Filipino American set designer Lex Marcos preps play on racism and border dispute

By WALTER ANG
Aug. 29, 2018
USA and Canada Section, Inquirer.net
http://usa.inquirer.net/15118/fil-set- designer-preps-play-racism-border- dispute

SEATTLE — Filipino American Lex Marcos has designed the sets for Intiman Theatre's comedy "Native Gardens," which opens in September at the Jones Playhouse.

Scale model of Lex Marcos' set design for Intiman Theatre's production of "Native Gardens."

Written by Latin American playwright Karen Zacarias, well-intentioned neighbors transform into feuding enemies in the play when cultures and gardens clash.

PhD-candidate Tania and her spouse Pablo, a lawyer, have just purchased a home next to well-established and English garden-owning older couple Virginia and Frank.

A dispute over a fence line spirals into an all-out border dispute, exposing everyone's biases on race, class, privilege and taste.

Arguments and tolerance

Zacarias, a native of Mexico who has lived in Washington, DC since 1991, conceived the play after a dinner party where guests traded horror stories about feuds with their neighbors.

Lex Marcos.
Photo by Joann Aquino

She realized that arguments "internationally, locally, whatever" are about "what your place is in the world and culture."

Director Arlene Martinez-Vazquez said there are many reasons why she wanted to direct the play."These characters are highly educated and funny, a combination rarely seen on our stages. I love the approach it takes on the very timely border conversations plaguing our nation. It acknowledges the many perspectives and points of view and with great empathy.

"At its core, 'Native Gardens' is really about tolerance, understanding and balance, which really, is what the world needs now. Desperately."

Design

Marcos was a set designer and actor in Manila prior to moving to Seattle to take up a master's in scenic design at University of Washington's School of Drama, which he completed last year.

His design credits in Seattle include "We Are Pussy Riot or Everything is PR" (Theater Battery), "The Who and The What" and "The Nance" (ArtsWest Playhouse and Gallery) last year; "American Hwangap" (West of Lenin) and "Welcome to Arroyo's" (Theater Schmeater) earlier this year.

His most recent credits are Mamches Productions' staging of Off-Broadway musical "Disenchanted" (which was co-created by Fil-Am director Fiely Matias) and Theater Battery's "Alma (or #nowall)."

Arguments

"I was laughing in some scenes when I read it for the first time," says Marcos. "How it was written is very clever. It tackles the timely issues of race, gender and cultural differences. At the same time, it touches the very essence of human compassion."

He even had a difficult time taking any particular side given each character's arguments. "Audiences will love these four intelligent characters. The comedy is so genuine that there are moments in the play that you can imagine happening in real life."

"I just started scribbling how these characters would move in a space, not thinking about the whole picture yet, just figures interacting with one another."

Visual cues

Marcos took visual cues from the script. "The geography and the condition of the two backyards were well described in the play," he says.

Marcos' hand-drawn and computer graphic renderings of his set design for "Native Gardens."

He then researched images of historic houses in Washington, DC (where the play is set) as well as what flowers and plants grow in different seasons.

"I browsed at some paintings of Norman Rockwell and film images of Wes Anderson. This was not to imitate the style but to have a sense of how to ground the set design in terms of graphic treatment and colors."

"Director Arlene Martinez-Vazquez's meticulous eye on details was significantly helpful with my process as well as the good aesthetic and practical insights from our artistic director Jennifer Zeyl, who's also a great and experienced designer in her own right," he adds.

Upcoming

After "Native Gardens," Marcos' future set design assignments will be seen at the 12th Avenue Arts theaters, including Pony World Theatre Company's staging of James Fritz's "Parliament Square" (opening on Oct. 26) and Washington Theater Ensemble's production of Guillermo Calderon's "B" (opening next year).

Last year, Intiman Theatre staged "Dragon Lady," a one-person play written and performed by Filipino American actress Sara Porkalob. Porkalob was also Intiman's co-curator for 2017.

"Native Gardens" runs Sept. 6-30 at The Jones Playhouse, 4045 University Way NE, Seattle. Visit Intiman.org.

READ about Lex Marcos' set designs exhibited at the Prague Quadrennial 2015 here.

READ about ArtsWest Playhouse and Gallery's production of "Sweeney Todd" with Fil-Am leadsBen Gonio and Corinna Lapid Munter here.

READ about Intiman Theater's staging of Sara Porkalob's "Dragon Lady" here.

