Jessica Hagedorn musical on Filipino faith healer to open in NY

By WALTER ANG
July 31, 2019
USA.Inquirer.net
https://usa.inquirer.net/35595/jessica-hagedorn-musical-on-filipino-faith-healer-to-open-in-ny

NEW YORK — A musical by writer Jessica Hagedorn based on a short story by Lysley Tenorio about a Filipino faith healer will be staged by Ma-Yi Theater Company.

Alan Ariano will originate the title role in the musical "Felix Starro."

Felix Starro, whose patients used to include celebrities and big politicians, has fallen on hard times. He goes to San Francisco with his orphan grandson, Junior, for a healing mission for ailing Filipino Americans to earn some money to retire comfortably. Meanwhile, Junior meets up with a florist who arranges more than just flowers.

Music is composed by Fabian Obispo; the libretto is an adaptation by playwright and novelist Hagedorn of the short story by Tenorio, which is included in his anthology Monstress.

Helming the production is Ma-Yi's artistic director Ralph Peña, who proclaims, "This is the first musical created by Filipino Americans to open Off Broadway."

Alan Ariano plays the title role and Nacho Tambunting plays Junior. Other Filipino Americans in the cast include Caitlin Cisco, Ryan James Ortega, Diane Phelan and Obie Award-winner Ching Valdes-Aran. Orchestrations are by Paulo Tirol.

Development

The musical was originally commissioned by American Conservatory Theater (ACT)'s previous artistic director Carey Perloff in San Francisco as part of her directive to adapt stories from Tenorio's book.

ACT eventually staged two of his other stories in 2015 in the twin bill "Monstress"—one of which was adapted by Fil-Am playwright Sean San Jose.

"Jessica and Fabian chose to adapt the story 'Felix Starro' and I directed a workshop of it at ACT. I decided to bring it to Ma-Yi as our 30th anniversary opener," says Peña.

"It's telling stories about family, faith, home, loss, betrayal," describes Hagedorn, whose credits include adaptations of her own books Dogeaters and The Gangster of Love.

Celebrate

Ma-Yi was originally founded as a Filipino American theater company; it expanded its focus to Asian American theater in 1998. Peña is a cofounder and has been artistic director since 1995.

Filipino American cast members of "Felix Starro" include
(from left) Nacho Tambunting, Diane Phelan,
Ching Valdes-Aran, Catilin Cisco and Ryan James Ortega. 

"There's plenty to celebrate in reaching our 30th anniversary. We've made some important strides, especially in the creation of new work for the American Theater.

"The celebration also comes with the realization that there is still much work to be done, and that these last 30 years is just a small part of a long history of struggles."

Impressed  

Alan Ariano will originate the role of Felix Starro. He's been involved with the production since the developmental reading in San Francisco.

"Though it was a work-in-progress, I was impressed by how Jessica and Fabian were able to lift from the short story and give life to these characters had heart and dimension," he says.

"I love short stories. Reading 'Felix Starro,' I was definitely affected by the fact that I was reading about people of my ethnic origin in a story that contained family, love and conflict."

Ariano's credits on Broadway include "Jerome Robbins' Broadway," "The King and I," "Shogun," "M. Butterfly" and the original company of "Miss Saigon."

Filipino Americans on stage

Before rehearsals started for "Felix Starro," Ariano had just finished playing the role of the architect Sam in East West Players' (EWP) run of "Mamma Mia!" in Los Angeles.

From left: Fictionist Lysley Tenorio,
playwright and novelist Jessica Hagedorn,
composer Fabian Obispo and director Ralph Peña. 

"Booking 'Mamma Mia!' at EWP, I had no idea there would be a Filipino twist in the staging. As it turns out, that decision would actually work to my advantage as far as my preparation for `Felix Starro.'"

Ariano says that he feels it was meant to be for him to experience having a mostly Filipino American cast of actors "not hiding or ignoring their heritage and actually acknowledging it. And then having the Filipino community in Los Angeles show their appreciation of our show and what it meant to them."

