbook Series
Dinner with André De Shields at Chez Josephine
Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, President Bill Clinton and More Remember Meshach Taylor
Photos: Meshach Taylor Celebrates 67th Birthday with Arlene and Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, Jean Smart, Dennis Franz, Ernie Hudson, John Heard, Keith Szarabajka, Stuart Gordon, Shadoe Stevens and More
Photos: Maxine Hong Kingston, Billie Tsien, Bill T. Jones, Linda Ronstadt, John Kander, Julia Alvarez, Jeffrey Katzenberg Receive 2013 National Medal of Arts from President Barack Obama
Golden Globe Winner James Shigeta, Veteran of Film and TV, Dies at 85; Excerpts of 2007 A/P/A Institute Q & A with Sukhdev Sandhu
Photos: Artist Arlan Huang, One Brush Stroke at a Time
Late Night Singing with Garth Kravits at 54 Below with The Skivvies, at Jim Caruso’s Cast Party at Birdland and Michael Raye’s Soul Gathering
Photos and Video: Ben Vereen Performs at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos and Video: Obba Babatunde and cast members from the original cast of Dreamgirls perform at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Remembering Frank Trenholm Lyman III, 1968-2014; Fund Established for The Lyman Children
Remembering Civil Rights Activist Yuri Kochiyama, 1921-2014
Ruby Dee, Actress and Activist, 1922 – 2014
Fred Korematsu, American Hero and Civil Rights Activist, Dies at 86
Bryan Cranston, Audra McDonald, Neil Patrick Harris, Jessie Mueller, Lena Hall, Sophie Okonedo, Kenny Leon, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder, All The Way, A Raisin in the Sun, Hedwig and the Angry Inch and More Take Home 2014 Tony Awards
Lucille Lortel Awards for Here Lies Love, Fun Home, The Open House, Good Person of Szechwan
Branden Jacob-Jenkins’ Appropriate, Lisa Kron’s Fun Home, Sonya Tayeh, Emmanuel Brown, Mia Katigbak, K. Todd Freeman, John Earl Jelks Among 2014 OBIE Award Winners
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Celebrating my mom – AN ACTIVE VISION: BEVERLY UMEHARA…LABOR ACTIVIST…1945-1999 Crafting a Career
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang Photo by GK

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist. Lia recently starred as Carole Barbara in Lorey Hayes’ Power Play at the 2013 National Black Theatre Festival in Winston-Salem, N.C., with Pauletta Pearson Washington, Roscoe Orman, Lorey Hayes, Marcus Naylor, and made her jazz vocalist debut in Rome Neal’s Banana Puddin’ Jazz “LADY” at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York. She is profiled in Jade Magazine.

All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2014 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 liachangpr@gmail.com

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Aug. 14: André De Shields, Keith David, Tony Plana, Hill Harper, Armando Riesco, Kevin Mambo, Colman Domingo, and Peter McRobbie Set for Staged Reading of Lemon Andersen’s ToasT at Guild Hall

August 7, 2014, 3:08 pm

≫ Next: Sept. 17: Tony Award Winning Playwright David Henry Hwang Talks with A Chinaman’s Chance’s Author Eric Liu at 92nd Street Y

≪ Previous: 8/9- 8/24: Christine Toy Johnson set for World Premiere of URBAN MOMFARE at 2014 New York Fringe Festival

Chris Mack in association with Guild Hall is presenting a staged reading of ToasT by Lemon Andersen featuring Keith David (Enlisted, Platoon, Ken Burns’ “Jazz,” There’s Something About Mary), André De Shields (The Full Monty, Play On!, The Wiz, Ain’t Misbehavin), Tony Plana (“Ugly Betty,” “The West Wing,” Richard III), Hill Harper (“CSI:NY,” 1982), Armando Riesco (The Happiest Song Plays Last, 25th Hour), Kevin Mambo (Fela!, Cadillac Records), Colman Domingo (The Butler, Passing Strange, The Scottsboro Boys), and Peter McRobbie (“Boardwalk Empire,” “Law & Order,” Lincoln), on Thursday, August 14, 2014 at Guild Hall, 158 Main Street, East Hampton Village at 8 P.M.

ToasT is an electrifying new play by acclaimed spoken word artist and Tony Award-winning writer Lemon Andersen (The Public’s County of Kings: The Beautiful Struggle, HBO’s “Def Poetry”), developed and directed by Andersen’s County of Kings collaborator Elise Thoron.

