Lia Chang Photos: World Premiere of Samrat Chakrabarti and Sanjiv Jhaveri’s BUMBUG The Musical at The Clurman Theatre, December 6-22, 2012

I can’t wait to get my holiday cheer on at the world premiere of BUMBUG The Musical, a new Rock Opera by Samrat Chakrabarti and Sanjiv Jhaveri, presented by LAUGHistan, during its limited engagement at The Clurman Theatre (Theatre Row, 410 West 42nd Street) in New York.

Internationally Acclaimed singer Falu (center) shares her breathtaking voice and dance moves with the Angel Crew (left to right: Lipica Shah as Sunita, Matthew Knowland, Kiarri Andrews & Brooke Ishibashi) in the show stopper song “Ajaa Ajaa” from LAUGHistan’s World Premiere of “BUMBUG The Musical”. Photo Credit: Lia Chang

I loved the workshop production of Bakwas Bumbug, presented by Desipina at the Wild Project in 2011, and have been anxiously awaiting its return.

Andrew Ramcharan Guilarte as “Scroogewala” from LAUGHistan’s World Premiere of “BUMBUG The Musical”. Photo Credit: Lia Chang

Performances begin Thursday, December 6 and continue through Saturday, December 22. Opening night is Saturday, December 15 at 8pm.

Helmed by Mercedes Murphy, BUMBUG The Musical, is an electrifying musical reinvention of “A Christmas Carol” told through the looking glass of NYC Immigrants and Hyphenated America. Like so many immigrants, disillusioned Deli-owner Scroogewala left his motherland years ago to pursue the American dream. Amidst his battle with holiday merriment, Scroogewala is visited by a motley crew of misfits who remind him that love, loss and laughter are all a part of that dream he’d almost given up on.

Andrew Ramcharan Guilarte as “Scroogewala” (center) with the Angel Crew (left to right: Brooke Ishibashi, Kiarri Andrews & Matthew Knowland) from LAUGHistan’s World Premiere of “BUMBUG The Musical”. Photo Credit: Lia Chang

Adrienne C. Moore as “Angel”, Andrew Ramcharan Guilarte as “Scroogewala” with the Angel Crew (left to right: Brooke Ishibashi, Matthew Knowland & Kiarri Andrews) from LAUGHistan’s World Premiere of “BUMBUG The Musical”. Photo Credit: Lia Chang

BUMBUG The Musical is the FIRST Full Length Musical authored and produced by the Indian-American diaspora in New York City. The production stars Kiarri Andrews, Andrew Guilarte*, Brooke Ishibashi*, Matthew Knowland*, Adrienne C. Moore*, Debargo Sanyal*, Lipica Shah*, and Falu.
*Performing courtesy of Actors’ Equity Association. AEA approved showcase.

The cast of LAUGHistan’s World Premiere of “BUMBUG The Musical”. Photo Credit: Lia Chang

Andrew Ramcharan Guilarte as “Scroogewala” and the band from LAUGHistan’s World Premiere of “BUMBUG The Musical”. Photo Credit: Lia Chang

The band includes Keyboard: Samrat Chakrabarti, Guitar: Ranjit Arapurakal, Bass: Konrad Payne, Percussion: Shiv Puri.

Lipica Shah as “Sunita” and Andrew Ramcharan Guilarte as “Scroogewala” from LAUGHistan’s World Premiere of “BUMBUG The Musical”. Photo Credit: Lia Chang

BUMBUG The Musical, general managed by Darling & Company, features scenic design by Mercedes Murphy, lighting design by D.M. Woods, costume design by Amanda Seymour.
BUMBUG THE MUSICAL plays the following regular schedule through Saturday, December 22:
Wednesdays at 8 p.m.
Thursdays at 8 p.m.
Fridays at 8 p.m.
Saturdays at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.
Sundays at 3 p.m.
There is no performance on Friday December 7th.
Tickets are $19.25 (including a facility fee) and are now available online at www.Telecharge.com or by calling 212-239-6200. Tickets may also be purchased in-person at the Theatre Row Box Office,12 p.m. to 8 p.m. daily.
Running Time: 75 minutes
Website: www.BUMBUGTheMusical.com

Sanjiv Jhaveri and Samrat Chakrabarti, co-creators of Bumbug: The Musical. Photo by Lia Chang

SAMRAT CHAKRABARTI (Book, Lyrics, Music) is an award-winning actor and internationally acclaimed musician. His musical collaborators include: Robert Brustein (founder of Yale Repertory Theatre & American Repertory Theatre), Sabir Khan (son of musical maestro Ustad Sultan Khan), Jared Stein (from the Broadway show American Idiot), Deborah S. Craig (from the Broadway show The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee), Roopak Ahuja (from the band, House Jacks), Jerold E. Solomon (from the Broadway show South Pacific), Meetu Chilana (from Cirque Du Soleil), Kevin Smith Kirkwood (from the upcoming Broadway show Cyndi Lauper’s Kinky Boots), Manu Narayan (from the Broadway show Bombay Dreams), Eric Pillai (Music Producer of Anurag Kashyap’s film Gangs Of Wasseypur), Shabbir Ahmed (Award winning Bollywood Lyricist), DJ Suketu, DJ Aqeel, John Clark, Ajay Naidu and others. Chakrabarti has also composed music for over a dozen films, including, Deepa Mehta’s film adaptation of Salman Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children, Soham Mehta’s Student OSCAR winning film: Fatakra (Firecracker), Rachel Greenberger’s The Only Thing, Rehana Mirza’s Hiding Divya, Ted Wallach’s Oil: A Love Story, Sundaram Tagore’s Natvar Bhavsar: Poetics of Color, and Manish Acharya’s Loins of Punjab Presents. He is the recipient of a U.S. CARA for Best Original Pop/Rock Song for his composition “What’s It all About” and the 2010 TMG Award for Global Achievers in the category of Film, TV and Drama, for his outstanding body of work as an actor. Samrat holds a MFA in Acting from the A.R.T/ Moscow Art Theater School Program at Harvard University. For more info on his works, check out:http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1589782/

Adrienne C. Moore as “Angel” and Andrew Ramcharan Guilarte as “Scroogewala” from LAUGHistan’s World Premiere of “BUMBUG The Musical”. Photo Credit: Lia Chang