"I always believe there's a reason for everything. To have that kind of environment within my orbit helped influence the creation process of my next character: Felix Starro."

Excited

He says the best gift an actor can have is being given the opportunity to create a role from scratch. "I always cherish and love `the process' when it comes to putting a show together, be it a play or a musical."

"I look forward to finding Felix in collaboration with the director and the rest of the creative team. The epiphanies and occasional miracles that may come our way throughout our journey of the rehearsal process is part of the magic.

"Ultimately, finding Felix's voice in character and song is what I'm very excited in discovering."

"Felix Starro" runs Aug. 23-Sept. 15 at Theatre Row, 410 West 42nd St., New York. Visit Ma-yitheatre.org. 

RELATED STORIES:

Lysley Tenorio's "Monstress' goes onstage

Jessica Hagedorn's 'Gangster of Love' goes onstage

Filipino American Cassie Grilley plays the lead in 'Hairspray' musical in SF

By WALTER ANG
July 26, 2019
USA.Inquirer.net
https://usa.inquirer.net/35127/fil-am-cassie-grilley-plays-the-lead-in-hairspray-musical-in-sf

SAN FRANCISCO — It's 1962 in Baltimore. The lovable and "pleasantly plump" teenager Tracy wants to dance on the popular "Corny Collins Show" on television, outwit the evil TV station manager, support the integration of black teens into the show and help her plus-size mother gain confidence-all while making sure her hairdo does not end up becoming a hair-don't.

San Francisco native Cassie Grilley grew up in a theatrical family.

It's the musical "Hairspray," and Filipino American Cassie Grilley plays lead character Tracy Turnblad.

With music by Marc Shaiman, lyrics by Scott Wittman and Shaiman and a book by Mark O'Donnell and Thomas Meehan, this Tony Award-winning musical is an adaptation of John Waters's 1988 film of the same title.

In turn, adaptations of this musical have included a television broadcast in 2016 that starred celebrities such as Ariana Grande and Jennifer Hudson and a 2007 film version that starred the likes of Queen Latifah, Zac Efron, John Travolta and Michelle Pfieffer.

Concluding theater company Bay Area Musical's 2018-19 season, this production is directed and choreographed by Matthew McCoy with music direction by Jon Gallo.

Surrounded by theater

Grilley, whose mother is Filipino, is a native of San Francisco and grew up in a "very theatrical" family.

Cassie Grilley

"I was constantly surrounded by theater," she says. Grilley's paternal grandmother Diane Price had founded Young People's Teen Musical Theatre Company, a free musical theater program through the San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department.

"It was founded in 1984 and is still operational. From the time I was a baby, I would watch every single show multiple times throughout each run. So naturally, I couldn't wait until it was my turn."

She finally got her chance when she was eight years old. "From the moment I made someone laugh, I knew that I wanted to continue this feeling."

She went on to study theatre arts at Foothill College and drama at University of California-Irvine.

Recent credits include "She Persisted," "Wonderland," "El Gato Ensombrerado," (Bay Area Children's Theatre), "Mean Gays," "Troop Beverly Heels" (Peaches Christ Productions), "Finding Medusa," "Oregon Trail Pages" (Musical Café).

Aside from acting, Grilley is also still involved with her grandmother's company doing directing work.

Positive

Tracy has been a dream role for Cassie and she says she's ecstatic to be playing "such a confident, wise, and sassy young woman.

Grilley plays Tracy Turnblad in "Hairspray."

"I'm very grateful to be playing such a positive character who advocates for the acceptance of people no matter what they look like.

"Playing Tracy, who is so confident and possesses such a magnetic energy, has allowed me to tap into these qualities within myself."

Grilley believes it's important to stand up for what's right. "This story has reminded me that it's necessary to love yourself in your own skin, despite the boundaries society may inflict upon you."

Relevant

Speaking of boundaries, she highlights one aspect of her own involvement in the show. "I appreciate our director Matthew McCoy's open-mindedness in casting a multiracial Tracy, when she is traditionally portrayed by a white actor."