A Public Theater commission first presented at The Public’s Under the Radar Festival, ToasT ingeniously weaves major characters from black oral narratives into a gripping story about a group of inmates fighting to keep their minds free amidst the 1971 riots that rocked Attica Prison. After 27 years served for murder in Attica’s D-Block, Willie Green, aka Dolomite, has become an unlikely father figure to his cellmates, folklore heroes like Jesse James, Hobo Ben, Annabelle Jones, Stackolee and Hard Rock. Though word is brewing throughout Attica that a riot is coming, Dolomite would rather not get involved. But when one of the youngest inmates in their block is viciously beaten by guards for protesting prison conditions, Dolomite has to decide whether to join the riots or lock himself in his cell and hope for a promised parole date and the chance to taste freedom. Honoring the spoken word narratives recited in pool halls, bars and prisons across America by generations of black poets, ToasT is a stunning new play about men trying to live free in a system—and a world—designed to keep them chained. ToasT honors an art form of reciting poetry based on characters and situations from the Black Experience, mostly performed in prisons, bars and pool halls. ToasT was developed at the Sundance Institute Theatre Lab and the Sundance Institute Playwrights Retreat at Ucross. Funding for the development of ToasT is provided by Time Warner Inc., and the MAP Fund, a program of Creative Capital supported by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

Tickets are $50 prime orchestra ($48 members), $30 orchestra and balcony ($28 members), and can be purchased online at www.GuildHall.org or at Box Office 631-324-4050; www.theatermania.com; or 1.866.811.4111.

Other articles about André De Shields:
Two-time Tony Nominee and Emmy Winner André De Shields Performs FREDERICK DOUGLASS: Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory and Speaks on The Wisdome of The Ancient Art of Storytelling at AFP 2014: Change Through Stories, Sept. 8-9, 2014
Dinner with André De Shields at Chez Josephine
Mar. 7-Apr. 6: André De Shields, Adam Chanler-Berat, Kyle Beltran, Kevin Mambo and More Set for DTC’s World Premiere Musical The Fortress of Solitude, A Co-Production with The Public Theater
Photos & Video: The Wiz’s André De Shields Sang “So You Wanted to Meet the Wizard” in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
June 23: André De Shields, Billy Porter, Chuck Cooper, Brandon Victor Dixon, Clifton Davis, Norm Lewis, Chapman Roberts and More Set for The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
May 8: New Dramatists Presents Reading of Lonnie Carter’s Bronzeville Featuring André De Shields, Nambi Evelyn Kelley, April Matthis, and Danyon Davis
André De Shields, Mary Zimmerman, Among 4 Elliot Norton Award Nominations for Huntington’s World Premiere of The Jungle Book, a co-production with The Goodman
André De Shields, Adam Chanler-Berat, Kyle Beltran, Kevin Mambo and More Set for DTC’s World Premiere Musical The Fortress of Solitude, A Co-Production with The Public Theater
André De Shields to receive 2014 Making Waves Award; will perform “Frederick Douglass: Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory” at Florida Atlantic University
Nov. 16: Conversations with the Divine with Owais Ahmed, Baize Buzan, Kathryn Cesarz, Kamal Hans, Brian Grey, Donica Lynn, Patrese McClain and Miranda Zola at Chicago’s Victory Gardens Theater
Photos: André De Shields, Michael Shannon, Rajiv Joseph, Christine Sherrill, Doug Peck, Alexis J. Rogers, Karen Ziemba and More Celebrate 2013 Jeff Equity Awards
André De Shields Delivers Keynote at the International Conference of Fine Arts Deans in New Orleans
Photos: André De Shields, Mary Zimmerman, Akash Chopra, Richard M. Sherman, Kevin Carolan, Larry Yando, Nehal Joshi and More Celebrate The Jungle Book Opening Night at Huntington Theatre in Boston
Click here for more articles on André De Shields.