Falu as “Mrs. Scroogewala” and Andrew Ramcharan Guilarte as “Scroogewala” from LAUGHistan’s World Premiere of “BUMBUG The Musical”. Photo Credit: Lia Chang

SANJIV JHAVERI (Book, Lyrics) is a veteran actor of TV, Film, and the Theatre. Film: Manish Acharya’s Loins of Punjab Presents (with scenes opposite the legendary Shabana Azmi); Walkaway, Shailja Gupta’s debut film. Television: All the series of “Law and Order” (NBC), “Conviction” (NBC), “Rescue Me” (FX), and 3 Pilots, “Drift,” “Hate,” and the Tim Robbins directed “Possible Side Effects.” Regional Theatre: Yale Rep, Washington D.C.’s award-winning Studio Theatre, and Missouri Rep. In New York City: The Play Company (Sakharam Binder), the Lark Theatre, Lincoln Center Directors’ Lab, the Cherry Lane Theatre, and the Hypothetical Theatre Company. Director: Desipina Production of “7-11″, seven 11- minute plays set in a convenience store, in 2007. Writer: Collaborations with Samrat Chakrabarti to write 3 mini musicals A Very Desi Christmas, Soonderella, and Who Killed Mr. Naidu First? A Very Desi Christmas has grown into a full-length musical, called Bakwas Bumbug, which has been workshopped with Desipina, receiving a workshop production at the Wild Project in 2011. He has also worked as an accent/dialect coach. Audiobooks: Audible.com and Brilliance Audio. Titles include: Confessions of a Thug, Alif The Unseen, The Truth About Me and Amitav Ghosh’s River of Smoke.

Adrienne C. Moore (center) as “Angel” and The Angel Crew (left to right: Matthew Knowland, Kiarri Andrews and Brooke Ishibashi) from LAUGHistan’s World Premiere of “BUMBUG The Musical”. Photo Credit: Lia Chang

MERCEDES MURPHY (Director) is a veteran of the Theater business as a Director, Artistic Director, Writer, and Designer. She has directed theater and dance at various venues including the prestigious Moscow Art Theater, Lincoln Center, PS 122, the Vineyard Theater, the Market Theater, the C. Walsh Theater and the American Repertory Theatre. In addition, her works have also toured throughout Europe. Mercedes has worked as an Art Director for music videos and collaborated with artists including Coleman Hough, Jody Oberfelder, Robert Woodruff, Jay Scheib and John Bucchino. For two years, she was the resident director at the New Opera and Musical Theater Initiative in Boston. She is the Founding and Artistic Director of Théâtre Trouvé and has taught at the New York Film Academy and Harvard University. Currently, Mercedes is a professor at Montclair State University’s Department of Theatre.

LAUGHistan is a production company dedicated to bringing contemporary works of theater and film into the mainstream with a strong emphasis on preserving authenticity.

Andrew Ramcharan Guilarte as “Scroogewala” (center) with the Angel Crew (left to right: Brooke Ishibashi, Kiarri Andrews & Matthew Knowland) from LAUGHistan’s World Premiere of “BUMBUG The Musical”. Photo Credit: Lia Chang

The Angel Crew (left to right: Brooke Ishibashi, Matthew Knowland & Kiarri Andrews) from LAUGHistan’s World Premiere of “BUMBUG The Musical”. Photo Credit: Lia Chang

Internationally Acclaimed singer Falu (center) shares her breathtaking voice and dance moves with the Angel Crew (left to right: Kiarri Andrews, Brooke Ishibashi & Matthew Knowland) and Lipica Shah as “Sunita”, in the show stopper song “Ajaa Ajaa” from LAUGHistan’s World Premiere of “BUMBUG The Musical”. Photo Credit: Lia Chang

Lipica Shah as “Sunita” and Debargo Sanyal as “Mr. Scroogewala” from LAUGHistan’s World Premiere of “BUMBUG The Musical”. Photo Credit: Lia Chang

Internationally Acclaimed singer Falu in LAUGHistan’s World Premiere of “BUMBUG The Musical”. Photo Credit: Lia Chang

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Multimedia: Manu Narayan Dazzles as Richard Roma in La Jolla Playhouse’s Revival of David Mamet’s Glengarry Glen Ross
Photos: Partying with the Cast of David Henry Hwang’s Golden Child; Extended Run Ends December 16, 2012
Check out this Obama PSA 2012 – We Are America, directed by Samrat Chakrabarti
Photos: Experience Christmas in June with Samrat Chakrabarti and Sanjiv Jhaveri’s “Bakwas Bumbug” at The Wild Project in NY through June 26
Samrat Chakrabarti in Ajay Naidu’s Ashes, Italo Spinelli’s Gangor and Shome Banerjee’s Hotel New York 2012 at Washington D.C. South Asian Film Festival (DCSAFF 2012)
Soham Mehta, Award winning Filmmaker of Fatakra
Performing Arts Images from the Asian American Pacific Islander Collection on Display at the Library of Congress to Celebrate APA Heritage Month
Hold These Truths Video Feature: Playwright Jeanne Sakata, Star Joel de la Fuente and Director Lisa Rothe
Harlem Nights with Lorey Hayes, Actress, Director and Award-Winning Playwright of Power Play and Massinissa
Photos: Yellow Fever Playwright Rick Shiomi Explores New Territory with An All-Female Cast
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang Photo by Brianne Michelle Photography

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist.
All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2012 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com

World Premiere of Samrat Chakrabarti and Sanjiv Jhaveri’s BUMBUG The Musical at The Clurman Theatre, December 5-22, 2012

I can’t wait to get my holiday cheer on at the world premiere of BUMBUG The Musical, a new Rock Opera by Samrat Chakrabarti and Sanjiv Jhaveri, presented by LAUGHistan, during its limited engagement at The Clurman Theatre (Theatre Row, 410 West 42nd Street) in New York. I loved the workshop production of Bakwas Bumbug, presented by Desipina at the Wild Project in 2011, and have been anxiously awaiting its return.

Performances begin Wednesday, December 5 and continue through Saturday, December 22. Opening Night is Saturday, December 15 (8 p.m.).

“BUMBUG The Musical GET ON THE TRAIN musical rehearsal” (From Left to Right) -Falu (CRATCHEETA), Kiarri D. Andrews (ENSEMBLE), Matthew Knowland (ENSEMBLE), Debargo Sanyal (BHAVESH), Brooke Ishibashi (ENSEMBLE), Adrienne C. Moore (ANGEL) -Samrat Chakrabarti at the piano. Photo by Katie Rosin.