READ about Theater Shmeater's staging of "She Kills Monsters" featuring Fil-Am actress Annelih Hamilton here.

Four short plays support Filipino seniors’ village in Seattle

By WALTER ANG
Aug. 24, 2018
USA and Canada Section, Inquirer.net
http://usa.inquirer.net/15048/four-short-plays-support-filipino-seniors-village-seattle

SEATTLE — Filipino American performer, stage manager and director Rachel Rene will be helming a fundraising showcase of short plays this month at the Filipino Community Center.

Rachel Rene (back row, second from left), director of "Four Short Plays" with the cast.

The planned Filipino Community Village of Seattle will be the recipient of the proceeds from "Four Short Plays." The village aims to provide affordable, low-income housing to seniors.

The housing project is a planned expansion of the Filipino Community Center, both of which are managed by the Filipino Community of Seattle (FCS), a non-profit organization that has been providing health and social services since 1935 and is currently headed by executive director Sheila Burrus.

The village will be located beside the Filipino Community Center, which is along Martin Luther King Jr. Way. Groundbreaking is targeted for later this year, according to playwright Robert Francis Flor.

Fundraising

"FCS will build affordable senior housing. They purchased plots adjacent to the community center a few years ago and have been fundraising for the past several years," says Flor, whose works will be featured in the showcase.

Recently, the City of Seattle provided $11 million to the project though the funds are still short. "I agreed to have my plays performed to raise funding for the project. Just trying to do a small part."

"Salamangka's Barber Shop" is set in the late 1960s. A young Filipino American's girlfriend has just dumped him and he is considering dropping out of college. He visits barber Tony Salamangka for advice. Tony is no ordinary barber-he's an asog, a healer, and counsels the young man.

"Pinakbet," set on the cusp of World War II, is about Lois, who is white and a great cook, and Fernando, her Filipino boyfriend who is bored by her meals and is considering returning to the Philippines.

"The Injury" is a comedy set in 1970 about a Filipino American softball team that must try to figure out how to help an injured teammate.

"Pinoy Hill" is about Filipino American families competing for choice picnic tables at Seward Park for the fourth of July celebration.

Direction

Arts organization Kultura Arts is producing the show. Cast includes Jared Alfonzo, Kyleigh Archer, Moshe Henderson, Casey Floresca, Nina De Torres Ignacio, Mikko Juan and Arlo Magpoc.

"Things are going pretty much as planned. Rachel's doing a great job directing," adds Flor.

Rachel Rene, whose father is Filipino, has been performing as an actor, singer and dancer since she was in high school.

"I added music directing, stage managing and directing to my list of theatrical endeavors after graduating from Western Washington University with my BA in Theatre Arts," says the Seattle native.

Her recent directing credits include "Thought Experiment" (Infinity Box Theatre Project), "Ben Butler" (Burien Actors Theater) and "Perfect Arrangement" (ReAct Theatre), among others.

Rene also regularly performs with Living Voices, a theater group that focuses on solo historical pieces, and Theater for Young Children.

"I am pleased that these plays present an opportunity for Filipino actors to perform Filipino roles that focus on being a person of color in Seattle," she says of Flor's plays. "This is important to them and to the Filipino community at large."

"Four Short Plays" runs Aug. 26 and Sept. 8 at Filipino Community Center of Seattle, 5420 MLK Jr. Way, Seattle. Visit Kultura Arts Facebook Page.

For details on Filipino Community Village of Seattle, visit FilComSeat.org.

Madcap rom-com on Fil-Canadian nurses tickles playgoers

By WALTER ANG
Aug. 23, 2018
USA and Canada Section, Inquirer.net
http://usa.inquirer.net/14995/madcap-rom-com-fil-canadian-nurses-tickles-playgoers

TORONTO — A comedy about two very different Filipino nurses who immigrate to Saskatchewan but are constantly mistaken for one another is making the rounds of theaters in Canada.

In "Prairie Nurse," Belinda Corpuz (middle) and Isabel Kanaan (right)
play two nurses working in Saskatchewan
who are constantly mistaken for each other.
Photo by Joseph Michael

Inspired by real life events experienced by playwright Marie Beath Badian's mother, "Prairie Nurse" opens on August 24 at Thousand Islands Playhouse in Gananoque, just outside of Toronto.

This is a co-production with Factory Theatre in Toronto, where the show ran from April to May this year.