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, President Bill Clinton and More Remember Meshach Taylor
Photos: Meshach Taylor Celebrates 67th Birthday with Arlene and Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, Jean Smart, Dennis Franz, Ernie Hudson, John Heard, Keith Szarabajka, Stuart Gordon, Shadoe Stevens and More
Photos: Maxine Hong Kingston, Billie Tsien, Bill T. Jones, Linda Ronstadt, John Kander, Julia Alvarez, Jeffrey Katzenberg Receive 2013 National Medal of Arts from President Barack Obama
Golden Globe Winner James Shigeta, Veteran of Film and TV, Dies at 85; Excerpts of 2007 A/P/A Institute Q & A with Sukhdev Sandhu
Maxine Hong Kingston, Billie Tsien, Bill T. Jones, Linda Ronstadt, John Kander, Jeffrey Katzenberg Among 12 to Receive 2013 National Medal of Arts
Photos: Artist Arlan Huang, One Brush Stroke at a Time
Late Night Singing with Garth Kravits at 54 Below with The Skivvies, at Jim Caruso’s Cast Party at Birdland and Michael Raye’s Soul Gathering
Photos and Video: Ben Vereen Performs at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos and Video: Obba Babatunde and cast members from the original cast of Dreamgirls perform at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Remembering Frank Trenholm Lyman III, 1968-2014; Fund Established for The Lyman Children
Remembering Civil Rights Activist Yuri Kochiyama, 1921-2014
Ruby Dee, Actress and Activist, 1922 – 2014
Fred Korematsu, American Hero and Civil Rights Activist, Dies at 86
July 31-Aug. 3: Drama Desk Nominee Joel de la Fuente stars in Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths at ACT, Helmed by Lisa Rothe
Bryan Cranston, Audra McDonald, Neil Patrick Harris, Jessie Mueller, Lena Hall, Sophie Okonedo, Kenny Leon, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder, All The Way, A Raisin in the Sun, Hedwig and the Angry Inch and More Take Home 2014 Tony Awards
Lucille Lortel Awards for Here Lies Love, Fun Home, The Open House, Good Person of Szechwan
Branden Jacob-Jenkins’ Appropriate, Lisa Kron’s Fun Home, Sonya Tayeh, Emmanuel Brown, Mia Katigbak, K. Todd Freeman, John Earl Jelks Among 2014 OBIE Award Winners
Photos: André Braugher, Ami Brabson, Christine Toy Johnson, Antoinette LaVecchia, Richard Topol, Victor Williams, Nikkole Salter, Elizabeth Van Dyke at Oni Faida Lampley’s Tough Titty at the Paradise Factory
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Celebrating my mom – AN ACTIVE VISION: BEVERLY UMEHARA…LABOR ACTIVIST…1945-1999 Crafting a Career
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang Photo by GK

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Sept. 17: Tony Award Winning Playwright David Henry Hwang Talks with A Chinaman’s Chance’s Author Eric Liu at 92nd Street Y

August 10, 2014, 5:47 pm

≫ Next: Sept. 13- Oct. 12: Jennifer Lim, Ruy Iskandar, Francis Jue, Jodi Long, Jo Mei and Andrew Pang Set for Goodman Theatre’s World Premiere Co-production with Manhattan Theatre Club of The World of Extreme Happiness by Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig

≪ Previous: Aug. 14: André De Shields, Keith David, Tony Plana, Hill Harper, Armando Riesco, Kevin Mambo, Colman Domingo, and Peter McRobbie Set for Staged Reading of Lemon Andersen’s ToasT at Guild Hall

Eric Liu and David Henry Hwang

What does it mean to be Chinese American in this moment? Tony Award-winning playwright David Henry Hwang (M. Butterfly,Yellow Face, Kung Fu) joins author and former White House speechwriter Eric Liu on Wednesday, September 17, 2014, at the 92nd Street Y, Buttenwieser Hall, 1395 Lexington Avenue in New York City at 7:30 P.M., to investigate.

From Zappos CEO Tony Hseih to “tiger mom” Amy Chua to the Houston Rockets’ Jeremy Lin, Chinese Americans are now arriving at the highest levels of American business, civic life and culture—at the same moment when China has emerged at the center of the global scene.

Copies of Eric Liu’s A Chinaman’s Chance: One Family’s Journey and the Chinese American Dream will be available for purchase and Liu will sign copies following the event.

Tickets are $30 and can purchased online here.

Eric Liu is an author, educator, and civic entrepreneur. He is the founder and CEO of Citizen University, which promotes and teaches the art of great citizenship through a portfolio of national programs (www.citizenuniversity.us). His books include the national bestseller “The Gardens of Democracy,” co-authored with Nick Hanauer. He also co-authored “The True Patriot” with Hanauer, and together the two have created the True Patriot Network to advance the book’s ideals of progressive patriotism. His most recent book, “A Chinaman’s Chance,” will be published in July, 2014. His first book, “The Accidental Asian: Notes of a Native Speaker,” was a New York Times Notable Book featured in the PBS documentary “Matters of Race.” His other books include “Guiding Lights: How to Mentor” – and “Find Life’s Purpose, the Official Book of National Mentoring Month”; and “Imagination First,” co-authored with Scott Noppe-Brandon of the Lincoln Center Institute, which explores ways to unlock imagination in education, politics, business and the arts.

Mr. Liu served as a White House speechwriter for President Bill Clinton and later as the President’s deputy domestic policy adviser. After the White House, he was an executive at the digital media company RealNetworks. In 2002 he was named one of the World Economic Forum’s Global Leaders of Tomorrow, and in 2010 he was awarded the Bill Grace Leadership Legacy Award by the Center for Ethical Leadership.