"I hope that audiences are able to see that people often consider this show to be a period piece; however unfortunately, all of the major conflicts that we touch on are still completely relevant today." 

And just out of curiosity, how does Grilley take care of her own hair in real life? "I'm a wash-and-go gal. And the wind is my blow dryer!"

"Hairspray" runs until Aug. 11 at Victoria Theatre, 2961 16th St., San Francisco. Visit Bamsf.org.

Regina de Vera 'loses' underpants in Steve Martin farce at The Old Globe

By WALTER ANG
July 25, 2019
USA.Inquirer.net
https://usa.inquirer.net/34972/ex-manilan-regina-de-vera-loses-underpants-in-steve-martin-farce

SAN DIEGO, California — Actress Regina de Vera deals with the consequences of the inefficient titular garment in the farce "The Underpants," written by Hollywood celebrity comedian Steve Martin.

Regina de Vera

De Vera plays newly married Louise, who is bored with her demanding and uptight bureaucrat husband. When Louise jumps up on a bench to see the king go by during the royal parade, her bloomers come loose and fall down around her ankles.

Her husband is frantic that her faux pas will cost him his job and reputation. But suddenly, the room they've been trying to rent out has plenty of takers, and it just might have something to do with the underpants.

To be staged by The Old Globe and directed by Walter Bobbie, the play is an adaptation of German playwright Carl Sternheim's 1910 farce "Die Hose."

Martin's play gives audiences a "a hilarious look at female empowerment, sudden fame, and the idiocy a woman inspires in the men who love her."

Training

De Vera moved to New York in 2015 to pursue graduate training in acting at The Juilliard School-which she has just recently completed.

Credits at Juilliard include Mother Courage in "Mother Courage and Her Children," Irina in "Three Sisters" and Aly in "Queens Boulevard."

Previously in Manila, she had been a resident actress of Tanghalang Pilipino, the resident theater company of the Cultural Center of the Philippines, performing in Tagalog-language productions.

"My family, who are all based in the Philippines, flew to New York City to attend my graduation," she says.

"We had late lunch at this Filipino restaurant called Mama Fina's which has excellent sisig. You should try their pusit sisig, it's the best."

Involvement

De Vera became involved with "The Underpants" as a result of work done at Juilliard.

During her last year, at the cast party of her batch's production of "Into the Woods" where she had played Little Red, her director Sarna Lapine expressed interest in recruiting De Vera for a future project.

"By January of this year, I received an audition invitation from New York City-based casting agency Calleri Casting to read for the character of Beth in `Little Women.' That was indeed the play that Sarna told me about. I got a call-back for that production but eventually did not land the part."

However, she received another email from the casting agency in February inviting her to audition for "The Underpants." And later on, she was on her way to the same theater where "Into the Woods" first debuted.

Terrific

"It's been terrific working with The Old Globe so far! This is the first time I have felt so well-cared for and attended to by a professional theater company. It has truly been a treat so far."

And since De Vera has never been to San Diego before, she feels lucky to be able to perform outside of New York "in a city with beautiful weather."

"I am grateful for the cast that comprise 'The Underpants.' I had a good feeling about the group when I met everyone during the first rehearsal. We've already finished the first draft of the staging of the entire play and it's only been less than two weeks of rehearsals. That says a lot about the kind of work ethic that is present in the rehearsal room from everyone." 

"The Underpants" runs July 27-Sept. 1 at Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre, Balboa Park, San Diego. Visit Theoldglobe.org. 

Filipino Canadian theater director Nina Lee Aquino reaps prestigious awards

By WALTER ANG
July 19, 2019
USA.Inquirer.net
https://usa.inquirer.net/34648/fil-canadian-theatre-director-reaps-prestigious-awards

TORONTO — Filipino Canadian theater director Nina Lee Aquino has won two awards back-to-back: the 2019 Margo Bindhardt and Rita Davies Cultural Leadership Award and the 2019 Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding Direction.