After Gananoque, "Prairie Nurse" is also scheduled to be staged by Prairie Theatre Exchange in Winnipeg, Manitoba in October.

Backstory

"My mom, Concepcion, immigrated to rural Saskatchewan from rural Philippines in 1967 and worked as a nurse in a small community hospital. She stayed two years before moving to Toronto," says Badian.

Playwright Marie Beath Badian.
Photo by Christian Lloyd

Badian visited Saskatchewan with her mother in 2007. She wanted to get in touch with people who knew her mother, and prior to the trip, she sent letters to several community newspapers asking if anyone remembered working with a Filipino nurse at Arborfield Memorial Hospital in late 1960s.

To Badian's surprise, many of the people who knew her mother still live and work in the area. The first thing they would ask though, was "Where's the other one?"

That's when Badian discovered that her mother had a Filipino coworker during her stay in Saskatchewan.

The scenario sparked the idea for the fictional story of "Prairie Nurse," where no one can tell two immigrant nurses apart, as they both grapple with homesickness and unfamiliar customs, including the hospital's lab technician who falls in love with one of them but accidentally courts both.

"I was tickled by the idea of what it must have been like back then when no one could tell them apart, when everybody thought they were like two-peas-in-a-pod but in truth had nothing in common other than nursing and the Philippines."

Special

The play just completed a July to August staging at Station Arts Centre in Rosthern, Saskatchewan-only an hour away by car from Arborfield, where Badian's mother was stationed.

"That production was very special. Throughout its run, I learned the audience often had friends and family of the real-life people who the characters are based on," she says.

"The response has been incredibly moving, and it is an honor to learn that the story not only resonated with them on a nostalgic level but also on a very present level with the growing population of Filipinos who continue to immigrate to Saskatchewan."

Filipino Canadian actors

A Toronto-native, Badian is also a director, performer and arts educator in addition to being a playwright.

Her other plays include "The Making of St. Jerome," "Mind Over Matter," and "Novena."

She has been playwright-in-residence for fu-GEN Asian Canadian Theatre Company, a member of the Hot House Creators Unit at Cahoots Theatre Company, part of the Tarragon Playwrights Unit, and a participant in the Soulpepper Playwrights Circle.

She is the artistic director of Smoothieland Performance Projects, a youth theater company she founded last year. "We just completed our pilot middle-school project and hope to launch a high school project next year."

The production opening at Thousand Islands Playhouse will feature Toronto-based Filipino Canadian actors Belinda Corpuz as Purificacion/Puring and Isabel Kanaan as Indepencia/Penny.

Both played the same roles in the Toronto Theatre staging earlier this year. Direction by Sue Miner, costume design by Anna Treusch, set design by Jung-Hye Kim and lighting design by Jareth Li.

Four in one year

The play received its world premiere in 2013 at the Blyth Festival and was published last year by Scirocco Drama.

"The Blyth Festival is a legacy theater festival in Canada. It has produced over 130 new Canadian plays in its short 44 years. Their mandate is to promote the stories of rural Canada," explains Badian.

Isabel Kanaan (left) plays Independencia and
Belinda Corpuz plays Purificacion
in Marie Beath Badian's "Prairie Nurse."
Photo by Joseph Michael.

Factory Theatre's artistic director, Filipino Canadian Nina Lee Aquino, saw the show that year and she shared the script with Thousand Islands Playhouse artistic director Ashlie Corcoran.

"Together, they programmed 'Prairie Nurse' as a coproduction for their respective companies for this year-2018."

"Here in Canada, often the larger theaters plan their seasons two to four years in advance in response to the multi-year funding cycles of the various municipal, provincial and federal arts funding bodies."

The separate productions at Station Arts Centre and Prairie Theatre Exchange-which brings the total number of productions this year to four-proved "delightful and surprising" for the playwright.

"It has been overwhelming. I'm honestly still processing it all. It is a privilege to have 'Prairie Nurse' staged across the country in succession."

"Prairie Nurse" runs Aug. 24-Sept. 15 at Thousand Islands Playhouse, 185 South St., Gananoque, Ontario. Visit 1000IslandPlayhouse.com.

Oct. 4-21 at Prairie Theatre Exchange, Portage Place, 393 Portage Ave., Winnipeg, Manitoba. Visit Pte.mb.ca.

