Lia Chang: Photos of AEA’s Asian Heritage Celebration, featuring the Leviathan Lab Asian American Women Writers Workshop

The playwrights and producing team of AEA's Asian Heritage Celebration, featuring the Leviathan Lab Asian American Women Writers Workshop (L to R) Kristine M. Reyes, May Nazareno, Leanne Cabrera, Dorim Lee, Christine Toy Johnson, Nancy Eng, Marisa Marquez, Siho Ellsmore, Nelson Eusebio, Ji Hyun Lee, Ariel Estrada, Elaina Erika Davis, Eileen Rivera. © Lia Chang

On May 12th and 13th, AEA’s Eastern Region Equal Employment Opportunity Committee in collaboration with Leviathan Lab’s Asian American Women Writers’ Workshop, celebrated Asian Heritage Month with a salon of concert readings of new monologues and 10 minute plays, at the AEA Audition Center in New York. Leanne Cabrera, Nora Chau, Elaina Erika Davis, Siho Ellsmore, Nancy Eng, Christine Toy Johnson, Dorim Lee, Marisa Marquez, May Nazareno, Kristine M. Reyes, Eileen Rivera and Susan Soon He Stanton were among the playwrights featured.

Tanforan playwright Christine Toy Johnson (center) is flanked by her cast (L-R) Jennifer Prescott, Valerie Wright, Charlotte D'Amboise, and director JoAnn Hunter. © Lia Chang

The Festival was the brainchild of Christine Toy Johnson (Playwright/Actor and Co-chair of AEA’s EEOC), Ariel Estrada (EEOC member and founder of Leviathan Lab), Nelson T. Eusebio III (Resident Director at Leviathan Lab), and Ji-Hyun Lee (playwright) who joined forces to create a platform for Asian American female playwrights.

Cast and crew of AEA’s Asian Heritage Celebration. © Lia Chang

Siho Ellsmore in Nora Chau's Akiko Runs. © Lia Chang

Mariana Newhard in Elaina Erika Davis' Sakura, or Cherry Blossoms. © Lia Chang

Nancy Eng in Dorim Lee's Eye for an Eye. © Lia Chang

Cast of Susan Soon He Stanton's Don't Think Twice, Angela Lin and James Chen, Directed by Jesse Jou © Lia Chang

Cast of Kristine M. Reyes' Ready, Aim...Fire!, Zack Griffiths and Helen Farmer, Directed by Victor Lirio © Lia Chang

Cast of Siho Ellsmore's The Goddesses (L to R) Brent Yoshikami, Leanne Cabrera, and Cindy Cheung, Directed by Peter Kim. © Lia Chang

Bing Magoto in Leanne Cabrera's Infarct, Directed by May Nazareno. © Lia Chang

Cast of May Nazareno's From My Very Real Life (L to R) Jaygee Macapugay, Eileen Rivera, Jo Jo Gonzales and John Christopher Jones, Directed by Dax Valdes. © Lia Chang

Cast of Eileen Rivera's Til Death, (L to R) Angela Lin, Joshua Spafford, Sandi Carroll and Jake Meyers, Directed by Nelson Eusebio. © Lia Chang

The Cast of Marisa Marquez's "White Tiger," Directed by Adam Zaremberg (L to R) Brent Yoshikami, Susan Quinn, Satomi Blair, Marisa Marquez, and Adam Zaremberg. © Lia Chang

For more info about Leviathan Lab, visit www.leviathanlab.com.

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Other Articles by Lia Chang:
“In Rehearsal”: Lia Chang Theater Portfolio Features Rehearsal Photos of David Henry Hwang’s Broadway Bound Chinglish and Samrat Chakrabarti and Sanjiv Jhaveri’s “Bakwas Bumbug! on View in the Asian Division Reading Room at Library of Congress through 8/2
My portrait of “Thom Sesma’s Makeup Transformation into Scar in The Lion King” on view in HHC’s New York City: IN FOCUS, Vol. 2
Photos: Playwright David Henry Hwang in rehearsal at the Goodman Theatre for World Premiere of Chinglish
David Henry Hwang’s Chinglish is Broadway Bound this Fall; Goodman Theatre Photo Feature
Photos: Christmas in June w/ Samrat Chakrabarti and Sanjiv Jhaveri’s “Bakwas Bumbug” at The Wild Project in NY
Multimedia: Exclusive photos and video of Disney’s The Lion King Las Vegas -In the Makeup Chair with Thom Sesma
Photo Call: BD Wong and the Cast of Heading East at the Asia Society
2011 Asian American International Film Festival Kicks Off w/ John Sayles’ AMIGO on 8/10; AAIFF’11 Lineup, 8/10-14
Photos: André De Shields leads the cast of Charles Smith’s Knock Me A Kiss at The National Black Theatre Festival in Winston-Salem, NC, 8/2-8/4
Photos: “How To Succeed” stars Daniel Radcliffe, Rose Hemingway & John Larroquette at Lord & Taylor Fifth Ave
Photos: Phylicia Rashad, Michael McElroy, Marva Hicks in Broadway Inspirational Voices “Wondrous Grace” Concert in NY
Photos: Willie Reale, Frances McDormand, Lewis Black, Bela Fleck, Renee Goldsberry, Duncan Sheik, Lisa Benavides, Abigail Washburn, Tim Blake Nelson at The 52nd Street Project Benefit
Photos: David Duchovny, John Earl Jelks, Amanda Peet, Tracee Chimo at Opening Night Party of Neil LaBute’s Break of Noon
Multimedia: Promises, Promises’ Stars Kristin Chenoweth and Sean Hayes at Lord & Taylor Fifth Ave
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, Lia collaborates with artists, organizations and companies in establishing their documentary photo archive and social media presence. She 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. Lia currently plays Nurse Lia on “One Life to Live”. She has appeared in Wolf, New Jack City, A Kiss Before Dying, King of New York, Big Trouble in Little China, The Last Dragon, Taxman and “New York Undercover”.

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 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.