Nina Lee Aquino is the recipient of the
2019 Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding Direction.
Photo by Anne-Marie Krytiuk

The Bindhardt-Davies Award from the Toronto Arts Foundation celebrates creative cultural leadership in the development of arts and culture in Toronto and comes with a $10,000 prize.

The Dora Award from the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts is for her work in directing "School Girls; or, the African Mean Girls Play" earlier this year, a coproduction by Obsidian Theatre and Nightwood Theatre.

Aquino previously received a Dora Award in 2011 for her direction of "paper series" for Cahoots Theatre.

She is currently the artistic director of Factory Theatre.

Own path

Born in the Philippines, Aquino moved to Canada when she was 17 years old. After watching her older brother in a play at his high school, she thought to herself "I can do that, too."

"I started my own path in theater as an actor at a young age. Haven't looked back since," she says. Aquino studied drama at University of Guelph and took up a master's in theatre at University of Toronto.

She became the founding artistic director of fu-GEN Asian Canadian Theatre, then the artistic director of Cahoots Theatre Projects, before becoming the artistic director of Factory Theatre in the early 2010s.

Passion

Aquino considers winning the Bindhardt-Davies Award as a "meaningful reminder to breathe, to take everything in-accomplishments and screw-ups.

Nina Lee Aquino is the recipient of the
2019 Margo Bindhardt and Rita Davies Cultural Leadership Award. 

"This little pocket of time allows me to look back at my history through a different lens: one that is more forgiving, generous, open and appreciative, to recognize how far I've come in the journey.

"When something is said out loud, publicly recognized at a larger scale, it just makes it a little bit more real than usual. It reaffirms that I'm doing something right."

She notes that the recognition is also a "profound reminder of how much more work there is ahead."

"If this illuminates how passionate I am about theater and how much I believe that it can change the world.I'll take it. It's just really nice, and it's precious fuel for the long road ahead."

Important

Aquino says that for people who work in theater, it is their "passion . this is the thing that grows us, nurtures us, transforms us.

"And whether or not we get the accolades and the recognition that we think we deserve, we will continue to do work . because we believe that theater can change the world . even if it's just one audience member at the time."

For both awards, Aquino went straight to rehearsals the following day after the respective ceremonies. "I suppose I celebrated my wins with more work. Which, to me, is always the best way to celebrate one's victories."

Even so, Aquino does not fail to highlight her appreciation for the support that she receives. "Having a village of family and friends that will have your back anytime you ask for it helps. Having a husband that doesn't mind holding the fort when you're not there helps. And having an astute, out-of-this-world 12-year-old child who understands and randomly texts you 'I love you' throughout the day helps."

How we live

Aquino believes theater is a way of "saying something about the state of where we currently live in and how we live our lives."

"Yes, theater can a be a place of temporary escape, a sigh of relief, a stretch of time where we can laugh and momentarily forget the harsh, cruel realities - that's is one of its more important functions for sure: entertainment.

"But theater can also provoke, offer up, magnify, inspire, shake up, turn around, fight for, shift, fight against, rearrange, transform thoughts, ideas, truths, lies, preconceived notions, assumptions, prejudices, principles, values, feelings."

I am a Filipino

When it comes to the range of her directing output, Aquino says, "I don't do traditional Filipino folk dances or perform indigenous tribal music or present sarsuwelas and komedyas."

Nina Lee Aquino.
Photo by Sean Howard

Nevertheless, she notes that some of these Filipino performance forms have actually influenced some of her well-known theatrical works.

"I also don't do the big, glitzy, spectacular shows like 'Mamma Mia,' 'Miss Saigon' and 'The Lion King.' My work falls somewhere in between forms, past and present, small and large, a little bit from column A, a little bit from column B.

"Some may even find my work not Filipino enough. But I am a Filipino. Look at me," Aquino says clearly. "Whether or not I direct a show that has nothing to do with our Filipino-ness, my work is still Filipino. Period.

Power of theater

Aquino knows the power of theater. She recalls her own experiences working with Filipino Canadian theater company Carlos Bulosan Theatre.