Helmed by Mercedes Murphy, BUMBUG The Musical, is an electrifying musical reinvention of “A Christmas Carol” told through the looking glass of NYC Immigrants and Hyphenated America. Like so many immigrants, disillusioned Deli-owner Scroogewala left his motherland years ago to pursue the American dream. Amidst his battle with holiday merriment, Scroogewala is visited by a motley crew of misfits who remind him that love, loss and laughter are all a part of that dream he’d almost given up on.

BUMBUG The Musical is the FIRST Full Length Musical authored and produced by the Indian-American diaspora in New York City. The production stars Kiarri Andrews, Andrew Guilarte*, Brooke Ishibashi*, Matthew Knowland*, Adrienne C. Moore*, Debargo Sanyal*, Lipica Shah*, and Falu.
*Performing courtesy of Actors’ Equity Association. AEA approved showcase.

The band includes Keyboard: Samrat Chakrabarti, Guitar: Ranjit Arapurakal, Bass: Konrad Payne, Percussion: Shiv Puri.

BUMBUG The Musical, general managed by Darling & Company, features scenic design by Mercedes Murphy, lighting design by D.M. Woods, costume design by Amanda Seymour.
BUMBUG THE MUSICAL plays the following regular schedule through Saturday, December 22:
Wednesdays at 8 p.m.
Thursdays at 8 p.m.
Fridays at 8 p.m.
Saturdays at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.
Sundays at 3 p.m.
There is no performance on Friday December 7th.
Tickets are $19.25 (including a facility fee) and are now available online at www.Telecharge.com or by calling 212-239-6200. Tickets may also be purchased in-person at the Theatre Row Box Office,12 p.m. to 8 p.m. daily.
Running Time: 75 minutes
Website: www.BUMBUGTheMusical.com

Sanjiv Jhaveri and Samrat Chakrabarti, co-creators and co-directors of Bakwas Bumbug at The Wild Project in the East Village after the opening night performance on June 22, 2011. Credit: Photo from The Lia Chang Theater Portfolio at the Library of Congress/AAPI Collection

SAMRAT CHAKRABARTI (Book, Lyrics, Music) is an award-winning actor and internationally acclaimed musician. His musical collaborators include: Robert Brustein (founder of Yale Repertory Theatre & American Repertory Theatre), Sabir Khan (son of musical maestro Ustad Sultan Khan), Jared Stein (from the Broadway show American Idiot), Deborah S. Craig (from the Broadway show The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee), Roopak Ahuja (from the band, House Jacks), Jerold E. Solomon (from the Broadway show South Pacific), Meetu Chilana (from Cirque Du Soleil), Kevin Smith Kirkwood (from the upcoming Broadway show Cyndi Lauper’s Kinky Boots), Manu Narayan (from the Broadway show Bombay Dreams), Eric Pillai (Music Producer of Anurag Kashyap’s film Gangs Of Wasseypur), Shabbir Ahmed (Award winning Bollywood Lyricist), DJ Suketu, DJ Aqeel, John Clark, Ajay Naidu and others. Chakrabarti has also composed music for over a dozen films, including, Deepa Mehta’s film adaptation of Salman Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children, Soham Mehta’s Student OSCAR winning film: Fatakra (Firecracker), Rachel Greenberger’s The Only Thing, Rehana Mirza’s Hiding Divya, Ted Wallach’s Oil: A Love Story, Sundaram Tagore’s Natvar Bhavsar: Poetics of Color, and Manish Acharya’s Loins of Punjab Presents. He is the recipient of a U.S. CARA for Best Original Pop/Rock Song for his composition “What’s It all About” and the 2010 TMG Award for Global Achievers in the category of Film, TV and Drama, for his outstanding body of work as an actor. Samrat holds a MFA in Acting from the A.R.T/ Moscow Art Theater School Program at Harvard University. For more info on his works, check out:http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1589782/

SANJIV JHAVERI (Book, Lyrics) is a veteran actor of TV, Film, and the Theatre. Film: Manish Acharya’s Loins of Punjab Presents (with scenes opposite the legendary Shabana Azmi); Walkaway, Shailja Gupta’s debut film. Television: All the series of “Law and Order” (NBC), “Conviction” (NBC), “Rescue Me” (FX), and 3 Pilots, “Drift,” “Hate,” and the Tim Robbins directed “Possible Side Effects.” Regional Theatre: Yale Rep, Washington D.C.’s award-winning StudioTheatre, and Missouri Rep. In New York City: The Play Company (Sakharam Binder), the Lark Theatre, Lincoln Center Directors’ Lab, the Cherry Lane Theatre, and the Hypothetical Theatre Company. Director: Desipina Production of “7-11″, seven 11- minute plays set in a convenience store, in 2007. Writer: Collaborations with Samrat Chakrabarti to write 3 mini musicals A Very Desi Christmas, Soonderella, and Who Killed Mr. Naidu First? A Very Desi Christmas has grown into a full-length musical, called Bakwas Bumbug, which has been workshopped with Desipina, receiving a workshop production at the Wild Project in 2011. He has also worked as an accent/dialect coach. Audiobooks: Audible.com and Brilliance Audio. Titles include: Confessions of a Thug, Alif The Unseen, The Truth About Me and Amitav Ghosh’s River of Smoke.

MERCEDES MURPHY (Director) is a veteran of the Theater business as a Director, Artistic Director, Writer, and Designer. She has directed theater and dance at various venues including the prestigious Moscow Art Theater, Lincoln Center, PS 122, the Vineyard Theater, the Market Theater, the C. Walsh Theater and the AmericanRepertory Theatre. In addition, her works have also toured throughout Europe. Mercedes has worked as an Art Director for music videos and collaborated with artists including Coleman Hough, Jody Oberfelder, Robert Woodruff, Jay Scheib and John Bucchino. For two years, she was the resident director at the New Opera and Musical Theater Initiative in Boston. She is the Founding and Artistic Director of Théâtre Trouvé and has taught at the New York Film Academy and Harvard University. Currently, Mercedes is a professor at Montclair State University’s Department of Theatre.

LAUGHistan is a production company dedicated to bringing contemporary works of theater and film into the mainstream with a strong emphasis on preserving authenticity.