Mr. Liu lives in Seattle, where he teaches civic leadership at the University of Washington and hosts an acclaimed television interview program called “Seattle Voices”. In addition to speaking regularly at venues across the country, he also serves on numerous nonprofit and civic boards. He is the co-founder of the Washington Alliance for Gun Responsibility. A member of the national leadership council of Communities in Schools and the American Association of Colleges and Universities, he is a graduate of Yale College and Harvard Law School. A regular columnist for CNN.com and a correspondent for TheAtlantic.com, Eric can be found on Twitter @ericpliu.

David Henry Hwang‘s work includes the plays M. Butterfly, Chinglish, Yellow Face, Golden Child, The Dance and the Railroad, and FOB, as well as the Broadway musicals Aida (co-author), Flower Drum Song (2002 revival), and Tarzan. Upcoming productions include two new musicals: The Forgotten Arm, with music and lyrics by Aimee Mann and Paul Bryan, for the Public Theater; and Pretty Dead Girl, with music and lyrics by Anne-Marie Milazzo.

As America’s most-produced living opera librettist, he has written four pieces with composer Philip Glass, including The Voyage (Metropolitan Opera, 1992), as well as Osvaldo Golijov’s Ainadamar (two 2007 Grammy Awards), Bright Sheng’s The Silver River (1997), Unsuk Chin’s Alice in Wonderland (2007 “World Premiere of the Year” by Opernwelt magazine), Howard Shore’s The Fly (2008) and Huang Ruo’s An American Soldier (2014). Upcoming operas include Through the Looking Glass with Unsuk Chin for the Royal Opera House Covent Garden and Dream of the Red Chamber with Bright Sheng for the San Francisco Opera.

Mr. Hwang penned the screenplays for M. Butterfly (1993), starring Jeremy Irons and John Lone; Golden Gate (1994), starring Matt Dillon and Joan Chen; and Possession (co-writer, 2002), starring Gwyneth Paltrow and Aaron Eckhart. With the pop star Prince, he co-wrote the song “Solo,” released on Prince’s 1994 gold album Come. He is currently writing a feature film for Dreamworks Animation and the film adaptation of Chinglish, to be directed by Justin Lin (Better Luck Tomorrow, the Fast & Furious franchise), as well as creating an original television series, “Shanghai,” for Lions Gate and Bravo.

Hwang is a Tony Award® winner and three-time nominee, a three-time Obie Award winner, and a two-time Finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. He received the 2011 PEN/Laura Pels Award, the 2012 William Inge Award, the 2012 Steinberg “Mimi” Award, and the 2014 Doris Duke Artist Award, and recently completed his the Residency One Playwright term at NYC’s Signature Theatre, which produced a season of his plays, including the world premiere of his newest work Kung Fu in February 2014. He serves as President of Young Playwrights Inc, and sits on the boards of the Lark Play Development Center, The American Theatre Wing, and The Actors Fund.

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, President Bill Clinton and More Remember Meshach Taylor
Photos: Meshach Taylor Celebrates 67th Birthday with Arlene and Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, Jean Smart, Dennis Franz, Ernie Hudson, John Heard, Keith Szarabajka, Stuart Gordon, Shadoe Stevens and More
Dinner with André De Shields at Chez Josephine
Late Night Singing with Garth Kravits at 54 Below with The Skivvies, at Jim Caruso’s Cast Party at Birdland and Michael Raye’s Soul Gathering
Two-time Tony Nominee and Emmy Winner André De Shields Performs FREDERICK DOUGLASS: Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory and Speaks on The Wisdome of The Ancient Art of Storytelling at AFP 2014: Change Through Stories, Sept. 8-9, 2014
Photos: Maxine Hong Kingston, Billie Tsien, Bill T. Jones, Linda Ronstadt, John Kander, Julia Alvarez, Jeffrey Katzenberg Receive 2013 National Medal of Arts from President Barack Obama
Golden Globe Winner James Shigeta, Veteran of Film and TV, Dies at 85; Excerpts of 2007 A/P/A Institute Q & A with Sukhdev Sandhu
Photos: Artist Arlan Huang, One Brush Stroke at a Time
Photos and Video: Ben Vereen Performs at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos and Video: Obba Babatunde and cast members from the original cast of Dreamgirls perform at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos & Video: The Wiz’s André De Shields Sang “So You Wanted to Meet the Wizard” in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
Ruby Dee, Actress and Activist, 1922 – 2014
Bryan Cranston, Audra McDonald, Neil Patrick Harris, Jessie Mueller, Lena Hall, Sophie Okonedo, Kenny Leon, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder, All The Way, A Raisin in the Sun, Hedwig and the Angry Inch and More Take Home 2014 Tony Awards
Signature Theatre to Be Honored with the 2014 Regional Theatre Tony Award
Remembering Civil Rights Activist Yuri Kochiyama, 1921-2014
Branden Jacob-Jenkins’ Appropriate, Lisa Kron’s Fun Home, Sonya Tayeh, Emmanuel Brown, Mia Katigbak, K. Todd Freeman, John Earl Jelks Among 2014 OBIE Award Winners
Lucille Lortel Awards for Here Lies Love, Fun Home, The Open House, Good Person of Szechwan
Photos: Backstage with Michi Barall and the cast of Regina Taylor’s stop.reset. at Signature Theatre
Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