"It was known as Carlos Bulosan Cultural Workshop back then. It was created in the early 1980s as a means to give voice to the anger, frustration, anxiety, pain that the Filipino Canadian community was going through at a time when they felt helpless, being far away from their home country that was going through political strife and turmoil."

The group had been originally the cultural wing of the North America-wide Coalition Against the Marcos Dictatorship organization.

"Petitions, letters, protests were done, executed within the confines of their homes, offices and community centers. But ultimately, activism, the spirit of solidarity, the need to rise up and hope for a better future had to be shown through theater.

"This is how the community tried to save its country. A small, tiny gesture, yes, but even the smallest pebble can make the biggest ripples," says Aquino.

For Filipino Canadians

"Why do I do what I do and why do I do it for the communities I serve, especially Filipino Canadians?

"To make the invisible, visible. To take on the small and big fights that exist in the larger theater community. To make sure that the list of artistic achievements that have shown us many `firsts' grows into seconds and thirds and fourths.

"It's about the work, it's always been about the work, front and center. And our work cannot exist with you, the audience. We do this for you, for anybody who is willing to watch us, listen to what we have to say. And particularly for the Filipino Canadian theater artists, we do it for our people because we might just have something important to say about being part of it or a part from it.

"See our work. Talk about it. Love it, hate it, but talk about it with your friends. And then see our work again. And bring your mom and dad. Because when you do this, you help make the invisible-our work, our artists, us-visible."

Shadow play sheds light on Filipino domestic workers in U.S.

By WALTER ANG
July 16, 2019
USA.Inquirer.net
https://usa.inquirer.net/34443/shadow-play-sheds-light-on-filipino-domestic-workers-in-u-s

SAN FRANCISCO — The spotlight illuminates Filipino domestic workers based in the U.S. in the 45-minute production "Sigaw: A Shadowplay."

Puppeteers and puppet designers of "Sigaw: A Shadowplay" hold up their puppets.
Photos by Paciano Triunfo

"Sigaw" follows the journey of Marissa from a young girl in a Philippine province to being a domestic worker in the United States. She confronts a life of hard labor, oppression, isolation and abuse-finding comfort only in the children she's helping to raise.

Staged by Bindlestiff Studio, the play is written and directed by the organization's artistic director Aureen Almario.

Her impetus for creating "Sigaw" was the life of Eudocia Tomas Pulido, who had been written about by Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Alex Tizon in The Atlantic magazine in 2017.

Tizon had described Pulido as a woman who lived with his family for 56 years, raised him and his siblings for no pay and was "a slave in my family's household."

Composite

Almario also wanted to maintain shadow play productions in Bindlestiff. Just last year, the organization staged the shadow play "Bad Trip."

For this production, collaborators include (puppet design) Nicollete Dionisio, Jessylyn Los Baños (design and puppeteering) England Hidalgo, Tracy Nguyen, Marcius Noceda (puppeteering) TJ Basa, Kimberley Arteche.

"We are part of a group called Brownout Shadow Collective," says Almario. "We were trained by previous Bindlestiff Studio artistic director Lorna Velasco, who was trained by Larry Reed of Shadowlight Productions."

The puppets will be mainly made of paper and transparency sheets. "We are also using glass, mirror and other props for special effects."

Interest

Almario's interest in shadow puppetry stems all the way back to her college days at San Francisco State University.

Shadow silhouette of Aureen Almario,
playwright, puppet designer and director of "Sigaw: A Shadowplay." 

"I was taking an Asian American Community Arts Workshop under Allyson Tintiangco-Cubales, who had partnered with several Bindlestiff artists." Among other workshops, Almario took shadow puppetry under Velasco and even became a shadow actor in Velasco's shadow play "Lakbay."

And through the show, she met the late Don Salubayba. The visual artist and cofounder of Manila-based shadow puppetry group Anino Collective had been in San Francisco on an artist residency.

"While I learned the Shadowlight style from Lorna, Don showed me the Anino style of shadow puppetry."

