Theatrical Pieces
On this page, there is a selection of plays and musicals created by Asian artists, complete with overviews and playwright descriptions.
Ching Chong China Man t.
This play tells the story of the Wongs, a Chinese-America family who has become so assimilated into the American world, they have nearly completely lost their culture. When the son in the family, Upton, a boy who video games have taken over the life of, hires an indentured servant from China, Jinqiang, to do his homework, the entire family is mystified by Jinqiang’s culture. They go on to call him “Ching Chong,” in other words, a slur. While the play makes fun of the lack of culture in the stereotypical American, it also makes a powerful nod to the denaturing effect of westernization.
I Dream of Cheng & Eng
The piece is a historically accurate account of the story of Chang and Eng Bunker, conjoined twins born from Siam (resulting in the term Siamese Twins) in the early 1800s. The play goes over the lives of the two widely known men, following their immigration to America to be displayed as “freaks” (with P.T. Barnum), marriage and family life, and their own personal dynamic. However, the play also dives into the historical context of their lives, matching the patterns of their own personal rhythms to the patterns of the political and social changes of the time. The play combines the narratives of the struggle of fame, the ever increasing American racism and ableism, and the life of an immigrant in such a dynamic. However, through telling the story through a person looking back, inspired by Chang and Eng’s story, the play enables the inspirational influence of their lives to dominate the piece’s impact.
Merchant On Venice
In much the same way that Shakespear’s Merchant in Venice has a focus on religious tension between Christianity and Judaism, Shishir Kurop’s Merchant on Venice focuses on the religious tension between Hindus and Muslims. The play reflects the original plot through following an Indian businessman, Devendra, who asks for a loan from a Muslim lender, Sharuk. In response, contrary to the religious animosity set up, Sharuk agrees, with the caveat that if Devendra fails to pay him back, he will owe an ounce of his flesh. The play manages to preserve the deeply historical play, such as through maintaining the iambic meter, while adding a modern take through everything from citing Queen lyrics to alluding the current events. Watching this piece will provide you with a familiar plot, paired with modern spins on the themes of prejudices, stereotyping, religion, and, ultimately, of love.
Sharif Don't Like It
Shishir Kurop’s Sharif Don’t Like It comments on the world of scrutiny imposed on Asian Americans simply for their appearance. Various people of South Asian descent are interrogated or suspected in seemingly random places but as the storylines merge, their common appearances stick out. This play makes a statement about the USA Patriot Act, created to allow the FBI to conduct physical searches without any probable cause, as it pinpointed the act’s racist implications.
Songs My Mother Taught Me
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The Theory Of Everything
This play takes place one night in Las Vegas on the roof of a Wedding Chapel where seven Asian-Americans, all of different descent including Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, and Thai, search the sky, as they do each week, for UFOs. Through the play, which begins with the group’s first ever sighting of a UFO, each member is given the spotlight, allowing the viewer to understand each character’s place in both the story, and their own lives. Gomolvilas use of UFOs and Extraterrestrials is created to allude to the characters political perceptions as Aliens in the country, but also self-felt alienation amidst the social norms in their familial, social, and sexual lives. Similarly, the play’s set of the vast sky allows for the viewer to first see each character as a blank, innocent sky, but move to see the complexions within it, as the plot introduces the complexity in each person’s life.
The Wash
The Wash is the story of Nobu and Masi, Japanese-American parents in their sixties, taking place post World War II. The play begins revealing that Masi has decided to leave her husband, and introduces their children, Marsha and Judy’s, respectively traditional and reformative perspectives of their parents' separation. Masi’s place is somewhere in the middle of these contrasting views, for, while her move to separate from, and later, divorce her husband, marks a progressive perspective, she still chooses to bring him his laundry each week, a traditional view on her role as a Japanese wife. The play delves into Nobu and Masi’s emotions navigating the separation, taking into account both their raw, personal emotions, along with the cultural pressures of their Japanese Identity. The play articulates how culture and tradition shapes social progress through the twentieth century.
We're Gonna Die
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