David Henry Hwang Articles:
Aug. 17: David Henry Hwang, Adriane Lenox, Chuck Cooper, Kevin Carolan, Stephanie J. Block, Caissie Levy & More will Sleep on the Streets for Covenant House’s Sleep Out: Broadway Edition
David Henry Hwang and Lynn Nottage Appointed to the Playwriting Faculty of Columbia University School of the Arts Theatre Program
Tony Award Winning Playwright David Henry Hwang Receives $275,000 Doris Duke Artist Award
Signature’s Production of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu, starring Cole Horibe, Phoebe Strole and Francis Jue, extends through April 6, 2014
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards
Click here for more articles on David Henry Hwang.

Lia Chang Photo by GK

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Sept. 13- Oct. 12: Jennifer Lim, Ruy Iskandar, Francis Jue, Jodi Long, Jo Mei and Andrew Pang Set for Goodman Theatre’s World Premiere Co-production with Manhattan Theatre Club of The World of Extreme Happiness by Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig

August 15, 2014, 9:51 pm

≫ Next: Aug. 26 – Sept. 20: Chay Yew Helms World Premiere of The Playwrights Realm’s Off-Broadway Production of MY MAÑANA COMES by Elizabeth Irwin at the Peter Jay Sharp Theater

≪ Previous: Sept. 17: Tony Award Winning Playwright David Henry Hwang Talks with A Chinaman’s Chance’s Author Eric Liu at 92nd Street Y

Jennifer Lim Photo by Lia Chang

Goodman Theatre is presenting The World of Extreme Happiness by Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig directed by Eric Ting, a world premiere co-production with Manhattan Theatre Club, September 13 – October 12 (opening night is September 22) in the Owen Theatre, 170 N Dearborn Street Chicago, IL 60601.

Both the Chicago and New York runs of the play feature Jennifer Lim (Chinglish at the Goodman and on Broadway) as Sunny, a young woman who leaves her family behind for the promise of a new life under the bright neon lights of Shenzhen; Ruy Iskandar (Pete/Ran Feng/DJ Happy); Francis Jue (Old Lao/Gao Chen/Mr. Destiny); Jodi Long (Artemis/Wang Ha) Jo Mei (Ming-Ming/Qing Shu/Xiao Li); and Andrew Pang (James Lin/Li Han).

Andy Pang and Jo Mei, who play siblings in the critically-acclaimed indie film A Picture of You by J.P. Chan, after a screening at AMC 7 Theaters in New York on June 22, 2014. Photo by Lia Chang

Jodi Long, a filmmaker and actor, who is currently appearing on Sullivan and Son with Steve Byrne. Photo by Lia Chang

Francis Jue. Photo by Lia Chang

Ruy Iskandar. Photo by Lia Chang

Unwanted from the moment she’s born, Sunny is determined to escape her life in rural China and forge a new identity in the city. As naïve as she is ambitious, Sunny views her new job in a grueling factory as a stepping stone to untold opportunities. When fate casts her as a company spokeswoman at a sham PR event, her bright outlook starts to unravel in a series of harrowing and darkly comic events, as she begins to question a system enriching itself by destroying its own people.

Previously presented in workshop productions—first at the Goodman in New Stages (Fall 2012) and the following year at the National Theatre in London, where it was critically hailed as “hard-hitting and bruisingly funny” (Time Out London)—The World of Extreme Happiness is a provocative examination of individuals struggling to shape their destinies amid China’s economic transformation.

The design team includes Mimi Lien (set), Mihail Fiksel (sound), Jenny Mannis (costumes) and Tyler Micoleau (lighting). Kim Osgood is the production stage manager. Following the Goodman run, The World of Extreme Happiness begins previews at Manhattan Theatre Club on February 3, 2015 for a February 24 opening night at New York City Center – Stage I.

Subscriptions, starting at $90, are now on sale and individual tickets ($10 – $40 for The World of Extreme Happiness); call 312.443.3800 or visit GoodmanTheatre.org.