Almario went on to work on other shadow plays such as "The Movement," "Engkanto," "Series of Seriesed Events." In 2015, she joined Lorna Velasco in the cast of the touring production of the shadow play "Feathers of Fire."

Personal

When Almario began writing "Sigaw," she grappled with her own personal experiences with domestic workers.

"I grew up with yayas when I lived in the Philippines until I was 10 years old. The practice of having katulongs is so deeply embedded in Filipino culture. As a person who has also worked in the childcare industry, it's always been a topic that is personal for me."

"I was particularly interested in deconstructing the notion that `Filipinas are innately nurturing and caring.

"I wondered where the lines are drawn between love and labor, especially when they are so intimately connected. Particularly in situations where you have a yaya or nanny raise you up until your adulthood, which was the case with Alex Tizon."

Complex and varied

She also observed that mass media was providing audiences a one-sided viewpoint of domestic workers. "With Alex Tizon and the critically acclaimed film `Roma,' both narratives are told from men's perspectives-men who were raised by their live-in domestic workers."

In her effort to address this imbalance, Almario's concerns includes society's categorizations of domestic workers as well as approaching domestic workers as actual persons.

"There's definitely a class and even racial divide; the indigenous and poor women alleviate the more privileged class women from child-rearing and domestic work.

"I was interested in them as a human being with hopes and dreams, not just a story that about the exploitative nature of domestic work-What was their childhood like? How was it for them to cope with the shift in their role when the children become adults, and their purpose has changed. How did they advocate for themselves?"

She adds, "I was also especially concerned about the topic of mental health as these women are separated from their families and are isolated."

"The story is fictional," says Almario of her shadow play. Nevertheless, "Marissa is a composite character of the narratives, articles and interviews I've compiled of current domestic workers today to understand their complex and varied experiences."

"Sigaw: A Shadowplay" runs July 18-28 at Bindlestiff Studio, 185 Sixth St., San Francisco. Visit Bindlestiffstudio.org.

Filipino American Jomar Martinez rebels in 'Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella'

By WALTER ANG
July 11, 2019
USA.Inquirer.net
https://usa.inquirer.net/34135/fil-am-stars-in-rodgers-hammersteins-cinderella

LOS ALTOS HILLS, California — Filipino American Jomar Martinez is playing rebel lover Jean-Michel in Foothill Music Theatre's production of "Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella."

Jomar Martinez (left) plays rebel Jean-Michel
in "Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella"
Photo by David Allen

A new character in this updated version by Douglas Carter Beane of the classic musical, Jean-Michel is a passionate peasant rebel who is in love with Gabrielle, one of Cinderella's stepsisters.

("Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella" and "Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella" are different versions of the musical.)

Jean-Michel and Gabrielle oppose the kingdom's oppressive laws-which have been approved by the orphan prince as he has been misled by the villainous prime minister-which inspires the couple to start a revolution.

This production will have a full orchestra. Music Director is Daniel Feyer, with choreography by Lee Ann Payne.

Fil-Am prince, crony

Unlike Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II's other musicals, "Cinderella" was not originally written for the stage. It was created for television broadcast and featured Julie Andrews in the lead role.

Jomar Martinez

In the 1997 television adaptation of the musical, Fil-Am actor Paolo Montalban played the prince. He then reprised the role in the 2000-01 national tour of the musical's stage adaptation.

Sharing the stage with Martinez in Foothill's production is fellow Fil-Am actor Juan Castro, who is playing the prime minister's crony Lord Pinkleton.

Credits

Martinez's recent credits include "Allegiance," "West Side Story" (Contra Costa Civic Theatre), "In the Heights" (City Lights Theater), "The Addams Family" (Palo Alto Players), "Urinetown," "Altar Boyz" (Cabrillo Stage), among others.

Martinez (right) in a scene from Foothill Music Theatre's production
of "Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella."
Photo by David Allen

A native of Oakland, California, Martinez began performing at a very young age, dancing to Michael Jackson music videos at home.

