UNITY

For some reason when I think Unity - I think of the fictitious rappers "Hip Hop Dalmatians" from the movie Brown Sugar (classic) versus the NPR story on journalists of color down at UNITY (which is from yesterday - but I was MIA so...).

Listen to it here (and yeah- I did want to write "listen to it hear").

Asian Instinct

Don't know Instinct. Never read Instinct - in fact - I don't even have instincts - but it is cool that Mike Donavanik is the first Asian American on its cover (at least from what I've been told).

Word to Cuba Gooding, Jr. (on second thought - didn't he do that really bad boat movie?).

Music: Shanghai Restoration Project and Vienna Teng

David Liang

Some random and cool music touring notes for ya'll:

Shanghai Restoration Project

Live in NY and LA: The Shanghai Restoration Project

In celebration of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the SHANGHAI RESTORATION PROJECT will be performing two shows in early August:

LOS ANGELES
Tuesday, August 5th @ THE VIPER ROOM
7:30 pm (doors open at 7:00PM)
8852 Sunset Boulevard
West Hollywood, CA 90069

NEW YORK
Wednesday, August 13th @ THE CANAL ROOM
8:00 pm (doors open at 7:30PM)
285 W. Broadway
New York, NY 10013

Tickets are $12 in advance and $15 at the door. Click to buy for LA and NY.

The evening will feature SHANGHAI RESTORATION PROJECT producer Dave Liang ..board accompanied by vocalists Amos Winbush, Di Johnston, Heath Brandon, Natural Fact, and Shayna Steele.

Select tracks will be synchronized to video footage of historical and modern day Shanghai. Shot in high-definition format, the clips were produced by Mark E. Lee Productions and filmed by Aasulv Wolf Austad, whose most recent collaboration, Jennifer Phang's "Half Life," was an official Sundance selection and received favorable reviews in Variety and the Hollywood Reporter.

Made possible by Warner Music Independent Label Group.
Special thanks to IODA, Rhino Independent, and Warner Chappell.

Vienna Teng

Tour Dates In August

8/2 Manchester MI - Riverfolk Festival
8/5 Milwaukee WI - Miramar Theatre
8/6 Chicago IL - Schubas Tavern
8/8 Pittsburgh PA - Club Cafe
8/9 Akron OH - Lock 3 Live ** opening for Arlo Guthrie! **
8/10 Charleston WV - Mountain Stage ** w/Mike Gordon, Crooked Still, Carrie Rodriguez & The Rescues **
8/24 San Francisco CA - OUTSIDE LANDS FESTIVAL

Asian Stories Premiere: July 25th At The ImaginAsian Center

While it's gotten some play at film festivals since mid 2006 (about 7), the dramatic comedy is getting its U.S. theatrical premiere on July 25th down at the ImaginAsian Center in LA where James Kyson Lee, Kathy Uyen, Kirt Kishita, the director Ron Oda and other cast and crew members will be on hand (for the afterparty as well).

Here's the synopsis for the film:

Jim is a young closefisted Chinese American living in LA who desperately finds himself with a stack of white flower themed disposable cameras, fleur-de-lis invitations, a number of champagne bottles, and a ten-thousand dollar engagement ring bill. The only thing missing is a bride. In financial debt and miserable for having his fiancé leave two weeks prior to Valentine's day, Jim tries to resurface his dignity and wash away his wretchedness by asking his best friend, a Japanese hitman whose passion for cooking fancy entrees extends far beyond his kitchen, to kill him just in time to miss the Hallmark holiday. With less than four days to live, Jim, while wearing his wedding tuxedo the entire time, treks to the mountains to find his fate, meet a pizza delivery boy with lucky charms, the funeral spot of his choice, and a girl.

ASIAN STORIES won the Audience Award at the VC Film Festival/Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival and has screened to sold-out audiences at other festivals in San Diego, Hawaii and Chicago.

Good to see it being shown and getting its opening. For more info check out the site.

