Phylicia Rashad to Helm August Wilson’s Joe Turner’s Come and Gone at the CTG/Mark Taper Forum at The Music Center, April 24 – June 9, 2013

Tony award winning actress and acclaimed theater director Phylicia Rashad is at the helm of August Wilson’s Joe Turner’s Come and Gone, which begins previews April 24, 2013 at the Center Theatre Group/Mark Taper Forum At the Music Center (135 N. Grand Avenue in Downtown L.A.), and continues through June 9, 2013. The opening night performance is on May 8 at 8 p.m.

Joe Turner’s Come and Gone is set in 1911 in a Pittsburgh boarding house, where tenants come and go, forming a community that is altered time and time again. The daily routine of meals, conversation, gossip, arrivals and departures, and the changes that occur within this fluid grouping of people, is set against a great tide of Americans of African descent, only 50 years out of bondage, who are moving toward the industrial cities of the North in search of economic opportunity, lost family members and new beginnings.

Phylicia Rashad. Photo by Lia Chang

Phylicia Rashad became a household name for her portrayal of Claire Huxtable on “The Cosby Show” for over two decades. Rashad received a Drama Desk Award and a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for her performance as Lena Younger in the 2004 Broadway revival of Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun, which was the first time in Tony history that an African-American actress won in this category. Her other Broadway credits include August: Osage County, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Gem of the Ocean (she starred in the world premiere production at the CTG/Mark Taper Forum in 2003), Jelly’s Last Jam, Into the Woods, Dreamgirls and The Wiz and Shakespeare’s Cymbeline at Lincoln Center.

Offstage, Rashad teaches masters classes at Howard University, The Julliard School and Carnegie Mellon University. Well-respected in the academic world, Rashad has received the Denzel Washington Chair in Theatre from Fordham University. Rashad also holds honorary doctorates from Fordham University, Carnegie Mellon University, Howard University, Providence College, Morris Brown College, Clark Atlanta University, Barber Scotia College, St. Augustine’s College, and Brown University.

Rashad currently serves on the advisory board of the PRASAD Projects, the True Colors Theatre, Broadway Inspirational Voices, the Actors Center, the Center for African American Studies at Princeton University and the ADEPT Center.

Schedule
Previews (April 24-May 7): Tuesday through Friday at 8 p.m.; Saturday at 2:30 p.m. and 8 p.m.; Sunday at 1 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.
Exceptions: No 1 p.m. performance on Sunday, May 5.
Opens Wednesday, May 8 at 8 p.m.
Regular Performances (May 9-June 9):
Tuesday through Friday at 8 p.m.; Saturday at 2:30 p.m. and 8 p.m.; Sunday at 1 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. No Monday performances.
Exceptions: No public performances May 21-24 (student matinees only).

Tickets are $20 – $ 70 and are available by calling (213) 628-2772, online at www.CenterTheatreGroup.org, in person at the Center Theatre Group box office. Hot Tix: $20 each may be purchased in advance or, subject to availability, on the day of performance at the box office (no checks). Center Theatre Group/Mark Taper Forum At the Music Center is located at 135 N. Grand Avenue in Downtown L.A. 90012.

Lia Chang

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

Other articles by Lia Chang:
Photos: Phylicia Rashad, Michael McElroy, Marva Hicks in Broadway Inspirational Voices “Wondrous Grace” Concert at the Central Presbyterian Church in NY
Photos: All-Access Pass to August Wilson’s Two Trains Running with John Earl Jelks, Harvy Blanks,Chuck Cooper, Anthony Chisholm, Owiso Odera, Roslyn Ruff and James A. Williams
Signature Theatre’s 2013-14 Season Features New Works by Albee, Hwang, Enos, Taylor, Wilson, Clarke and Jacobs-Jenkins
Signature Theatre’s Revival of David Henry Hwang’s The Dance and The Railroad Set for Wuzhen Theatre Festival in Wuzhen, China, May 9-12, 2013
Dian Kobayashi, Emily Kuroda, Sharon Omi, and Jeanne Sakata Set for East West Players’ Reading of A Cage of Fireflies by Daniel Akiyama at Tateuchi Democracy Forum on March 21, 2013
Paul Giamatti Leads Yale Rep’s Production of Hamlet, March 15-April 13, 2013
Photos: David Henry Hwang’s The Dance and The Railroad Opening Night
Hold These Truths Opening Night at Honolulu Theatre for Youth’s Tenney Theatre with Daniel Dae Kim, Joel de la Fuente and Jeanne Sakata
Ron Domingo, Francis Jue and Jon Norman Schneider Join the Cast of the World Premiere of Paper Dolls at the Tricycle Theatre, February 28 – April 13, 2013
Signature’s Off-Broadway Revival of August Wilson’s The Piano Lesson, helmed by Ruben Santiago-Hudson, runs October 30 -December 9, 2012
Geffen Playhouse Production Photos of Neil LaBute’s The Break of Noon starring Kevin Anderson, Tracee Chimo, Catherine Dent and John Earl Jelks
Kevin Anderson, Catherine Dent, Tracee Chimo, John Earl Jelks in Neil La Bute’s The Break of Noon at the Geffen
Photos: David Duchovny, John Earl Jelks, Amanda Peet,Tracee Chimo opening night of Neil LaBute’s The Break of Noon
John Earl Jelks is featured in MCC Theater’s world premiere of Neil LaBute’s The Break of Noon at the Lucille Lortel
Denise Burse, Rocky Carroll, Anthony Chisholm, John Earl Jelks and James A. Williams in Radio Golf by August Wilson at The Pearlstone Theater in Baltimore
Costume Designer Karen Perry- Audelco Nod for The Public Theatre’s Brother/Sister Trilogy by Tarell Alvin McCraney
Harlem Nights with Lorey Hayes, Actress, Director and Award-Winning Playwright of Power Play and Massinissa
Manu Narayan Dazzles as Richard Roma in La Jolla Playhouse’s Revival of David Mamet’s Glengarry Glen Ross
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
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.