As he was growing up, he played a number of instruments in school bands and ensembles, eventually writing lyrics and composing music for his ska and punk band in high school.

Joining theater

He credits a teacher at San Jose State University with bringing him into the fold of theater.

"Janie Scott was my professor in one of my classes during my first year. She introduced me to Musical Theater. She had me audition for the musical theater company Company One and cast me.

"At that point, I hadn't really done much other than perform in high school band. I immediately changed my major to Musical Theater and became a `theater kid.'

Underdog

Martinez says the feels lucky to be working with Foothill Music Theater once again.

"My first show with them was 'Side Show' in 2017. It has been wonderful coming back. I have always been a big fan of how director Milissa Carey works. It's always a blessing to get to work with one of best."

He finds the addition of the Jean-Michel character to the classic Cinderella story relevant to current events. 

"What this character adds is really emblematic of what is currently going on in our real world. Jean-Michel is an underdog relentlessly fighting a social class system. Who doesn't love an underdog? Especially one who-spoiler alert-wins."

"Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella" runs July 18- Aug. 4 at Smithwick Theatre, Foothill College, off I-280 and El Monte Rd., Los Altos Hills, California. Visit Foothill.edu/theatre.

Filipino Americans in comedy on love and language barriers

By WALTER ANG
July 9, 2019
USA.Inquirer.net
https://usa.inquirer.net/33969/fil-ams-in-comedy-on-love-and-language-barriers

LOS ALTOS, California — Theater director Jeffrey Lo's connection to Tagalog helped prepare him to direct the quirky comedy "The Language Archive" for TheatreWorks Silicon Valley.

Jomar Tagatac (left) plays a linguist who is
at a loss for words in "The Language Archive."
Photo by Kevin Berne

Written by Julia Cho, the play is about the whimsical, life-affirming chronicle of George, a linguist fighting to preserve the dying languages of far-flung cultures, while he himself is at a loss for words when it comes to his other passions.

Fil-Am actor Jomar Tagatac plays George in this production that kicks off the theater company's 50th anniversary season.

"As I was preparing for the show, one of the things I found so moving about the piece was the play's exploration of language and its relation to heritage," Lo says.

"The character of George, in particular, talks about his grandmother and how she spoke a language different than his."

Bonding with mom

With that on his mind, Lo researched on Tagalog and other Filipino languages that he was not as familiar with.

During his research, he came across an online article. "It listed beautiful Filipino words with no direct English equivalents.

"I then visited my parents to make sure I heard from them what these words do and can mean and how to say these words in their original accents.

"It was a really lovely experience to sit with my mom and talk through these different words and see how their direct definitions could be vastly different from their implied meanings.

"It was a real nice way to get myself in the right frame of mind for the language-based themes of the play."

Beauty

Lo recently directed "The Santaland Diaries" for TheatreWorks. Other directing credits include "Vietgone" (Capital Stage), "Peter and the Starcatcher" (Hillbarn Theatre), "The Crucible," "Yellow Face" and "Dead Man's Cell Phone" (Los Altos Stage Company).

Jeffrey Lo directs the comedy "The Language Archive"
for TheatreWorks Silicon Valley.
Photo by Tasi Alabastro

As the Casting Director at TheatreWorks, Lo is part of the organization's season selection committee.

"I've been waiting for the opportunity to direct this play for a long time," he says. "As different shows in our season began to fall into place, it became clear that `The Language Archive' fit well with the rest of the season."

"I shared it with our Artistic Director Robert Kelley who quickly read it and decided to place it in our season. The season selection process for any theater is quite a complicated process so I appreciate that Kelley saw both the beauty in the play and the passion I had for it."

Expressing love

Lo points out that the play does specify what cultural background any of its characters come from. He therefore wanted to maximize the various backgrounds of the cast members.

"I became excited by the opportunity to explore the ways different cultures express love and how the way our parents do or do not express love to each other effect how we communicate as adults.

"We have a beautifully multicultural cast and as I put as much of myself into this production as I can, our cast is doing the same.