About Goodman Theatre
Goodman Theatre is world-renowned for the quality and scope of its artistic programming and its commitment to improving life in the community. Artistic Director Robert Falls’ and Executive Director Roche Schulfer’s leadership has earned unparalleled artistic distinction and experienced unprecedented success. Together, they have staged more than 80 world premieres, earning numerous awards—including the Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre (1992) and the Pulitzer Prize for Ruined (2009)—and produced more than 25 new work commissions. Founded in 1925 and housed in a state-of- the-art two-theater complex in the downtown Chicago Theatre District, the Goodman is Chicago’s oldest and largest not-for- profit producing theater, named “Best Regional Theatre” by Time magazine and “top dog of the Chicago theater scene” by Frommer’s. American Airlines is the Exclusive Airline of Goodman Theatre. Ruth Ann M. Gillis is Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Sherry John is President of the Women’s Board and Lauren Blair is President of the Scenemakers Board, the Goodman’s young professionals auxiliary group.

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Francis Jue, Bryan Cranston, Olympia Dukakis, Paul Daigneault, All The Way, The Jungle Book, The Flick, Tribes, Hairspray Among 32nd Annual Elliot Norton Award Winners
10 minutes with Sullivan & Son’s Jodi Long, Award Winning Actor and Filmmaker
Signature’s Production of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu, starring Cole Horibe, Phoebe Strole and Francis Jue, extends through April 6, 2014
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Sept. 17: Tony Award Winning Playwright David Henry Hwang Talks with A Chinaman’s Chance’s Author Eric Liu at 92nd Street Y
Aug. 16: Hiroshima & Kenny Endo Taiko Ensemble Perform Benefit Concerts for Palo Alto Buddhist Temple 100th Anniversary
Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, President Bill Clinton and More Remember Meshach Taylor
Photos: Meshach Taylor Celebrates 67th Birthday with Arlene and Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, Jean Smart, Dennis Franz, Ernie Hudson, John Heard, Keith Szarabajka, Stuart Gordon, Shadoe Stevens and More
Dinner with André De Shields at Chez Josephine
Late Night Singing with Garth Kravits at 54 Below with The Skivvies, at Jim Caruso’s Cast Party at Birdland and Michael Raye’s Soul Gathering
Aug. 17: David Henry Hwang, Adriane Lenox, Chuck Cooper, Kevin Carolan, Stephanie J. Block, Caissie Levy & More will Sleep on the Streets for Covenant House’s Sleep Out: Broadway Edition
Two-time Tony Nominee and Emmy Winner André De Shields Performs FREDERICK DOUGLASS: Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory and Speaks on The Wisdome of The Ancient Art of Storytelling at AFP 2014: Change Through Stories, Sept. 8-9, 2014
Photos: Maxine Hong Kingston, Billie Tsien, Bill T. Jones, Linda Ronstadt, John Kander, Julia Alvarez, Jeffrey Katzenberg Receive 2013 National Medal of Arts from President Barack Obama
Golden Globe Winner James Shigeta, Veteran of Film and TV, Dies at 85; Excerpts of 2007 A/P/A Institute Q & A with Sukhdev Sandhu
Photos: Artist Arlan Huang, One Brush Stroke at a Time
Photos and Video: Ben Vereen Performs at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos and Video: Obba Babatunde and cast members from the original cast of Dreamgirls perform at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos & Video: The Wiz’s André De Shields Sang “So You Wanted to Meet the Wizard” in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
Ruby Dee, Actress and Activist, 1922 – 2014
Bryan Cranston, Audra McDonald, Neil Patrick Harris, Jessie Mueller, Lena Hall, Sophie Okonedo, Kenny Leon, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder, All The Way, A Raisin in the Sun, Hedwig and the Angry Inch and More Take Home 2014 Tony Awards
Signature Theatre to Be Honored with the 2014 Regional Theatre Tony Award
Remembering Civil Rights Activist Yuri Kochiyama, 1921-2014
Branden Jacob-Jenkins’ Appropriate, Lisa Kron’s Fun Home, Sonya Tayeh, Emmanuel Brown, Mia Katigbak, K. Todd Freeman, John Earl Jelks Among 2014 OBIE Award Winners
Lucille Lortel Awards for Here Lies Love, Fun Home, The Open House, Good Person of Szechwan
David Henry Hwang and Lynn Nottage Appointed to the Playwriting Faculty of Columbia University School of the Arts Theatre Program
Tony Award Winning Playwright David Henry Hwang Receives $275,000 Doris Duke Artist Award
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards
Photos: Backstage with Michi Barall and the cast of Regina Taylor’s stop.reset. at Signature Theatre
Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang Photo by GK

↧

Aug. 26 – Sept. 20: Chay Yew Helms World Premiere of The Playwrights Realm’s Off-Broadway Production of MY MAÑANA COMES by Elizabeth Irwin at the Peter Jay Sharp Theater

