Mom-daughter tug-of-war, secrets in Filipino American's new novel

By WALTER ANG
Nov. 22, 2022 | USA.Inquirer.net 

SAN FRANCISCO — In Filipino American Jeannie Barroga's just-released novel Turn Right at the Water Buffalo, Reena, who has lived away from the Philippines for years, has manipulated her "Americanized" daughter, Lainie, to attend their 1989 family reunion in Leyte province.

Writer Jeannie Barrage with her new novel.

In a post-martial law milieu, Lainie maneuvers through a family tug-of-war, language, town personalities, surprise guests, female diwata, jungle nationalists, kababayans who reveal their true alliances, and, of course, long-held secrets kept by mothers.

"My mother had me promise that I'd write her story," Barroga said. "Reena's background is filled with love affairs, one leading to marriage and relocation to the United States. With ambition like that of Scarlet from Gone With the Wind, she is viewed by the people from her hometown Ormoc as driven and steely. A harrowing incident during the shelling of Ormoc affects the way Reena handles her relationships with family and friends."

It took Barroga more than 20 years to write this book. "Since the 1989 trip 32 years; since first drafts, 22 years; while recovering from two hip replacements, nearly three years; and released to the public, 11 months ago."

Theater

A prolific playwright and theater maker, she has more than 50 plays under her belt. Barroga founded a support group for playwrights called Playwright Forum, which later merged with theater company TheaterWorks, where Barroga served as literary manager for more than 15 years.

Based in the Bay Area, Barroga was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She began writing plays in the 1980s, a time when very few Filipino American playwrights were active. She included Filipino American characters in her works, also during a time when it uncommon.

Barroga's recent theater credits include Buffalo'ed, about the African American soldiers sent to the Philippines during the Philippine-American War and Banyan, a Wizard of Oz-inspired allegory on the effects of the Sept. 11 attacks on a Filipino American corporate worker.

Her play "Walls" is included in Unbroken Thread: An Anthology of Plays by Asian American Women.

Inspirations

"I resumed novel writing after 40 years of playwrighting. It took me that long to clamp down on disciplined writing," she said with a wink.

She counts among her inspirations "Madeleine L'Engle, Nicola Tesla, American musicals, complicity, the 1950s, The Wizard of Oz, Dashiell Hammett, the Milwaukee Braves, and Hui Playwrights" when she writes about women, art and politics.

She is currently working on revisions to her novel, Marked, about a detective who is aided by her cat and paranormal clues.

Jeannie Barroga will hold a book signing for Turn Right at the Water Buffalo on Nov. 26, 2022 at San Francisco Filipino Cultural Center, 814 Mission St., San Francisco. Visit JeannieBarroga.com.

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https://usa.inquirer.net/117078/mom-daughter-tug-of-war-secrets-in-fil-ams-new-novel 

Filipino American books out this fall: Memoir, childhood, folktales

By WALTER ANG
Nov. 15, 2022 | USA.Inquirer.net 

LOS ANGELES — Three titles from the Philippine American Literary House are now available, two reissues and one new tome. 

Three titles from the Philippine American Literary House are now available,
two reissues and one new tome.

Will You Happen, Past the Silence, Through the Dark?
Remembering Leonard Ralph Casper
By Linda Ty-Casper

Late Literary critic Leonard Ralph Casper wrote books about Philippine writing such as Wayward Horizon: Essays on Modern Philippine Literature (1961) and New Writing from the Philippines: A Critique and Anthology (1966). He taught at several universities there and was a colleague and friend to literati and academics.

In this chronicle, his spouse Linda Ty-Casper has collected the epistles written to and from him, offering a view of who he was to friends and peers. Ty-Casper describes the book as the memoir that her husband did not get to write.

In addition to correspondence with Filipino writers, exchanges include Casper's accounts from the European front during World War II submitted to the editors of the Southwest Review Magazine and inquiries from American poet, novelist and critic Robert Penn Warren as he was working on his dissertation.

Author and editor Joel Pablo Salud has praised the book, calling it "a treasure trove of charms and jewels forthose like me who find Leonard Casper a bit of a cryptic, enigmatic figure. Linda Ty-Casper has done a great service by shedding light on Len's memory, allowing us a voyeur's look into a life dedicated to the magic and unease found in letters. I am sure this book will remain relevant for decades to come."

Growing Up Filipino 3: New Stories for Young Adults
Edited by Cecilia Manguerra Brainard

A collection of 25 short stories by Filipino authors in the U.S. and the Philippines on what it means to be young and Filipino.

The stories explore the universal themes of coming-of-age, love, angst, family, relationships, and other young adult issues.

The stories reveal Filipino and Filipino American culture, mores, history, society, politics, and other nuances. For instance, Filipino respect for their elders, extended families, religious practices, funeral rites, and love for folklore are apparent in the stories.

The first two titles in this series, Growing Up Filipino: Stories For Young Adults (2003) and Growing Up Filipino II: More Stories For Young Adults (2010), were included in National Geographic's Reading List in 2020. Used by educators in their classrooms, these books are enjoyed by adults and young adults alike.

Contributors include Nikki Alfar, Marilyn Alquizola, Gina Apostol, Cecilia Bainard, Patrick Joseph Caoile, Ian Casocot, Noelle de Jesus, George Deoso, Migs Bravo Dutt, James Fajarito, Yvette Fernandez, Patricia Go, Sarge Lacuesta, Zak Linmark, Veronica Montes, Kannika Pena, Oscar Peñaranda, Danton Remoto, Brian Roley, Renee Macalino Rutledge, Dom Sy, Eileen Tabios, Linda Ty-Casper, Marianne Villanueva and Jack Wigley.