Filipino American Patrick Mayuyu wins Aubrey Award for choreography

By WALTER ANG
Aug. 15, 2018
USA and Canada Section, Inquirer.net
http://usa.inquirer.net/14735/fil-patrick-mayuyu-wins-aubrey-award-choreography

SAN DIEGO — Filipino American Patrick Mayuyu has won the Aubrey Award for Best Choreography for his work last year on Onstage Playhouse' staging of the musical "Spring Awakening."

Patrick Mayuyu won the Aubrey Award for Best Choreography.

The 53rd installment of the awards, presented by the San Diego Association of Community Theaters, celebrate the actors, designers, and production teams who contributed to the 2017-18 season. The ceremony was held at The Dana-Mission Bay Hotel.

"I was so happy to even be nominated," says Mayuyu.

"When they said my name that night, all of my `Spring Awakening' family stood up from the table so fast and screamed so loud!

"It was a very exciting and proud moment for me and the rest of the cast and crew who worked so hard on such a special and meaningful production."

Included in the production was Filipino American actor Peter Armado. "He was awesome to work with!" Mayuyu says.

"Afterwards, some of us went to our director's hotel room where we had a pizza party and a bottle of Moscato."

Telling stories

Born and raised in San Diego, Mayuyu joined a production of "Peter Rabbit" in second grade and "I've been hooked ever since," he says, laughing. "But I really got involved in theater starting with my high school drama club. I took our high school theater program really seriously and wanted to keep entertaining people and make new friends and tell stories."

A scene from one of Onstage Playhouse's 2017 staging of
"Spring Awakening" with choreography by Patrick Mayuyu. 

"That's where I met my favorite teachers, Laura Preble and Marilynn Zeljeznjak, as well as my best friend Kym Pappas, who I now make theater with. They all inspired me to pursue a life in the arts."

He also joined the Thespian Society and spent his youth attending its annual festivals and workshops. "I would meet other kids from all over who were as enthusiastic about theater as I was."

Choreographer, actor

On top of his choreography and acting, Mayuyu is a cofounder of San Diego-based Filipino American theater company MaArte Theatre Collective.

His recent choreography credits include "Xanadu" for OnStage Playhouse (running until Aug. 18) and "A Man of No Importance" for Coronado Playhouse (running until Aug. 25). He's also choregraphed shows such as "The Rocky Horror Show," "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee," and "Scrooge the Musical."

"On occasion, I also choreograph for the San Diego State University Color Guard, where I'm also a performance consultant."

His acting credits include "Bat Boy: The Musical" (Ocean Beach Playhouse), "Taming of the Shrew" (Inner Mission), "A Chorus Line" and "Avenue Q" (Coronado Playhouse), and "Ching Chong Chinaman" (San Diego Asian American Rep), among others.

Huge fan

OnStage Playhouse artistic director Teri Brown had seen Mayuyu's previous work and approached him to choreograph "Spring Awakening."

The Tony Award-winning musical features music by Duncan Sheik and is based on the play by Frank Wedekind about teenagers grappling with their blossoming sexualities. The original Broadway cast included Jonathan Groff ("Hamilton," Kristoff in the Disney film "Frozen"), Lea Michele (TV series "Glee") and Skylar Astin (film "Pitch Perfect").

Mayuyu choreographed Onstage Playhouse's
2017 staging of "Spring Awakening."

"I'm a huge fan of the show," says Mayuyu. "I jumped at the chance and we just started exchanging all these ideas we had for the show."

"I've probably seen it more than 10 times and have been inspired every time, so I knew the story and it's music pretty well."

Nevertheless, approaching the material as a choreographer, he still had to prepare by analyzing the musical.

He collaborated with Brown to stay on track with the staging's objectives. "I had plenty of conversations with Teri to make sure we were on the same page. It was a wonderful collaboration. She gave me a lot of room to play and is such a cheerleader."

Beautiful

"I always ask myself, 'What am I trying to say?' and go from there. A lot of the work is created in the space with the actors, which is how I like to 'paint the picture' as we build a piece from scratch while also making sure the movement feels comfortable in everyone's bodies," he says.

"Every single soul in this cast told their character's story in their own beautiful way. It was a dream to watch them grow and pour their guts out on that stage every night."

Mayuyu is currently working on the choreography of "Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again." for InnerMission Productions. The production is an experimental work that deals with language, relationships, work, and life, opening on Sept. 15. He will also be playing the role of Frank in Sarah Ruhl's "Melancholy Play," also at InnerMission in November.