Dr. Ken On Loveline

Doctor, Comedian, Actor, Guitar Guy - however you know him - Ken Jeong is going to be filling in for Dr. Drew tonight on Loveline and I can only imagine the advice that is going to be given out.

Loveline airs at 10PM to Midnight PST.

Good Asian Drivers

A while back I posted on the Kit Yan (who along with Melissa Li make the duo Good Asian Drivers) and I wanted to make sure to let people know that their CD's are out, and although I haven't checked out all the songs and spoken word - what they have available at their MySpace pages is pretty cool - so make sure to check them out and pick up a CD if you like their stuff.

Snippets I like: Badass, Mr Mighty, Strap On.

For more on the Good Asian Drivers check out http://www.myspace.com/goodasiandriverstour which has some selections from Melissa Li's CD as well as Kit's CD.

For individual sites, there are more selections at http://www.myspace.com/kityanpoetry and http://www.myspace.com/melissalimusic.

I Guess It's News

To be honest I'm not sure why this is news - or why a press release was sent out on it. I mean it's cool, but is really that cool? Has an Asian American, or Chinese American never done this before?

You be the judge:

Chinese-American Planning Council City Councilman to Ring the NASDAQ Stock Market Closing Bell

ADVISORY, July 21, 2008 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) --

What:
John Liu, Chinese-American Planning Council City Councilman, will
preside over the closing bell.

Where:
NASDAQ MarketSite - 4 Times Square - 43rd & Broadway - Broadcast Studio

When:
Tuesday, July 22, 2008 at 4:00 p.m. EDT

Contacts:
Pui Chi Cheng
(O) 718.937.8480; pui.cheng@verizon.net

NASDAQ MarketSite:
Jolene Libretto; 646.441.5220; 347.219.9539
Jolene.Libretto@nasdaqomx.com

Feed Information:

The closing bell is available from 3:50 p.m. to 4:05 p.m. on Galaxy 3C, Transponder 9. The downlink frequency is 4040 Vertical; Audio 6.2-6.8. The feed can also be found on Waterfront fiber 1623. If you have any questions, please contact Jolene Libretto at (646) 441-5220.

Radio Feed:

An audio transmission of the closing bell is also available from 3:50 p.m. to 4:05 p.m. on uplink IA6 C band / transponder 24, downlink frequency 4180 horizontal. The feed can be found on Waterfront fiber 1623 as well.

Webcast:

A live webcast of the NASDAQ Closing Bell will be available at: http://www.nasdaq.com/about/marketsitetowervideo.asx

Photos:

To obtain a hi-resolution photograph of the Market Close, please go to http://www.nasdaq.com/reference/marketsite_events.stm and click on the market close of your choice.

About Chinese-American Planning Council, Inc.:

Founded in 1965, the Chinese-American Planning Council, Inc. (CPC) is one of the largest not-for profit providers of social services for New York Asian American children, youth, adults, and senior citizens with over 70 programs at 29 locations throughout Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens.

O.K. I guess it's news, maybe, sort of....hmmmm.

You're Vietnamese And You Can Read Poker Faces

Sure. Obviously. I mean, not all Vietnamese people can read the poker face, but it is an interesting subject to delve into - and one which Andrew Lam takes a stab at in a New American Media blog post:

As a Vietnamese American writer who often addresses East-west relations, I have been asked over and over again: Why are Vietnamese so good at poker? Why indeed when many didn’t really play poker in Vietnam? I can’t claim to have a definitive answer but here’s something to think about: Vietnamese love gambling, and culturally it is not frowned upon. In fact, gambling is part of recreation for many who labored in the fields.

Tet, the new year celebration, is the time when everyone gambles. My fondest memories of my Vietnamese childhood is of my mother’s clan gathering in the back of our grandparent’s villa in Saigon and play Sauter La Banque, and i was six and won lots of cash from this hat (if you lose, you have to match all the money in the hat)... To Jump the bank= to bet all.. quite exciting for a 6 years old.