All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2013 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

Tony Award-winning Playwright Terrence McNally to be feted at Westport Country Playhouse Annual Gala, September 24, 2012

Terrence McNally (Photo by Lia Chang)

Tony Award winner Terrence McNally will be honored at The Full McNally: A Celebration of the Writing and Works of Terrence McNally, presented by Westport Country Playhouse at the theater’s annual fundraising gala on Monday, September 24, 2012. Actors Tyne Daly and Richard Thomas, who have appeared in McNally plays; Daly in Master Class and Thomas in Unusual Acts of Devotion and The Stendhal Syndrome, will co-host the evening’s festivities which kick off at 5:45 pm with cocktails, followed at 7 p.m. by performances by Broadway friends of The Playhouse. Dinner with the evening’s stars will be at 8:30 p.m. A silent auction will be on-going throughout the evening. Attire is festive; black tie optional. Proceeds will benefit Westport Country Playhouse – its work on stage, with schools, and throughout the community.

“Terrence is the only truly great American playwright who has written successfully for the dramatic as well as the musical stage,” said Mark Lamos, Playhouse artistic director. “It’s such an honor for us to be able to do this for him, especially since the co-hosts of the gala are two stars who have been influential in bringing Terrence’s work to the stage in mesmerizing performances.”

Lamos added, “Terrence has worked with some of the finest musical theater talents as well as some of our greatest actors. What other writer can you say that about? Our revival last season of his Lips Together, Teeth Apart made us all the more eager to honor him with a line-up of fantastic Broadway talent.”

Directing the 2012 gala production is Josh Rhodes (the film version of Company, Broadway Bares, Sondheim: The Birthday Concert); and music director is Mary-Mitchell Campbell (Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Orchestrations for Company; The Addams Family; Sweeney Todd; Next to Normal).

Terrence McNally was awarded the Dramatists Guild Lifetime Achievement Award in 2011. He is the winner of Tony Awards for his plays Love! Valour! Compassion! and Master Class, and his books for the musicals Ragtime and Kiss of the Spiderwoman. His other plays include Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune; Lips Together, Teeth Apart (produced at Westport Country Playhouse in 2011); Corpus Christi; A Perfect Ganesh; The Ritz; It’s Only a Play; Some Men; Golden Age; Deuce; The Lisbon Traviata; Bad Habits; The Stendhal Syndrome; Dedication or The Stuff of Dreams; Next; Unusual Acts of Devotion; Sweet Eros; Witness; Where Has Tommy Flowers Gone?; and his first play, And Things that Go Bump in the Night. McNally has written the books for the musicals The Full Monty, A Man of No Importance, The Visit, and The Rink. He won an Emmy Award for Best Drama with his teleplay “Andre’s Mother,” and he wrote the screenplays for Frankie and Johnny, Love! Valour! Compassion!, and The Ritz. Among his many awards are a Citation from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for Best New Play, four Drama Desk Awards, three Hull-Warriner Best Play Awards from the Dramatists Guild, two Obies, two Lortel Awards, and two Guggenheim Fellowships.