"In February 2019, I'll be in the world premiere of 'The Hour of Great Mercy' by Miranda Rose Hall, directed by Rosina Reynolds at Diversionary Theatre."

"MaArte Theatre Collective is currently working to produce a piece written by a San Diego local Filipino American playwright. Be on the lookout for details later this year!"

READ about the founding of Filipino American theater group MaArte Theatre Collective here.

Filipino American actor Jay Españo in all-male staging of 'La Ronde'

By WALTER ANG
Aug. 8, 2018
USA and Canada Section, Inquirer.net
http://usa.inquirer.net/14483/fil-actor-jay-espano-male-staging-le-ronde

CHICAGO — Filipino American actor Jay Españo is currently in the cast of a present-day adaptation of a classic play about the clash of classes and sexual morals.

Jay Españo (left) with Matt Frye in an adaptation of "La Ronde."

Tony Award-winning playwright Joe DiPietro has adapted German playwright Arthur Schnitzler's controversial 1897 play "La Ronde," about a series of encounters between pairs of characters from different levels of society, with gay characters set in modern times as "F**king Men."

DiPietro's previous work includes "Nice Work If You Can Get It," "Memphis," and "The Toxic Avenger."

Produced by Pride Films and Plays, the show is currently running at the Pride Arts Center's Broadway Theater.

Modern, movement

In this present-day updating, the characters are now composed of ten men: a hustler; a soldier; two college students; a businessman and his spouse; an adult film actor; a movie star, his agent and a playwright-all of whom have physical and emotional desires to interconnect. Españo plays the businessman's spouse.

Españo (third from right) with cast of Pride Films and Plays' staging of Joe DiPietro's play.

Pride Films and Plays executive director David Zak helms the production.

"The show was done in 2010," explains Españo. "In this revival, they wanted it to be different and incorporate movement and dance." Choreographers Jake Ganzer, Daniel Hurst, James Mueller, and Katelyn Stoss were brought in to provide sensual action for the cast.

Juggling around

Españo has acted for different theater groups in the Chicago area. He used to act with theater company Tanghalang Pilipino in Manila (not to be confused with Tanghalang Pilipino ng DC based in Washington, DC) and did stints in Singapore as well, including a lead role in "Chang and Eng, the Musical."

"I am currently working full time with a theater company called Li'l Buds Theater Company. It produces children's theater all year round. We also teach after-school programs all around the city of Chicago.

Españo is also a part of Broadway BreakThru. "It's a group that is headquartered in New York, but it has a branch in Chicago," he says. "We teach Broadway musicals and sometimes invite Broadway actors to come meet our students."

Aside from acting, he also sings and directs. "On top of all of these things, I also teach yoga every day for CorePower Yoga."

Risque

"Although the play is very risque and the dialogue can be a bit crass at times, audiences love the show," he says.

Fil-Am actor Jay Españo (lef) is in an all-male adaptation of Arthur Schnitzler's controversial play.

Españo notes that he was also initially worried about how theatergoers might react to the dance and movement sequences depicting sexual encounters. "These scenes are vital to the play and the audience members seem to be on board with David's vision."

"We actually have had a few people who have come back and re-watch the show."

He's also observed differences in how certain demographics react to the play's subject matter.

"The older audiences are more focused on the dynamics of the relationships of the characters while the younger audiences, whether they are straight or gay, are totally into to the aspect of hooking up," he says.

"I had a gay couple come up to me after the show and tell me that one of them is the real Jack. That's the name of the character I play in the show."

Upcoming

After the play ends its run, Españo will continue to be involved with Pride Films and Plays as he will be helping curate and judge short films for its upcoming film festival scheduled for the fall.

Españo's own short film "Mahal," which he wrote and directed in 2016 and features Fil-Am actress Olga Natividad, is still making the rounds of festivals in the U.S. and internationally.

"Also, I'm presently in talks to do a staging of Shakespeare's `Love's Labor's Lost' and will be part of a production of `The King and I' in 2019," he says.

"For Li'l Buds, we are gearing up for the coming schoolyear and planning our Halloween and Christmas shows."

"F**king Men" is part of Pride Films and Plays' summer-long Pride Arts Center Pride Series, which includes five fully-staged productions.

"F**king Men" runs until Aug. 25 at The Broadway Theater, Pride Arts Center, 4139 N. Broadway St., Chicago. Visit Pridefilmsandplays.com.

READ about Jay Españo's short film "Mahal" here.