It was very fun with everyone – young and old -with the young, mostly kids, using their new money given to them by their elders to try to win everyon’e else’s money. The winner often then take the losers to lunch : > to cheer them up.

Children develop a keen sense of game playing and are condoned by their parents, and are often guided by their elders on how to play a better game. In fact, I spent many a summer nights with my siblings and parents playing another game called Tu Xac – same characters as in Chinese Chess – but using cards instead. My father often won and he would never give us back our money no matter how much we chldren pouted.

All I know is this - if someone could teach me to read a slot machine, then I would be in business.

Lam Triet Gets Inspired By Angkor Wat

I have to admit that I'm a little envious of people who can do things like paint and draw - because all I've ever been able to do is put together some stick figures, and even those don't really even look like anything.

I guess I could lament about it and hang my head in shame, but what fun would there be in that (and truth be told, I really like making stick figures and think they're kind of cute)?

A better use of my time would be to highlight someone like Lam Triet who's a real artist:

Triet first visited Cambodia with HCM City’s Committee for Overseas Vietnamese as part of a programme to donate medicine and food to poor Vietnamese living in the country.

"I was deeply impressed with the sculptures carved on Angkor Thom and Angkor Wat hundreds of years ago," Triet said. "I wanted to express part of that beauty in my works."

He said he was especially struck by the depiction of apsaras, considered to be heavenly nymphs in Hindu mythology, on Cambodia’s temples.

The 36-painting exhibition An Tuong Angkor (Impressions of Angkor) includes depictions of apsara dancers and stone figures on the Bayon temple.

Triet was born in 1938 in Binh Dinh Province and studied painting at Hue and Sai Gon Fine Arts schools.

Read more about Triet at Viet Nam News.

Asian Hip Hop Summit

If you're into hip hop you'll definitely want to make sure that you check this out when it comes to a venue near you (click on the pic for a larger version).



For more info check out the site as well as the MySpace pages -and is just me or is AAM going sponsor crazy these days?

Cool.

APA's Getting Heard

There's a good story on the youth vote, being involved in the election, and just making sure that their voices are heard down at the Pacific Citizen:

Shandon Phan, 28, wonders why he was unable to find a pro-McCain group for Asian Americans on the Internet.

'He's a great candidate. Why is there no group out there?' he wondered.

The young law student took the situation into his own hands by starting Asian Americans for McCain, an independent group focused on reaching out to those interested in Sen. John McCain. With about 10 active members, the group hopes to make an impact by recruiting voters and branching out into the community.

Young Asian Pacific Americans like Phan have been moved by the 2008 presidential candidates and have taken the initiative to make a difference, campaigning for the candidates of their choices and working to get involved in the political process.

While I'm not sure I'd put my stock in McCain - especially if you're betting on the election (at least in a win/lose situation) - as long as you're getting involved, what more can anyone really ask for?

Children of the Atomic Bomb

It's not a fun topic - but it shouldn't be, it can't be - and while everyone in their right mind would go back and change history, it's not something that can happen, and at the very least - we need to learn from it - we have to learn from it.

In what can only be described as a sobering experience to view, the new website from UCLS's Asian American Studies Center, named "Children of the Atomic Bomb" makes sure that we don't forget what happened, and that we try to learn from what happened:

August 6 and August 9 will mark the 63rd anniversary of the U.S. nuclear bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. In the history of humankind, Japan and the Japanese people were the only nation to bear the horrific consequences of the atomic bomb; over 100,000 persons died directly, with hundreds of thousands more being exposed directly and indirectly to the bomb. The children, both living and future generations, were especially vulnerable to the genetic effects of the bomb.

To commemorate this event, and to urge humankind to act today upon new medical and scientific knowledge about the long-term effects of the atomic bomb, UCLA's Asian American Studies Center announces the official August 2008 launching of the innovative website "Children of the Atomic Bomb."