August 17, 2014, 2:06 pm

≫ Next: Sept. 30 – Nov. 2: André de Shields, Adam Chanler-Berat, Kevin Mambo, Rebecca Naomi Jones, Kyle Beltran & More Set for THE FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE at The Public, A Co-Production with DTC

≪ Previous: Sept. 13- Oct. 12: Jennifer Lim, Ruy Iskandar, Francis Jue, Jodi Long, Jo Mei and Andrew Pang Set for Goodman Theatre’s World Premiere Co-production with Manhattan Theatre Club of The World of Extreme Happiness by Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig

Chay Yew. Photo by Lia Chang

The Playwrights Realm (Katherine Kovner, Artistic Director; Alexander Orbovich, Managing Director) is presenting the world premiere of MY MAÑANA COMES by Elizabeth Irwin, directed by Chay Yew (Artistic Director for Victory Gardens Theater, Chicago). The production runs August 26th through September 20th, 2014 with a September 4th opening at the Peter Jay Sharp Theater (416 W. 42nd Street, NYC).

Tickets are on sale through www.TicketCentral.com, by calling (212) 279-4200, noon to 8 p.m. daily or by visiting the Ticket Central box office at 416 W. 42nd Street. Tickets range in price from $25 to $35 for all regular performances (September 4th thru 20th). The Playwrights Realm is pleased to bring back their successful 1to5 Ticket Drive initiative during preview performances, wherein tickets for the first preview start at $1 and increase by $1 for each preview performance that week (August 26th – $1; August 27th – $2; August 28th – $3; August 29th – $4; August 30th – $5). Tickets for August 31st, September 2nd and September 3rd are $15. Student rush tickets are available for $10 for all performances from August 31st thru September 20th.

The cast includes Jason Bowen (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Huntington Theatre) as Peter, Jose Joaquin Perez (Intar’s Adoration of the Old Woman by José Rivera) as Jorge, Brian Quijada (Where Did We Sit on the Bus, Terra Nova Collective) as Whalid and Reza Salazar (Por Gusto, Repertorio Español) as Pepe.

Just beyond the elegant dining room of an Upper East Side restaurant, four busboys angle for shifts, pray for tips, and cling to dreams of life beyond their dingy back-of-house grind. Expertly juggling delicate entrees, fussy customers and beer-swilling line cooks, the young men face off with management and each other. As tensions reach a boiling point, how far will each of them go to see their own mañana come?

The design team includes Wilson Chin (Scenic Design), Moria Sine Clinton (Costume Design), Nicole Pearce (Lighting Design) and Mikhail Fiksel (Sound Design). Production Core is the Production Supervisor. Winnie Y. Lok is the Production Stage Manager and Catherine Lynch is the Assistant Stage Manager.

Chay Yew is the artistic director for the Victory Gardens Theater. He is a recipient of the Obie and DramaLogue Awards for Direction.

His productions have been cited by the Los Angeles Times and New York Times as one of the “Ten Best Productions of the Year;” Seattle Times and Strangers’ Best Achievement in Theatre; and was named Best Director by Seattle Post-Intelligencer. He has directed world premieres by playwrights Jose Rivera, Naomi Iizuka, Kia Corthron, Julia Cho, David Adjmi and Jessica Goldberg, and performance artists Rha Goddess, Universes, Alec Mapa, Sandra Tsing Loh and Brian Freeman.

He is the recipient of the London Fringe Award for Best Playwright and Best Play, George and Elisabeth Marton Playwriting Award, GLAAD Media Award, Asian Pacific Gays and Friends’ Community Visibility Award, Made in America Award, AEA/SAG/AFTRA 2004 Diversity Honor, and Robert Chesley Award; he has received grants from the McKnight Foundation, Rockefeller MAP Fund and the TCG/Pew National Residency Program.

Chay is also an accomplished and widely respected playwright, and his plays are published in two titles, The Hyphenated American Plays and Porcelain and A Language of Their Own, by Grove Press; the latter was nominated for a Lamda Literary Award. He is presently editing a new anthology Version 3.0: Contemporary Asian American Plays for TCG Publications. An alumnus of New Dramatists, he has held residencies at Mu Lan Theatre Company, Northwest Asian American Theatre Company and East West Players.

He serves on the National Advisory Board at the Playwrights Center and the Artistic Advisory Board of Partial Comfort Theatre. He is a New York Theatre Workshop Usual Suspect and Vineyard Theatre Community of Artists. He has also served on the Board of Directors of Theatre Communications Group and is presently on the Executive Board of the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers. Upcoming productions include the world premiere of Dael Orlandersmith’s Black and Blue Boys at Berkeley Repertory Theatre and the Goodman Theatre (spring 2012).