Asian and Philippine Folktales: Retellings by PAWWA
Edited by Cecilia Manguerra Brainard

A collection of 25 Asian and Philippine folktales intended for readers ages 9 and older as retold by members of the Philippine American Women Writers and Artists (PAWWA).

The stories were previously published in two separate books that have been out-of-print for many years. This new collection includes folktales from places such as Laos, Japan, Korea, Sumatra, Vietnam, China, Bali, Indonesia, India, and the Philippines.

PAWWA was a support group for Filipina women writers in Southern California in the 1990s. Its work supporting books by Filipino American and Filipino authors has spun off with the Philippine American Literary House imprint, currently overseen by Cecilia Brainard.

Contact palhbooks@gmail.com or visit palhbooks.com.

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https://usa.inquirer.net/116472/fil-am-books-out-this-fall-memoir-childhood-folktales 

Filipino American leading ladies in ‘Wicked’ and ‘Little Shop of Horrors’

By WALTER ANG
Nov. 10, 2022 | USA.Inquirer.net

CHICAGO — "Good news!" as the opening song of a certain musical announces, audiences can currently see Filipino Americans light up the stage as the lead characters in two popular musicals. 

Filipino American Lissa deGuzman is Elphaba
in the touring production of "Wicked." JOAN MARCUS. (left) 
Filipino American Lena Hall plays Audrey
in the Off-Broadway revival of "Little Shop of Horrors." EMILIO MADRID

Lissa deGuzman is starring as Elphaba in the touring production of "Wicked" and Tony Award winner Lena Hall is starring as Audrey in the Off-Broadway production of "Little Shop of Horrors."

DeGuzman stepped into the role in March. (Maria Eberline was the first Fil-Am to play Elphaba when she was an understudy in the show's first national tour.  Nicola Espallardo is the first Filipino British to have performed as Elphaba in the West End production this past July. The role was originated by Idina Menzel [voice of Elsa in "Disney's Frozen"].

Wicked

"Wicked" is a reimagined prequel to "The Wizard of Oz." DeGuzman plays a young Elphaba, who will eventually become the Wicked Witch of the West. The musical shows her days a university student and her unlikely friendship with another student named Galinda.

Lissa deGuzman as Elphaba. JOAN MARCUS

DeGuzman, whose father is Filipino, was born in Wisconsin. Her brother Mathew is currently in the Broadway production of "Disney's Aladdin."

DeGuzman's previous credits include Princess Jasmine in the touring production of "Disney's Aladdin," "West Side Story" and "Fiddler on the Roof," among others. 

The musical has music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Winnie Holzman and is based on the novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire.

Currently running in Chicago at the James M. Nederlander Theatre until Dec. 4, show's next leg is Washington, DC at the John F. Kennedy Center beginning Dec. 8, 2022.

"Wicked" is also still running on Broadway and has a London production. Since opening on Broadway in 2003, "Wicked" has been performed in over 100 cities in 16 countries. As it approaches its 20th year on Broadway, a movie adaptation is in the works with Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo in the cast and Jon M. Chu ("Crazy Rich Asians") set to direct.

Fil-Am Deedee Magno Hall (Cartoon Network's "Steven Universe") played Elphaba's sister Nessarose in the first national tour in the mid-2000s and the original San Francisco cast in 2009.

Little Shop of Horrors

In "Little Shop of Horrors," Lena Hall plays Audrey, a down-on-her-luck florist who partners with her coworker Seymour as he discovers and battles a mysterious and voracious talking plant.

Lena Hall as Audrey. ELI WARREN. 

Celina "Lena Hall" Carvajal won the 2014 Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her work in "Hedwig and the Angry Inch." Hall is a San Francisco native and her father, folk and ballet dancer and choreographer Carlos Carvajal, is Filipino American.

Her other Broadway credits include "Kinky Boots," "Tarzan," and "Cats," among others.

Fil-Am stage and screen star Conrad Ricamora ("The King and I" and ABC's "How to Get Away with Murder") completed a stint as Seymour in the same show earlier this year.

Fil-Am Jon Hoche is part of the show as a cover, filling in for actors who are on vacation, and as a puppeteer. Hoche previously played the voice of King Kong in "King Kong" on Broadway and was part of the US touring production of "War Horse."

"Little Shop of Horrors" has book and lyrics by Howard Ashman ("Disney's The Little Mermaid" and "Disney's Beauty and the Beast") and music by Alan Menken ("Disney's Aladdin" and "Newsies").

Other Fil-Am Tony Award winners include Lea Salonga, 1991 Best Actress in a Musical for "Miss Saigon;" composer Robert Lopez, 2004 Best Score for "Avenue Q" and 2011 Best Book and Best Score for "Book of Mormon;" and set and costume designer Clint Ramos, 2016 Best Costume Design of a Play for "Eclipsed."

Filipino American theater artists who have won Tony and Obie Awards are included in the book Barangay to Broadway: Filipino American Theater History, available at online bookselling sites such as Amazon and Bookshop.

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https://usa.inquirer.net/115989/fil-am-leading-ladies-in-wicked-and-little-shop-of-horrors