The website, found at (http://www.childrenoftheatomicbomb.com), was developed by the UCLA Asian American Studies Center in partnership with Dr. James N. Yamazaki, an emeritus professor of medicine at UCLA. Yamazaki was the lead physician of the 1949 U.S. Atomic Bomb Medical Team, studying the effects of nuclear bombing on children in Nagasaki. The project was funded in part by the Paul I. Terasaki Foundation, along with in-kind funding from the UCLA Asian American Studies Center. Additional funding came from Ms. Dodie Danchick.

The "Children of the Atomic Bomb" website provides Dr. Yamazaki's eyewitness accounts of his experiences in post-war Nagasaki, Hiroshima, and the Marshall Islands. According to Dr. Yamazaki: "Their tragedy has left a lifelong impact on me. Today, an enormous nuclear disaster simmers that must not be allowed to ignite."

The "Children of the Atomic Bomb" website details the Commission's findings on the physical and health consequences of the atomic bombs on the survivors. These include increased incidence of leukemia and other cancers and high rates of birth defects such as malformed brains, caused by radiation injury to developing fetal brain cells. In addition to two video interviews with Dr. Yamazaki, the "Children of the Atomic Bomb" website also features images of drawings and paintings created by survivors of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki blasts.

For the full article go here. To view the website visit http://www.aasc.ucla.edu/cab/index.html.

Kiyo Ann Matsumoto: Only The Second Asian American Woman Ever Confirmed To A Federal Bench

A while back, I posted on Kiyo Ann Matsumoto and her bid to become a federal judge, and yesterday, she was approved by the United States Senate to be the next federal judge in the Eastern District of New York - unanimously - and in doing so, Matsumoto is only the second Asian American woman ever confirmed to a Federal Bench and the first Asian American in that court.

Here's the full story from the Senate Democratic Steering and Outreach Committee:

U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer today announced that the full United States Senate has unanimously confirmed Kiyo Matsumoto to be the next federal judge in the Eastern District of New York. Schumer, who recommended Matsumoto -- as well as Cathy Seibel to the sit in the Southern District, who is set to be confirmed later this month -- said that these two accomplished women will go a long way toward closing the gender disparity that currently exists on the federal bench. Matsumoto currently serves as a federal magistrate judge in the Eastern District, and will be only the second woman of Asian decent ever confirmed to the federal bench.

“Today is an historic day for the Eastern District and for the entire federal court system,” Schumer said. “Judge Matsumoto is an extraordinary jurist and I wholeheartedly congratulate her on her confirmation. I recommended Judge Matsumoto because of her integrity and qualifications, character and dedication. In addition, Judge Matsumoto’s confirmation brings us one step closer to reversing the gender disparity that exists on the federal bench. Our federal bench must reflect the same broad diversity of experience as America writ large.”

Ms. Matsumoto currently serves as a Federal Magistrate Judge for the Eastern District of New York, where she has managed a docket of over 300 cases for three years. Prior to her appointment as Federal Magistrate Judge, Ms. Matsumoto served the in U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York for over 20 years, as Chief and First Deputy Chief of the Civil Division. Judge Matsumoto’s father and mother spent time in an internment camp during World War II.

"Judge Matsumoto's life and career shows the greatness of those who believe in America and push our nation to its best potential: the woman whose family was subject to the worst injustice under law, now -- as a result of her own talent --has a seat of legal power and influence to judge others with rigor, intellectual excellence and fairness," said Schumer.

In March, Schumer recommended Matsumoto and Cathy Seibel, the current First Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, to the President to fill vacant spots in the Eastern and Southern District respectively Schumer said that right now there are far more men serving on the federal courts in New York, particularly in the Eastern District where only 32 percent of judges are women. Schumer today said that Matsumoto’s confirmation and Ms. Seibel’s expected confirmation later this month will help reverse that unnecessary disparity.

In addition, Magistrate Judge Matsumoto has now become only the second Asian American woman to serve as a federal district court judge and the third Asian American federal district court judge outside of California and Hawaii. She is the eighth Asian American federal Senate-confirmed judge currently active out of approximately 850 nationwide.