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Check out this Obama PSA 2012 – We Are America, directed by Samrat Chakrabarti
Photos: Experience Christmas in June with Samrat Chakrabarti and Sanjiv Jhaveri’s “Bakwas Bumbug” at The Wild Project in NY through June 26
Samrat Chakrabarti in Ajay Naidu’s Ashes, Italo Spinelli’s Gangor and Shome Banerjee’s Hotel New York 2012 at Washington D.C. South Asian Film Festival (DCSAFF 2012)
Soham Mehta, Award winning Filmmaker of Fatakra
Lorey Hayes’ Power Play Reading at Schomburg Center with Pauletta Pearson Washington, Roscoe Orman, Lia Chang, Lorey Hayes, Phyllis Yvonne Stickney and Jeff Wallner, October 18, 2012
Multimedia: Manu Narayan Dazzles as Richard Roma in La Jolla Playhouse’s Revival of David Mamet’s Glengarry Glen Ross
Performing Arts Images from the Asian American Pacific Islander Collection on Display at the Library of Congress to Celebrate APA Heritage Month
Photos: Yellow Fever Playwright Rick Shiomi Explores New Territory with An All-Female Cast
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang. Photo by Brianne Michelle Photography

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist.
All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2012 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com

Puppets, Projections and Politics Collide in Rehana Lew Mirza’s LONELY LEELA at Here, September 5-8, 2012

Desipina & Co. – a fusion arts company focusing in film and theatre, dedicated to promoting cross-pollinations of artistic, political and cultural dialogues – in conjunction with Ma-Yi Writers Lab, will present a workshop of LONELY LEELA, a new play by Rehana Lew Mirza (TCG Future Leader Fellow, Lark/IAAC Playwright in Residence). The play is an “Alice in Wonderland” inspired multi-media, puppet adventure where malicious codes and white knight bloggers meet in a shifting world of everything’s at your fingertips but you can’t quite find what you’re looking for.

Performances for LONELY LEELA are Wednesday, September 5 to Saturday, September 8 at 7:00pm, at HERE (145 6th Avenue, enter on Dominick, 1 block south of Spring Street) in New York.

Directed by Robert Ross Parker (co-Artistic Director of the Obie Award-winning Vampire Cowboys), LONELY LEELA features a cast that includes: Quinlan Corbett (YOUR BOYFRIEND MAY BE IMAGINARY), Andrew Guilarte (INVASION), Anna Kull (MILK), Maria-Christina Oliveras (BLOODY BLOODY ANDREW JACKSON), Matt Park (WE IN SILENCE HEAR A WHISPER), Lipica Shah (DOV & ALI), and David Shih (CRANE STORY).

LONELY LEELA is produced by Ying Le for Desipina & Co. and has a design team that includes Jason Simms (set), Jake Witlen (video and lighting), Spica Wobbe (puppets), Ien DeNio (sound and music), Dax Valdes (choreographer), Jenny Fisher (costumes) and stage management by John Nehlich.

This production is a part of the Sublet Series@HERE, HERE’s curated rental program, which provides artists with subsidized space and equipment, as well as technical support. LONELY LEELA is an Equity approved showcase.

Tickets are $15 general admission. For Tickets & Information at: here.org or desipina.org or call 212-352-3101.

For more information on LONELY LEELA, please visit www.desipina.org. Follow the production on Twitter @Desipina.

Rehana Lew Mirza’s full-length plays include BARRIERS (HERE; Asian American Theater Company, SF); THE GOOD MUSLIM (Theater Row); RADIO DIARIES OF HANK, YANK, & PRANK; PARTICLES OF PAKISTAN (E.S.T. Sloan Commission); if it’s sad i don’t want to see it (O’Neill semi-Finalist) and LONELY LEELA. She was the 2010 IAAC playwright in residence at The Lark Development Center, a 2008-2010 TCG Future Leader fellow with New Georges, a Leopold Schepp scholar, a 2G Resident Artist, LMCC artist grantee, John Golden Award winner, Princess Grace finalist, and a Sundance Feature Film Lab finalist. She is the co-founder and Artistic Director of Desipina & Co.

Robert Ross Parker is the co-artistic director of the Obie winning Vampire Cowboys with Qui Nguyen. For Vampire Cowboys he has directed Vampire Cowboy Trilogy, A Beginner’s Guide to Deicide, Living Dead in Denmark, Men of Steel, Fight Girl/Battle World, Soul Samurai, Alice in Slasherland, and The Inexplicable Redemption of Agent G. For the VC Saturday Night Saloon series he wrote Jimmy Starshooter Must Get Laid, and Radio Monster Theatre: The Further Adventures of Henry and Victor. Other recent directing credits include Goodbye Cruel World (also adapter, Roundtable Ensemble) Hamlet{solo} (Edinburgh Fringe and Solo Nova at PS 122), and numerous projects for Ensemble Studio Theatre where he is a member. As an actor, Robert played the title role in The Flying Machine’s Frankenstein at Soho Rep, and on tour, and played the March Hare in their production of Alice in Wonderland. He is the former editor of The Dramatist, the Journal of the Dramatists Guild of America. MFA Ohio University.

Quinlan Corbett: Recent theatre credits include: American Jornalero (INTAR Theatre Co.), Larry Kunofsky’s Your Boyfriend May Be Imaginary (Theatre Under St Marks!), The Civilian’s Let me Ascertain You: Occupy Wall St Cabaret at Joe’s Pub, The world premiere of Mac Wellman’s 3 2′s Or Afar (Dixon Place). Regional: A site specific play by Jason Grote at MASSMoCA (coming to NYC later this September!), The Little Dog Laughed and The Plays The Thing both at Intiman Theater, Othello and Twelfth Night at the Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival. Film: Kill Your Darlings (opposite Dane Dehaan and Jack Huston, upcoming), Frayed. Training: MFA, University of Washington. Quinlan is also a fervent classical guitarist.