"We have a group of artists in the room that have real big hearts and that heart is already showing in the rehearsal room." 

"The Language Archive" runs July 10-Aug. 4 at Lucie Stern Theatre, 1305 Middlefield Rd., Palo Alto. Visit TheatreWorks.org.

RELATED STORIES:

Jeffrey Lo celebrates TheatreWorks' Tony Award

Jomar Tagatac wins 2018 Theatre Bay Area Award

Coming-of-age play features queer Filipino American protagonist

By WALTER ANG
July 3, 2019
USA.Inquirer.net
https://usa.inquirer.net/33539/coming-of-age-play-features-queer-fil-am-protagonist

NEW YORK — Filipino American playwright Roger Mason's coming-of-age play "The White Dress" will premiere Off-Broadway this July.

Scene from "The White Dress," a play about Jonathan's journey of self-acceptance. 

The play is about Jonathan, whose father is black and mother is Filipino, as he forms his own relationship to sex, gender and his way in the world amidst opposition from his parents.

Along the way, Jonathan falls in love with his transgender friend Winnie, who challenges his ideas of commitment, attraction and family.

"In this gender-queer story, we follow Jonathan from eight years old to 24 as he goes on his journey accepting himself as a gender-nonconformist and pansexual and all kinds of lovely, delicious things," says Mason.

(Gender-nonconformity is behavior or appearance that does not conform to prevailing cultural and social expectations of what is appropriate to a respective gender. Pansexuality is sexual, romantic or emotional attraction to people regardless of their sex or gender identity.)

While the play highlights self-acceptance, the roadblocks and detours leading to it are what inspired Mason to create this semi-autobiographical play.

Policed

Mason recalls when he was 12 years old, a pediatrician told his mother, "Your son is a faggot. You need to fix him."

Filipino American playwright Roger Mason. 

"For the doctor, it was a tactless reaction to my 'feminine' self-expression . the usual: high voice, flamboyant hands, a hip swish or two, the classic, tell-tale signs.

"For my Filipino Catholic mother, it was confirmation of ... why I was 'different' from my classmates at school."

For Mason, it was the beginning of an arduous adolescence where his sense of self was constantly questioned and shamed by people around him, including his own family.

"Until I left for college, I was made to feel that how I acted and who I was were embarrassing and wrong."

Mason's "personal journey to overcome shame, permission" and also to "embrace desire" is mirrored by Jonathan's "quest for a space in which to live out loud."

Dance, movement

After a fruitful time of discovering himself, Mason started writing "The White Dress" while he was in graduate school (where he took up writing for screen and stage) in Chicago.

Mason now celebrates all the different aspects of who he is, to wit: "black, Irish, Filipino, gender-queer, plus-sized and fabulous!" he declares.

This all-encompassing stance is reflected in his approach to his creative output as well. "Before I started writing for theater, I was a pianist, I was a visual artist and I did modern dance. So, my work is constantly playing with how I can experiment with form."

This has led to Mason's incorporating movement into "The White Dress" by collaborating with director and choreographer Adin Walker. "The White Dress" is now described as "part religious rite, part dance/performance."

Mason's other produced plays include "Peter Pan." He has also written "The Wind People," "Onion Creek" and "Orange Woman."

Acceptance

"Jonathan's desire to exist unapologetically mirrors not only my own, but also the dream of countless queer people in the US and across the globe," says Mason.

"We are in the fight of our lives for visibility and acceptance. 'The White Dress' posits that the fight starts at home-in our mother's boudoirs, on our playgrounds, in those psychic spaces to which we retreat when we're told we are wrong.

"The fight is long and hard. It's internal and external. And it's always painful.  But we emerge. And when we do, we know unequivocally that we are fine just the way we are.  And no one can take that away from us."

"The White Dress" runs July 5-20 at Access Theater, 380 Broadway, New York. Visit Thewhitedressplay.com.

RELATED STORY:

Fil-Am Roger Mason writes a whole new 'Peter Pan' musical