The Senate today also confirmed Paul Gardaphe to be a judge on the Southern District of New York.

I mean seriously - how cool is this?

Confessions Of An Independent Filmmaker

This has been going on for a little while - the webseries that is - and it's awesome. It shows "Randon Filipino Filmmaking Guy" and his true quest to make his animated movie (which is pretty much Top Secret for everyone watching at home).

In a way - it kind of reminds me of that indie flick My Date With Drew - except this guy is Filipino, and he's not trying to date Drew Barrymore, or anyone else, and he uses a lot of Godzilla references (so maybe it's not like that movie after all).

Here's the latest from this month



Check out the rest of the episodes here (they're pretty short - and fun to watch).

Profile & Video: G-N From Chio in the morning

Because you always want more hats, here's Asian American DJ G-N from Philadelphia's Wired 96.5 talking about hats:



Here's G-N's 96.5 profile:

G-N
Co-host/Female Voice
gn@wired965.com

G-N was born in Seoul, Korea and moved to Arizona when she was just a year old. It's a surprise she talks for a living considering she didn't learn to talk until the late age of 3. Now she is bi-lengual in English and Korean. She's close with her parents and considers her brother one of her best friends. She graduated from the University of Arizona and moved to the East Coast in 2006.

Likes:
Oprah, Grey's Anatomy, Sex and the City, myspace, all types of music even country, fake eye lashes, Spas, MAC cosmetics, dimples on guys, designer shoes and purses but cheap tops and bottoms, reality shows, scalp massages, animals I can feed, my sidekick, feather beds and sheets over 800 thread count, being scratched while falling asleep, so much more...

DisLikes:
Crickets, hang nails, when I have a double chin in pictures, fancy foods like escargot and caviar, bad breath/odor,

Hobbies:
Reading books and magazines, dancing, watching tv/movies, shopping, traveling, rock climbing, dining out, running, tanning, learning anything new, taking pictures, etc.

Things Most people dont know:
This might be hard to believe but I graduated from The University of Arizona in just 3 years. I love cleaning and doing laundry. I've had 3 root canals, burned myself trying to make stupid things, went skydiving, am a sorority drop out, and will try anything once! By the way, my wedding ring finger is size 4.5.

The Asian And You Could Be Asian Emmy Nominee List

Steven Okazaki

Here's the deal. I'm not the all knowing Asian American with "the chip" which can spot out Asian and Asian Americans by name alone (which in ways is a good thing) - and to be honest, it's just not possible because of the diversity of people who are from Asian decent.

At the same time, I wanted to get a list of Emmy nominees who were Asian/Asian American and not just ones that everyone knows about (because we all know who Sandra Oh is) because I wanted to highlight Asian/Asian Americans behind the scenes as well - because they definitely make a difference.

So you can see my dilemma.

I wanted to highlight people of Asian decent - but without pictures this can get difficult.

So what do you do?

You make your best Asian estimate and make apologies to everyone who either got left out (and I'm sure you're there because names don't always tell the picture obviously), or you bow your head in shame for putting someone on this list when maybe they shouldn't have been there in the first place.

But for what it's worth - I'm thinking I'm 95% accurate on the people listed below - and hey - show me a list that tries to do this (because if it's there, I just would have copied it).

P.S. - If I missed you or you know someone I missed, feel free to e-mail anything. At the same time, there were a couple people in camerawork that were in multiple shows (but I only showed them once).