Playwright Elizabeth Irwin was born in Worcester, raised by Brooklyn and finished by el D.F. (aka Mexico City). She was a 2013-14 Playwrights Realm Writing Fellow and is a member of the Public Theater’s 2015 Emerging Writer’s Group. Her play My Mañana Comes will receive its off-Broadway debut in September 2014 at the Peter Jay Sharp Theater as Playwright Realm’s Page One Production. She will continue her work with Playwrights Realm as their 2014-15 Page One Resident Playwright. She was a member of the 2012-13 Soho Rep Writer/Director Lab. Her short play Origin was selected for the Estrogenius Festival (Manhattan Theater Source) and her play Brooklyn Bets Alexi won 3rd place in the MetLife Nuestras Voces competition (El Repertorio Español). Elizabeth is a graduate of Amherst and Harvard and works in the New York City public schools. She is also a pretty great procrasti-baker.

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Sept. 13- Oct. 12: Jennifer Lim, Ruy Iskandar, Francis Jue, Jodi Long, Jo Mei and Andrew Pang Set for Goodman Theatre’s World Premiere Co-production with Manhattan Theatre Club of The World of Extreme Happiness by Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig
Sept. 17: Tony Award Winning Playwright David Henry Hwang Talks with A Chinaman’s Chance’s Author Eric Liu at 92nd Street Y
Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, President Bill Clinton and More Remember Meshach Taylor
Photos: Meshach Taylor Celebrates 67th Birthday with Arlene and Joe Mantegna, Delta Burke, Gerald McRaney, Jean Smart, Dennis Franz, Ernie Hudson, John Heard, Keith Szarabajka, Stuart Gordon, Shadoe Stevens and More
Dinner with André De Shields at Chez Josephine
Late Night Singing with Garth Kravits at 54 Below with The Skivvies, at Jim Caruso’s Cast Party at Birdland and Michael Raye’s Soul Gathering
Two-time Tony Nominee and Emmy Winner André De Shields Performs FREDERICK DOUGLASS: Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory and Speaks on The Wisdome of The Ancient Art of Storytelling at AFP 2014: Change Through Stories, Sept. 8-9, 2014
Photos: Maxine Hong Kingston, Billie Tsien, Bill T. Jones, Linda Ronstadt, John Kander, Julia Alvarez, Jeffrey Katzenberg Receive 2013 National Medal of Arts from President Barack Obama
Golden Globe Winner James Shigeta, Veteran of Film and TV, Dies at 85; Excerpts of 2007 A/P/A Institute Q & A with Sukhdev Sandhu
Photos: Artist Arlan Huang, One Brush Stroke at a Time
Photos and Video: Ben Vereen Performs at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos and Video: Obba Babatunde and cast members from the original cast of Dreamgirls perform at Carnegie Hall in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream
Photos & Video: The Wiz’s André De Shields Sang “So You Wanted to Meet the Wizard” in The Black Stars of The Great White Way Broadway Reunion: Live The Dream at Carnegie Hall
Ruby Dee, Actress and Activist, 1922 – 2014
Bryan Cranston, Audra McDonald, Neil Patrick Harris, Jessie Mueller, Lena Hall, Sophie Okonedo, Kenny Leon, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder, All The Way, A Raisin in the Sun, Hedwig and the Angry Inch and More Take Home 2014 Tony Awards
Remembering Civil Rights Activist Yuri Kochiyama, 1921-2014
Branden Jacob-Jenkins’ Appropriate, Lisa Kron’s Fun Home, Sonya Tayeh, Emmanuel Brown, Mia Katigbak, K. Todd Freeman, John Earl Jelks Among 2014 OBIE Award Winners
Francis Jue, Bryan Cranston, Olympia Dukakis, Paul Daigneault, All The Way, The Jungle Book, The Flick, Tribes, Hairspray Among 32nd Annual Elliot Norton Award Winners
10 minutes with Sullivan & Son’s Jodi Long, Award Winning Actor and Filmmaker
Photos: Backstage and Opening Night of Signature’s World Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Kung Fu
Lucille Lortel Awards for Here Lies Love, Fun Home, The Open House, Good Person of Szechwan
David Henry Hwang and Lynn Nottage Appointed to the Playwriting Faculty of Columbia University School of the Arts Theatre Program
Tony Award Winning Playwright David Henry Hwang Receives $275,000 Doris Duke Artist Award
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Annie Baker and Rajiv Joseph honored at Sixth Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards
Photos: Backstage with Michi Barall and the cast of Regina Taylor’s stop.reset. at Signature Theatre
Photos: The 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards and After Party
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.