Andrew Ramcharan Guilarte was last seen in the world premiere of a new musical THE CONSEQUENCES at the Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theater in Cape Cod. Off-Broadway: The Play Company’s Obie award winning play INVASION (SoHo Rep/The Flea), Marat, Sade (Classical Theater of Harlem), The Winters Tale with David Strathairn (Classic Stage Company). Other NYC credits: Another Life (Irondale Theater), Jackson Heights 3am (Theater 167/Queens Theater in the Park), starred in the original musical Bakwas Bumbug at The Wild Project, Pulitzer finalist, Rajiv Joseph’s THE LEOPARD AND THE FOX (New York Innovative Theater Awards nom. for outstanding ensemble), Pulitzer finalist, Rollin Jones’ world premiere of The Jammer (NY Fringe Fest), KINGDOM OF LOST SONGS (Lincoln Center Directors Lab/HERE) among others. TV: “Turks” (CBS Pilot), “Early Editio” (CBS), “THE WORKPLACE” (PBS), “NURSE JACKIE” (SHOWTIME PILOT), “LAW AND ORDER:SVU” (NBC). Education: BFA, Acting, DePaul Theater School. MFA, Acting, Yale.

Anna Kull: Recent shows include The Germ Project and Milk (New Georges); Dream Acts (Dream Act Union); User 927 (Reverie Productions); BRINK! and Roanoke (Humana Festival/Actors Theatre of Louisville). Anna has workshopped new plays with Abingdon, EST, Lark, Ma-Yi, New Georges, Orchard Project, terraNOVA Collective and Working Theater. Anna was in the Apprentice Company at Actors Theatre of Louisville and is on staff at Lark Play Development Center. BA from Vassar College.

Maria-Christina Oliveras Broadway: Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson. Off-Broadway: Here Lies Love (Public, Spring 2013), Reading Under the Influence (DR2), BBAJ (Public), Night Sky (BPAC), The Really Big Once (Target Margin). Selected Regional: Williamstown, Huntington, Baltimore Centerstage, Denver Center, Westport Country Playhouse, Hangar, Colorado Shakes. Countless new works with the Lark, 2g, New Georges, P73, Working Theater, Atlantic, New Dramatists, NYTW, EST, NYSF/Public, Primary Stages, Clubbed Thumb, Playwrights’ Realm, Partial Comfort (of which she is a member), among others. Film: ICE, CLUTTER, VAMPERIFICA. TV: “NYC 22,” “Damages,” “Nurse Jackie,” “Ugly Betty,” “Law & Order: CI,” “Law & Order: SVU”. B.A.-Yale University; MFA-NTC/Denver Center.
Matt Park has been seen on-stage at The Present Company, LaMAMA Playwriting Lab, Chashama, the Ohio Theatre, The Public Theatre, Joe’s Pub, The People’s Improv Theatre, UCB, and Arlene’s Grocery in NYC. Matt has a BFA in Acting from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts and studied improv and sketch writing at the Magnet Theater. He wrote the music for Radio Deluxembourg, which was performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

Lipica Shah: Currently based in New York, she thrives on collaborative work in all facets of the industry. Recent theatrical credits include the premieres of Veil’d: A Fairytale, Bakwas Bumbug, Dov and Ali, and 167 Tongues; Film: Let’s Be Out, The Sun Is Shining (Best Actress Nomination, 2012 NY Indian Film Festival), Arbitrage, First Kiss, Shark Suit: The Musical; Television: “White Collar,” “Onion Sportsdome,” “Pokémon”. BFA: NYU-Tisch School of the Arts.www.LipicaShah.com.

LONELY LEELA and Desipina & Co. programs are made possible with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency; the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs; the Asian Women’s Giving Circle, the Nancy Quinn Fund (a project of ART/NY), Off Broadway Angels, and Dramatists Guild Fund.

Founded in 2004 by Sung Rno in connection with the TCG/NEA residency program, the Ma-Yi Writers Lab is the largest resident company of Asian American playwrights ever assembled. Currently led by Co-Directors Michael Lew and Rehana Mirza, the Lab is a professional peer-based workshop in permanent residence with the OBIE Award-winning Ma-Yi Theater Company, designed to nurture and showcase Asian American playwrights in New York City.

Other Articles by Lia Chang
The Play Company Presents the Off-Broadway Run of Jonas Hassen Khemiri’s INVASION! at The Flea
Photos: Christmas in June w/ Samrat Chakrabarti and Sanjiv Jhaveri’s “Bakwas Bumbug” at The Wild Project in NY-6/26
Extended through 8/23- “In Rehearsal” Lia Chang Theater Portfolio at Library of Congress Featuring Robert Lee and Leon Ko’s Heading East Starring BD Wong, Thom Sesma as Scar in The Lion King Las Vegas
Desipina & Co. Presents Pooja Kumar, Sunkrish Bala, Joe Petrilla, Eileen Rivera, Jon Norman Schneider & Rajeev Varma in Rehana Lew Mirza’s Barriers at HERE, 9/7-18
Theater of the Stars Presents The King and I Starring Ronobir Lahiri, Victoria Mallory, Raul Aranas, Ali Ewoldt, Josh Dela Cruz, Jee Hyun Lim and Raphael Aranas, Helmed by Baayork Lee on Tour through September 11, 2012
World Premiere Screening of Lil Tokyo Reporter Starring Chris Tashima at Laemmle Playhouse 7 in Pasadena, September 14-16, 2012
10 minutes with Sullivan & Son’s Jodi Long, Award Winning Actor and Filmmaker
Illeana Douglas, Kimberly-Rose Wolter and Michael Kang Set for 4 Wedding Planners Screening in Screen Actors Guild Foundation Conversations Series in NY on August 21, 2012
David Henry Hwang to Receive the 2012 Steinberg Distinguished Playwright Award at the 5th Annual Steinberg Playwright “Mimi” Awards on October 29, 2012
Multimedia: Screen Actors Guild Foundation’s Conversations with Derek Ting, Linus Roache and Michael Park of $upercapitalist
Konrad Aderer’s Enemy Alien Screens at Japanese American National Museum in LA on September 8, 2012
Lily Mariye’s Model Minority, Jayshree Janu Kharpade’s Fire in Our Hearts, Eliaichi Kimaro’s A Lot Like You, Vincent Sandoval’s Señorita, and Liang Cheng’s My Spiritual Medicine among AAIFF’12 Award Winners
AAIFF’12: Richard Wong & H.P. Mendoza’s Yes, We’re Open, starring Lynn Chen, Parry Shen, Sheetal Sheth, & Kerry McCrohan, screens at Clearview Chelsea Cinemas on August 4, 2012
35th Asian American International Film Festival Line-up in New York
Janet Yang to receive 2012 Asian American Media Award at AAIFF’12 Opening Night Presentation of Shanghai Calling on July 25, 2012
West Coast Premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Chinglish at Berkeley Rep stars Michelle Krusiec and Alex Moggridge, August 24-October 7, 2012
Three Year Swim Club, Encounter, TEA, Christmas in Hanoi and Chess set for East West Players 47th Anniversary Season
Photos: All-Access Pass to Disney’s Aladdin at The Muny with Thom Sesma, Francis Jue, Robin De Jesus, John Tartaglia, Jason Graae, Curtis Holbrook, Eddie Korbich, Samantha Massell and Ken Page
Performing Arts Images from the Asian American Pacific Islander Collection on Display at the Library of Congress to Celebrate APA Heritage Month
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang

Lia Chang is an actor, a performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multi-platform journalist.
All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2012 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia a

Lia Chang: DOGS LIE, Starring Samrat Chakrabarti, Frank Boyd and Ewa Da Cruz, Nabs ”Best Film (USA)” and ”Feature Film Audience Award” at 2011 ITN Distribution Film and New Media Festival

Samrat Chakrabarti © Lia Chang

Dogs Lie, Richard Atkinson’s latest indie feature starring Samrat Chakrabarti (Elle Magazine Top 100 Talents to watch), Frank Boyd and Ewa Da Cruz, scored two awards, for “Best Film” (USA) and the “Feature Film Audience Award,” at the 2011 ITN Distribution Film and New Media Festival in New York.

“It was a great thrill for all involved to receive recognition,” said director Richard Atkinson. “The movie will be released in 2012 and will highlight a cast of rapidly rising acting talent……I’m sure we will be seeing a lot more of Samrat Chakrabarti, Frank Boyd and Ewa Da Cruz… they have all been involved in multiple movie and TV projects since we shot Dogs Lie….they are exceptional …TNA World Wrestling Champion, Ken Anderson, has a feature role as Yuri a Russian mobster. It all makes for great entertainment with unexpected twists and turns.”

Dogs Lie won “Honorable Mention” at the Los Angeles Movie Awards 2011 and was an “Official Selection” at The Big Apple Film Festival (BAFF) in NY, the La Femme International Film Festival in LA, and the Filmi SE Asian Film Festival in Toronto, where it was the “showcase feature.”

Samrat Chakrabarti plays Iqbal Khani, a likeable, conscientious clinician and romantic opportunist, alongside Frank Boyd as Josh Logan, a clinician who is a compulsive jokester with a competitive streak. The two are thrown together with eight patients at a luxury NY sleep clinic for a night of monitoring and observation. As the night progresses dark secrets are revealed. The beautiful Lucia ( Ewa Da Cruz), a patient, finds herself the center of attention as her life seemingly spins out of control. Nothing is quite as it seems. romance, blackmail and murder ensue as humor and irreverence give way to devious self interest.

Shiv on the drums, Samrat Chakrabarti, Bakwas Bumbug co-creator, co-director and composer in rehearsal at DANY Studios in New York on 6/16/11. © 2011 Lia Chang

I caught up with the award-winning actor and internationally acclaimed musician at The Wild Project in New York in June, after the opening night performance of Desipina and Co.’s 70 minute workshop production of Bakwas Bumbug, an electrifying musical reinvention of A Christmas Carol, told thru the looking glass of NYC Immigrants and Hyphenated America, for which Chakrabarti composed the score, co-directed and co-wrote the book and lyrics with Sanjiv Jhaveri.

Opening night for the cast and creative team of Bakwas Bumbug at The Wild Project in the East Village on June 22, 2011. (L-R) front row- Rehana Lew Mirza, Rohi Mirza Pandya, Lipica Shah, J. Kaitlin Becker, Roopa Mahadevan; back row Shiv, Nick Choksi, Kiarri D. Andrews, Sanjiv Jhaveri, Ryan Kim, Christian Carter, Andrew Guilarte and Samrat Chakrabarti. Photo by Lia Chang

The rehearsal photographs of Bakwas Bumbug were featured in my display of photographs at the Library of Congress in July entitled, “In Rehearsal,” and are now part of the Lia Chang Theater Photography Portfolio in the Asian American Pacific Islander Collection of the Asian Division at the Library of Congress.

Samrat Chakrabarti Photo by Lia Chang

Chakrabarti is best known for his film roles in The Waiting City (as Krishna), Kissing Cousins (as Amir) and The Wedding Weekend (as Will). On TV he has appeared in “30 Rock” (as Ramesh), “In Treatment” (as Arun Sanyal) opposite Irrfan Khan (HBO), “Damages” (as Manu Singh), “Outsourced” (HBO), “The Horrible Terrible Misadventures of David Atkins,” “Bored to Death,” and recently shot an episode of “A Gifted Man.”

Film projects in the can include A.J. Carter’s Extinction, Dagen Merrill’s Murder in the Dark, Salim Khassa’s Desperate Endeavors and Michael Walker’s Price Check, starring Indie Queen Parker Posey, which premieres at the Sundance Film Festival 2012 in January. Chakrabarti recently worked on Blemished Light with Victor Banerjee; Kamal Hassan’s Viswaroopam, with Pooja Kumar, Andrea Jeremiah, Rahul Bose, Amy Jackson, Shekar Kapur and Jaideep Ahlawat; and can soon be seen as Wee Willie Winkie in Deepa Mehta’s Midnight’s Children, based on the novel by Salman Rushdie.

Chakrabarti was dubbed the “independent film king of New York” when three short films he was starring in – Rehana Mirza’s Zameer & Preeti: A Love Story, Shiva Shankar Bajpai’s Raju and Soham Mehta’s Fatakra – screened at the New York Indian Film Festival in May. He also composed the score for Fatakra, which has garnered accolades at Film Festivals across the country including a Student Academy Award, the Linda Mabalot New Directors/New Visions award from the 2011 LOS ANGELES ASIAN PACIFIC FILM FESTIVAL and the Audience Award for Best Short at the 2011 Sarasota Film Festival.