Outstanding Animated Program (for Programming Less Than One Hour)

• Tom Yasumi - Animation Director - SpongeBob SquarePants
• Patricia Shinagawa - Animation Timer - The Simpons

Outstanding Art Direction For A Miniseries, Or Movie

• Radha Mehta - Set Decorator - Recount

Outstanding Cinematography For A Miniseries Or Movie

• Tak Fujimoto - Director of Photography - John Adams

Outstanding Cinematography For A Half-hour Series

• Michael Goi - Director of Photography - John Adams

Outstanding Hairstyling For A Single-camera Series

• Yuko Tokunaga-Koach - Key Hairstylist - Pushing Daisies

Outstanding Main Title Design

• Garson Yu, Creative Director/Art Director - Bernard And Doris
• Synderela Peng, Designer/Art Director - Bernard And Doris
• Etsuko Uji, Designer/Animator - Bernard And Doris
• Karin Fong, Title Designer - Chuck
• Dana Yee, Title Designer - Chuck

Exceptional Merit In Nonfiction Filmmaking

• Steven Okazaki, Producer - White Light/Black Rain

Outstanding Picture Editing For A Special (single Or Multi-camera)

• Narumi Inatsugo, Editor - The AFI Life Achievement Award: A Tribute To Al Pacino

Outstanding Reality-competition Program

• Joe Sungkur, Senior Producer - DWTS

Outstanding Reality Program

• Jeanne Kazumi Petrone, Produced By - Extreme Makeover Home Edition

Outstanding Sound Editing For Nonfiction Programming (single Or Multi-camera)

• Noz Furuya, Sound Effects Editor -Life After People

Outstanding Sound Mixing For A Comedy Or Drama Series (half-hour) And Animation

• Susan Moore-Chong - Weeds

Outstanding Special Class - Short-format Animated Programs

• Won Dong Kun, Animation Director

Outstanding Special Visual Effects For A Miniseries, Movie Or A Special

• Daniel Kumiega, Visual Effects Animator

Outstanding Special Visual Effects For A Series

• David Takemura, Visual Effects Coordinator
• Jamie Yukio Kawano, Lead CGI Artist - Stargate Atlantis
• Daniel Osaki, Lead Model Maker - Stargate Atlantis

Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Drama Series

• Sandra Oh - Grey's Anatomy

Outstanding Technical Direction, Camerawork, Video For A Miniseries, Movie Or A Special

• Easter Xua, Camera - American Idol

Outstanding Technical Direction, Camerawork, Video For A Series

• Fred Shimizu, Camera - Late Show With David Letterman

Blogo Love

Some links from around the way:

Shuffled! Theresa Vu of Magnetic North

Theresa Vu is a female emcee with no need for the “female” qualifier. Known for her sharp delivery and no-nonsense rhymes, Tvu has performed nationwide and turned heads from rap superstar Nelly to renowned civil rights activist Yuri Kochiyama. She is one half of highly-touted Magnetic North, a duo who consistently ranks among MySpace’s top 10 unsigned hip hop bands in New York.

Satire of the Stupid

Aside from the racial insularity from which it emerges, this art fails on purely discursive grounds. You can't fight demeaning portrayals by actualizing them. If a woman is accused in sexist society of being ugly, the appropriate response is not to draw a picture of her looking extremely ugly according to certain patriarchal standards in order to chuckle about it. That doesn't work. The appropriate response is to undermine the entire set of underlying assumptions and beliefs which give potency to sexist slurs.

SPORTS ILLUSTRASIAN: Reebok Speaks Chine$e

Yao Ming returned to the hardcourt today from a foot injury for 12 minutes against Serbia in the Stankovic Cup, a pre-Olympic tune-up tournament. China won 96-72. Reports said that Yao Ming looked "rusty," but I doubt Reebok really gives a shit how he plays so long as his big ass is out there.

the asian guy in the dark knight

With the latest Batman movie The Dark Knight opening in theaters on Friday, we're probably looking at one of the biggest box office weekends of the summer. I have seen the movie, and it's pretty freaking fantastic. If you liked Batman Begins, this one's going to blow you away. That said... the movie wouldn't quite be complete without a few Asian bad guys.

Japanese Americans get the spotlight in Japanese American National Museum conference in Denver

The conference, which had the awkward and ungainly title but righteous theme of “Whose America? Who’s American?,” also brought more than 800 attendees and volunteers for the four-day span, meeting and greeting and learning about the history, present and future of not only Japanese Americans but also of Americans in general.

