Asia Society and the National Asian American Theatre Festival

present

A Free Panel Discussion
"Double Exposure: Connecting Arts Presenters with the Asian-American Theater Community"

Friday, June 15 at 4:00 pm at Asia Society
Moderated by Mark Russell

The Asia Society and the National Asian American Theatre Festival (NAATF) host "Double Exposure: Connecting Arts Presenters with the Asian-American Theater Community"—a panel discussion moderated by Mark Russell to encourage a deeper understanding of the vibrancy and history of Asian American theater and to develop strategies to encourage the a broader presentation of this work—on Friday, June 15 at 4:00 pm at Asia Society (725 Park Avenue at 70th Street) in Manhattan. The panel discussion and reception are free and open to the public. Reservations are required. Please contact Asia Society at 212-517-ASIA or visit us online at https://tickets.AsiaSociety.org.

A reception and performance of Ping Chong and Company's Undesirable Elements will take place later the same evening at 8:00 pm. Tickets to Undesirable Elements are $20 and can be purchased through the Asia Society or by calling Theatermania.com at 212-352-3101 or by visiting www.NAATF.org.

Ralph Pena, Artistic Director of Ma-Yi Theater Company will provide a context on Asian American theater today, followed by a panel discussion moderated by Mark Russell, producer of Under the Radar. The panel will discuss the challenges and opportunities for presenting Asian American theater more broadly around the US. Joining Mr. Russell to discuss strategies for artists to connect with presenters and develop new ideas will be: Bruce Allardice, Managing Director of Ping Chong & Company, creators of Undesirable Elements; June Wilson, Executive Director of the National Performance Network; actress Kristina Wong, star and author of NAATF production Wong Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest; and E. San San Wong, San Francisco Arts Commission Program Director.

Created by theatrical innovator Ping Chong, Undesirable Elements is a powerful exploration of the Asian-American experience in New York through an interview-based theater work. A chamber piece of storytelling, the performance features real people telling their personal experiences of creating cultural identity out of a rich and complex heritage.

Presenting over 35 theatrical productions, more than 25 Asian American performing arts companies and solo artists from across the US convene for two weeks of performances at venues throughout New York City, June 11-24, for New York's first-ever National Asian American Theater Festival.

A sampling of productions to be presented as part of NAATF includes William Finn's musical Falsettoland, performed by the NYC-based National Asian American Theatre Company (NAATCO); Pan Asian Repertory Theatre's Off-Broadway production of Tea; Brooklyn-based Vampire Cowboys Theatre Company's Living Dead In Denmark; East West Players' Three Filipino Tenors from Los Angeles; Chicago's Stir-Friday Night! comedy troupe in The Caste & The Furious: Tokyo Drift; live cooking show Cooking Con Karimi Con Castro; and New York's Ma-Yi Theatre Company's return Off-Broadway limited engagement of The Romance of Magno Rubio.

The participating theater companies and solo artists in the National Asian American Theater Festival represent the tremendous diversity of the ever-growing Asian American population in the US: From states including California, New York, Texas, Illinois, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Arizona, and Minnesota, the works presented in NAATF reflect the writers' and performers' ethnic heritages from such countries as Cambodia, China, Japan, Korea, Laos, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, and of course, the United States.

The National Asian American Theater Festival was born out of a Theatre Communications Group (TCG) roundtable for theaters of color, after which, six of the top Asian American theater groups (Pan Asian Repertory Theatre, East West Players, Ma-Yi Theater, the National Asian American Theatre Company (NAATCO), Second Generation, and Mu Performing Arts) decided to meet in June 2004 to discuss the state of Asian American Theater.

Lead sponsors of the Festival are Ford Foundation and JP Morgan Chase. Presenting sponsors are National Performance Network with funding from Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and Time Warner, with media sponsorship from the Village Voice and NYTheatre.com. The festival is sponsored in part with public funds from the National Endowment for the Arts and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs.

New York's first-ever National Asian American Theater Festival runs June 11-24, 2007 at various venues throughout NYC. Tickets to NAATF events range from $18-$20; discount subscription packages are also available; call Theatermania.com at 212-352-3101 or (toll free) 866-811-4111. For additional information about NAATF, visit www.NAATF.org.

Asia Society is the leading global organization working to strengthen relationships and promote understanding among the people, leaders, and institutions of Asia and the United States. We seek to enhance dialogue, encourage creative expression, and generate new ideas across the fields of policy, business, education, arts, and culture.

Founded in 1956, Asia Society is a nonpartisan, nonprofit educational institution with offices in Hong Kong, Houston, Los Angeles, Manila, Melbourne, Mumbai, New York, San Francisco, Shanghai, and Washington DC.

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Contacts:
Kelly Burdick at 646-761-8490 or kburdick@NAATF.org
Jennifer Suh at 212-327-9271 or pr@asiasociety.org