Samrat Chakrabarti Photo by Lia Chang

Chakrabarti’s film credits include Italo Spinelli’s Gangor, Shilpa Sunthankar’s Seeta’s Demon, Joseph Mathew’s Bombay Summer, Kabir Khan’s New York, Shailja Gupta’s Walkaway, Bruce Leddy’s Sing Now, Sai Selvarajan’s Joy Lies, and Manish Acharya’s Loins of Punjab of Presents alongside Shabana Azmi. He has also had roles in Spike Lee’s She Hate Me, Leonardo Ricagni’s Indocumentados, Jonathan Betzler’s Homecoming, Manan Katahora’s Arya, Ajay Naidu’s Ashes and Joseph Castelo’s The War Within which was nominated for an Indie Spirit Award. In addition, he has appeared in Gareeb Nawaz’s Taxi, Robert Harte’s Finding Graceland, Anjaan Dutt’s The Bong Connection with Victor Banerjee, Sarba Das’s Karma Calling, Randall Krongard’s Override, Manan Katahora’s Arya and When Kiran Met Karen, Joseph Matthews’ Days of Love and Loss with Tanishtha Chatterjee, Raj Basu’s Piyalir Password and and Suman Ghosh’s Dwando.

Chakrabarti is the recipient of a U.S. CARA for Best Original Pop/Rock Song for his composition “What’s It all About” and the 2010 TMG Award for Global Achievers in the category of Film, TV and Drama, for his outstanding body of work as an actor. Samrat Chakrabarti Website

Vanguard Cinema LA, who specialize in the indie genre, will distribute the film in the USA. Dogs Lie is a Top Movie llc production. Contact info@dogslie.com Website http://www.dogslie.com

Other Articles by Lia Chang:
Click here for more articles on Samrat Chakrabarti.
Sudhish Kamath’s Good Night | Good Morning Starring Manu Narayan and Seema Rahmani in Theaters on January 20, 2012
Cindy Cheung Debuts SPEAK UP CONNIE…Her Solo Show at Stage Left Studio, January 17-25, 2012
Mu Daiko 15th Anniversary Concert and Minnesota Tour, February 9-19, 2012
Aaron Lazar, Kate Baldwin, P.J. Griffith, Raul Aranas Set for the Dallas Theater Center/Public Theater Co-Production of Giant at the Wyly Theatre, January 18 – February 19, 2012
CHINGLISH Celebrates 100th Performance on January 5, 2012 – Meet David Henry Hwang & his Cast at the Lin Sing Association in NY Chinatown
Photos: Yellow Fever Playwright Rick Shiomi Explores New Territory with An All-Female Cast
Oscar L. Tang, David Liu, Dominic Ng, Pichet Ong to Receive 2011 MOCA Legacy Awards at Cipriani Wall Street on 12/12; Performances by Chinglish’s Jennifer Lim and Gary Wilmes
Photos: Kathie Lee Gifford at the 2011 Lord & Taylor Fifth Avenue Christmas Windows Unveiling in New York
Photos: Fall Foliage at Devil’s Lake State Park
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Jennifer Lim, Leigh Silverman, Samuel L. Jackson, Kenny Leon, David Ives, Douglas Carter Beane and More at The Drama Desk & Fordham University Theatre Program’s “Anatomy of a Breakout” Panel
Photos: Backstage with the Cast of Chinglish and David Henry Hwang at the Longacre Theatre
Coming to America through The Angel Island Immigration Station
Broadwayworld.com Photo Flash: Library of Congress’ IN REHEARSAL Exhibit
Lia Chang Theater Portfolio at Library of Congress Features Photos of Thom Sesma’s Makeup Transformation as Scar in Disney’s The Lion King Las Vegas, Robert Lee and Leon Ko’s Heading East Starring BD Wong, David Henry Hwang’s Chinglish, and Samrat Chakrabarti and Sanjiv Jhaveri’s Bakwas Bumbug! on View Through August 2
Photos: “How To Succeed” stars Daniel Radcliffe, Rose Hemingway and John Larroquette at Lord & Taylor for Windows Unveiling
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Subscribe to Backstage Pass with Lia Chang

Lia Chang Photo by Brianne Michelle Photography

Lia Chang is an actor, performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multimedia journalist.

Lia made her stage debut as Liat in the National Tour of South Pacific, with Robert Goulet and Barbara Eden, and has since documented her colleagues and contemporaries in the arts, fashion and journalism as a photographer and videographer, collaborating with other artists, organizations and companies to establish their documentary photo archive and social media presence. Lia was featured as Joy in the Signature Theater Company’s revival of Sam Shepard’s 1965 Obie award winning play, Chicago directed by Joseph Chaikin at the Public Theater. She has appeared in Wolf, New Jack City, Kiss Before Dying, King of New York, Big Trouble in Little China, The Last Dragon, Taxman, “As the World Turns,” “Another World,” and “New York Undercover”. Lia currently plays Nurse Lia on “One Life to Live”.

Selections of Lia’s archive of Asian Pacific Americans in the arts, fashion, journalism, politics and space are now in the newly created LIA CHANG THEATER PHOTOGRAPHY PORTFOLIO in the ASIAN PACIFIC AMERICAN PERFORMING ARTS COLLECTION housed in the Library of Congress Asian Division’s Asian American Pacific Islander Collection.

Lia’s portraits and performance photos have appeared in Vanity Fair, Gourmet, German Elle, Women’s Wear Daily, The Paris Review, TV Guide, Daily Variety, Interior Design, American Theatre, Broadwayworld.com, Life & Style, OUT, New York Magazine, InStyle, Timeout.com, Villagevoice.com, Playbill.com, Theatermania.com, thelmagazine.com, The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, USA Today, The Boston Globe, New York Times and Washington Post. A former syndicated arts and entertainment columnist for KYODO News, Lia is the New York Bureau Chief for AsianConnections.com. She writes about culture, style and Asian American issues for a variety of publications and this Backstage Pass with Lia Chang blog.

All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2011 Lia Chang Multimedia. All rights reserved. All materials contained on this site are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Lia Chang. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. For permission, please contact Lia at liachangpr@gmail.com.

Lia Chang: The Play Company Presents the Off-Broadway Run of Jonas Hassen Khemiri’s INVASION! at The Flea, 9/6-10/1

INVASION! — Jonas Hassen Khemiri’s Obie Award-winning play that enjoyed considerable critical and popular success during its U.S. premiere by The Play Company (Kate Loewald, Founding Producer, Lauren Weigel, Executive Producer ) last winter — will have a return engagement Off-Broadway this fall, again presented by The Play Company, with previews starting September 6 prior to an official press opening on September 13 at The Flea Theater (41 White Street) in New York, where PlayCo will be based for the 2011-12 season. Erica Schmidt will again direct.