The Worst Kind of Wing

The wingman. She's always there if you're looking to have a good time when you want to go bar hopping. You can count on her to rescue you from a sticky situation that you can't get yourself out of. She's the best excuse to use when you're trying to ditch that sketchy guy who just won't leave you alone. She's the Thelma to your Louise. Most importantly, she's the best possible candidate that won't try to cock block you when you're trying to score digits from that cute blonde with the big hands.

Project Slasher: Jerry Tam

Dear Jerry:

Listen. I know you're a fashion designer who unlike some of the other contestants on Project Runway has his own business and is actually making some cash, and in that way you feel like you have to defend your work - and sure - you probably didn't deserve to go home more than Trash Bag Rocker Lady from the 70's with her "whipstitch garbage sack", but c'mon - how can you still stand behind that J-Horror costume you put together that looked like it should have been in Rampo Noir versus for a night out on the town?

Either way - I am still glad you made it on the show (and your intro was cool) and while I'd like to know that there's still another Asian American on Project Runway, I understand the 1 Asian American per show quota, so I'll just have to wait until next season to cheer on another AA.

O.K. - Here's to hoping I see your work in some new flicks.

Slanty

Get Your Play On: A-Squared Theatre Workshop and The Wind Cries Mary

So I got word of this from musician Dawen Wang via Chicago about a new play being put on by A-Squared Theatre Workshop called "The Wind Cries Mary" - and it sounds like it's going to be pretty damn cool. The show will be running next month August 1-24 down at City Lit Theatre.

Check out all the info down below from the press release, and if you're down in the area - make sure to get on out and support some Asian American theater.

A-Squared Theatre Workshop, a new Asian-American stage workshop, is producing Chicago’s premiere of Philip Kan Gotanda's The Wind Cries Mary, running from August 1-24, 2008 at City Lit Theatre.

Loosely adapted from Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen's Hedda Gabler, Gotanda's interpretation tackles Asian American political and civil rights themes of the late 1960s. Set in San Francisco, with a backdrop of the Vietnam War, the Civil Rights movement and the Women’s Liberation movement, the play takes place solely within the protagonist’s (Eiko Hanabi) home and engages the audience with the character’s inner struggle to break through her own gender and racial issues.

“We sought out this play because it represents what we struggle with today,” said Max Chung, director of The Wind Cries Mary. “The experience of the Ibsen story is universal, and the script is written so that Asian Americans could share our experience, our viewpoint with a larger audience.”

Playwright Philip Kan Gotanda is one of the most produced American playwrights, having worked with the Asian American Theatre Company, Northwest Asian American Theater, Pan Asian Repertory, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, South Coast Repertory, New York Shakespeare Festival and the Mark Taper Forum. Gotanda also works internationally, recently staging a Japanese translation of other work and at London's Gate Theatre in co-production with the Royal National Theatre.

A-Squared Theatre Workshop is the only workshop in Chicago that is focused on the Asian-American experience. The founders of A-Squared saw the need to build a space that could span the range of ethnic groups in the Asian American community and use it as a place “to work out new ideas.” A-Squared hails some of the city’s well-known talent such as Mia Park, Dwight Sora and Paul Yamada to bring culturally specific issues to Chicago’s stage.

Audiences can catch “The Wind Cries Mary” from August 1 – 24 on Thursday-Saturday at 8pm, Sundays at 2pm. All performances are at City Lit Theater, 1020 West Bryn Mawr, Chicago. For reservations call 773.353.5979. General admission is $18, students and seniors $15 and groups of 10 or more at $12.

About A-Squared Theatre:

Mia Park, co-founder of A-Squared Theatre Workshop, has been a co-host of the underground cable music show, Chic-A-Go-Go, for ten years. Mia is a member of SAG, AEA, and AFTRA and has acted in independent movies, national commercials and industrial films for over eight years. In addition to MCing for groups like the Korean Consulate and the City of Chicago, Mia does voice-over work and models. She's performed in the Asian American theater groups Tea Company and Stir Friday Night and has also performed with Collaboraction as Jenny Chow in The Intelligent Design of Jenny Chow and was most recently Fumiko in Hana's Suitcase with the
Chicago Children's Theater Company. Mia graduated from the Meisner Program at Act One Studios and has studied at Improv Olympic.

Paul Yamada is a co-founder of A-Squared Theatre Workshop and has been writing and researching American popular music and culture for over 35 years. He has published numerous essays and reviews and has made contributions to events produced by the Smithsonian Institute, the Washington Performing Arts Society, and National Public Radio. More recently, he has contributed profiles of Yasuo Kuniyoshi and Yasuhiro Ishimoto to the JACL newsletter. He curated the music for the production of Seven Out and assisted with the music for Trial By Water.

Cary Shoda is a co-founder of A-Squared Theatre Workshop and a Chicago-based actor and graphic designer. He played Khue in Trial By Water (co-produced with dueEast Theatre Company) and will produce The Wind Cries Mary which opens in August 2008. Other recent acting credits include The Laramie Project (James Downing Theatre Company), Camino Real (Mom and Dad Productions), and video segments in Ceres (Factory Theater). Graphic design credits include McKinsey & Company, Spencer Stuart, and The Museum of Contemporary Art.

Allen Hope Sermonia, co-founder of A-Squared Theatre Workshop, is an actor/director who has been in and around the off-loop theater scene for the past 10 years. He has appeared and behind the scenes with such theaters as Wing and Groove Theatre Company, TriArts, Inc., Chicago Dramatists, and others. As a director, his work has been seen at Chicago Dramatists, Prop Theater, and dueEast Theatre Company. Recently, he was seen in ICT’s jeff-recommended show Lewis and Clark Reach the Euphrates.

Dwight Sora is a native of River Forest and has been working professionally in Chicago since 2002’s The Rape of Nanking . . . According to Minnie (Stockyards Theatre Project). Prior to that, he was actively involved with the community performance/outreach group Scrap Mettle SOUL based in the Edgewater/Uptown neighborhood, after graduating from the University of Chicago in 1995. Other credits include A Thousand Cranes (Vittum Theater), The Normal Heart (Lincoln Square Theatre), Again (II Roman Senators), and Warren Lemming’s cabaret Cold Chicago. He understudied for After the Quake (Steppenwolf Theatre Company) and Durango (Silk Road Theatre Project), and has fought onstage in Romeo et Juliet (Lyric Opera Chicago) and Tribulation & the Demolition Squad (Chicago Dance Crash). He has worked on several industrial films for corporations such as McDonald’s and Bank of America, and spent three years with the Social Issues Ensemble of Imagination Theater.

Ghuon "Max" Chung is the director of The Wind Cries Mary after having choreographed the movement and fights for Trial By Water. He has been seen on stage with Little Theatre on the Square, Illinois Theatre Center, Marriott-Lincolnshire Theatre, Beef & Boards Dinner Theatre, Pegasus Players, The Artistic Home, Light Opera Works and Ravinia Festival. He graduated from Northwestern University and is a member of Actors’ Equity Association. He voiced the character Chang Wong in the Left Behind audio book series and premiered his one-man show, Secret Asian Man…a Korean Kabaret in Chicago.

Listen: Norm Mineta

If you're looking for something to listen too on your downtime, or you just want to get in the know, make sure to check the NPR interview with Norm Mineta. Can't remember who Norm Mineta is or what he's famous for? No problem:

In 2001, Norm Mineta made history as the first Asian-American to serve in a presidential cabinet, and bears the distinction of being the longest-serving U.S. Secretary of Transportation. The trailblazing public servant talks about his road to White House leadership, leading the nation through acts of terror on Sept. 11, and his plans for the future.

Check out the full interview Norm Mineta on Pioneering Career, America's Future.