INVASION! features South Asian actors Andrew Guilarte and Nick Choksi. The show’s return engagement coincides with the 10th anniversary of 9.11.01 and is a subversive comedy about identity and stereotypes, centering on “Abulkasem,” a name mysteriously belonging to a wide assortment of characters in the play, leaving us to wonder, “Who is Abulkasem?” Is he a character in a fairy tale, or an international super-spy? Is she a renowned auteur director? Does he/she pose a clear and present danger? And is there really more than one?

Members of the original NY cast of INVASION! returning for the Off-Broadway engagement this fall include Francis Benhamou (THREE WOMEN at 59E59 Theaters), Andrew Guilarte (MARAT/SADE at Classical Theatre of Harlem), Bobby Moreno (AL’S BUSINESS CARDS with At Play), who will be joined by new cast member Nick Choksi (TV’s “Royal Pains”).

Scheduled through October 1, INVASION! will perform Mondays through Fridays at 7 p.m. and Saturdays at 3 and 7 p.m. Tickets are $25 during preview performances (through September 12), and thereafter tickets are priced at $30 for regular seating and $40 for reserved seating. Tickets can be purchased by calling Ovation at 212 352 3101 or online at www.ovationtix.com.

The Flea Theater is located at 41 White Street between Church and Broadway, three blocks south of Canal, close to the A/C/E, N/R/Q, 6, J/M/Z and 1 subway lines.

For more information about The Play Company and INVASION! visit www.playco.org

Other Articles by Lia Chang
Photos: Christmas in June w/ Samrat Chakrabarti and Sanjiv Jhaveri’s “Bakwas Bumbug” at The Wild Project in NY-6/26
Extended through 8/23- “In Rehearsal” Lia Chang Theater Portfolio at Library of Congress Featuring Robert Lee and Leon Ko’s Heading East Starring BD Wong, Thom Sesma as Scar in The Lion King Las Vegas
Lia Chang Theater Portfolio at Library of Congress Features Photos of Thom Sesma’s Makeup Transformation as Scar in Disney’s The Lion King Las Vegas, Robert Lee and Leon Ko’s Heading East Starring BD Wong, David Henry Hwang’s Chinglish, and Samrat Chakrabarti and Sanjiv Jhaveri’s Bakwas Bumbug! on View Through August 2
Desipina & Co. Presents Pooja Kumar, Sunkrish Bala, Joe Petrilla, Eileen Rivera, Jon Norman Schneider & Rajeev Varma in Rehana Lew Mirza’s Barriers at HERE, 9/7-18
Mu Performing Arts 2011-2012 20th Anniversary Season: Four Destinies, Edith Can Shoot Things and Hit Them, Into the Woods, & Mu Daiko 15th Anniversary Concert
Henry Chang, Paula Bomer, Juliann Garey & Alex Shakar during Lit Crawl at Scratcher on 9/10
OCA Awards Gala Photos: David Henry Hwang, Tamlyn Tomita, BD Wong, Dr. Bobby Fong & Tammy Duckworth
Broadwayworld.com Photo Flash: Library of Congress’ IN REHEARSAL Exhibit
Photos: Rick Shiomi Checks out Performing Arts Playwrights Series in the Asian American Pacific Islander Collection of Library of Congress; Attends “Asian American Plays for a New Generation” Book Signing in NY on 7/29 broadwayworld.com: Chinglish in Rehearsal
Coming to America through The Angel Island Immigration Station
Celebrating my mom – AN ACTIVE VISION: BEVERLY UMEHARA…LABOR ACTIVIST…1945-1999
Photos:Meredith Anthony, David Levien, Lyndsay Faye, Henry Chang & Dr. Julie Salzano Discuss the Mind of Sexual Predators
Coming to America through The Angel Island Immigration Station
H I R O S H I M A in Benefit Concert for Japan on 9/21 at B.B. King Blues Club & Grill in NY
Photo Preview of BD Wong and the Cast of Heading East at the Asia Society, May 24-26, 2010
Click here for the Lia Chang Articles Archive and here for the Lia Chang Photography Website.

Lia Chang Photo by Brianne Michelle Photography

Lia Chang is an actor, performance and fine art botanical photographer, and an award-winning multimedia journalist.
As a photographer and videographer, Chang has been documenting her colleagues and contemporaries in the arts, fashion and journalism since making her stage debut as Liat in the National Tour of South Pacific, with Robert Goulet and Barbara Eden. Chang was featured as Joy in the Signature Theater Company’s revival of Sam Shepard’s 1965 Obie award winning play, Chicago directed by Joseph Chaikin at the Public Theater. She has appeared in the films Wolf, New Jack City, A Kiss Before Dying, King of New York, Big Trouble in Little China, The Last Dragon and Taxman. Chang currently plays Nurse Lia on “One Life to Live”.

Chang’s portraits and performance photos have appeared in Vanity Fair, Gourmet, German Elle, Women’s Wear Daily, The Paris Review, TV Guide, Daily Variety, Interior Design, American Theatre, Broadwayworld.com, Life & Style, OUT, New York Magazine, InStyle, Timeout.com, Villagevoice.com, Playbill.com, Theatermania.com, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The Boston Globe, New York Times and Washington Post.
Selections of Chang’s archive of Asian Pacific Americans in the arts, fashion, journalism, politics and space are now in the newly created LIA CHANG THEATER PORTFOLIO in the ASIAN PACIFIC AMERICAN PERFORMING ARTS COLLECTION housed in the Library of Congress Asian Division’s Asian American Pacific Islander Collection. Photographs by Lia Chang are in the permanent collections of the Angel Island Immigration Station, Asian American Federation of New York (AAFNY), the Chinese Historical Society of America (CHSA) in San Francisco, Edna McConnell Clark Foundation, the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles, the Museum of Chinese in America (MOCA), the New York City Health and Hospital Corporation Art Collection and the New York Historical Society.
A former syndicated arts and entertainment columnist for KYODO News, Chang is the New York Bureau Chief for AsianConnections.com. She writes about culture, style and Asian American issues for a variety of publications and this Backstage Pass with Lia Chang blog.