Tyne Daly © Tyne Daly

Tyne Daly recently starred in Master Class on Broadway and in London, reprising the role of Maria Callas which she played at The Kennedy Center. A renowned stage, screen, and television actress, Ms. Daly’s stage work has won her numerous awards, including a Tony Award for her performance as Rose in the highly successful 1989 revival of Gypsy and a Tony nomination for Rabbit Hole. Her television appearances are too numerous to list, but she is best known for her work on “Cagney & Lacey” (four Emmy Awards), “Judging Amy” (Emmy Award) and “Christy” (Emmy Award), in addition to appearances on “Burn Notice” and “Grey’s Anatomy,” and in several TV films. She has received 16 Emmy nominations. Film work includes Georgia, with Joan Allen and Jeremy Irons. Ms. Daly was trained at the American Shakespeare Festival, Brandeis University, and the American Musical and Dramatic Academy.

Richard Thomas. Photo by Lia Chang

Richard Thomas appeared in the Westport Country Playhouse productions of Critic’s Choice and Whose Life Is It Anyway? Last season, he was in a Script in Hand reading of The Golden Age and a presentation of A Distant Country Called Youth. Thomas starred in the Emmy Award-winning series, “The Waltons.” He has continued to star in series, films, plays, and over 50 movies for television. On stage, he has been called “one of the leading classical actors of his generation” – Newsday. His career began on Broadway at age seven with 1958’s Sunrise at Campobello, and has continued with such shows as Fifth of July, The Seagull, The Front Page, Tiny Alice, Peer Gynt, Richard II, Richard III, Hamlet, and The Stendhal Syndrome. Recent appearances include Broadway’s Democracy and Race, The Public Theater’s Timon of Athens, and the national tour of the acclaimed Broadway revival of 12 Angry Men. Thomas can be seen in “The Music Teacher,” A Hallmark Channel Original Movie World Premiere, which airs on August 11, and on Broadway at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre in Manhattan Theatre Club’s An Enemy of the People this Fall.

The Gala Committee includes Katia and John Friend and Carlyn and Robert Stonehill, co-chairs; Karen Parrella, auction chair; Marjorie Barnes; Emily Boothroyd; Ania Czekaj-Farber; Michele Flaster; Angela Graham; Kim Harizman; Joanna Heimbold; Irma Hilton; Beth Hayes; Carole Hochman; Jennifer Huisking; Darlene Krenz; Mary Ellen Marpe; Mark Osgood; Judy Phares; Marjorie Treisman; and Judy Wetzel.

Gala tickets range from $2,500 to $250. Benefactor level, at $2,500 per person, includes a cocktail party, highest priority seating at performance, post-performance dinner with the evening’s stars, and an invitation to a Benefactor Preview Party at a private home in early September; Patron level, at $1,000 per person, includes a cocktail party, priority seating at performance, and post-performance dinner with the evening’s stars; and Supporter level, at $250 per person, includes a 6:30 p.m. champagne toast followed by the performance. A limited number of Supporter tickets are available. Purchase gala tickets online at www.westportplayhouse.org/gala.

Other Articles by Lia Chang
Multimedia: NAATCO’s Love! Valour! Compassion! with Terrence McNally
Annie Potts and Richard Thomas star in ‘The Music Teacher’ A Hallmark Channel Original Movie World Premiere on August 11 http://wp.me/pla1d-5U4
Richard Thomas and Boyd Gaines to star in An Enemy of the People at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre during Manhattan Theatre Club’s 2012-2013 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
Emmy Award Winner Richard Thomas Hosts Give Kids a Shot! National Meningitis Association Gala 2012 at the New York Athletic Club
Photos: Highlights of Shinsai: Theaters for Japan (3pm) with Andre Bishop, Mary Beth Hurt, Jennifer Lim, Angela Lin, Philip Kan Gotanda, Thom Sesma, Sab Shimono, Richard Thomas, Jay O. Sanders, and more
Photos: Highlights of Shinsai: Theaters for Japan (8pm) with Oskar Eustis, Patti LuPone, Lisa Emery, Ann Harada, Paolo Montalban, Thom Sesma, Sab Shimono, Henry Stram, Richard Thomas, John Weidman and more
Photos: In Rehearsal with Director Bartlett Sher and the cast of Shinsai: Theaters for Japan
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. 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

Rick Shiomi helms Mu Performing Arts’ Asian American Cast of Stephen Sondheim’s Into the Woods at Park Square Theatre in St. Paul, July 17-August 5, 2012

Randy Reyes, Sheena Janson, Sara Ochs, Katie Bradley, Eric Sharp, Suzie Juul, Alex Galick and Maxwell Thao are set for Mu Performing Arts’ production of Stephen Sondheim’s Into the Woods, directed by Rick Shiomi, which runs at the Park Square Theatre, 20 W. 7th Place, St. Paul, MN, from July 17 – August 5, 2012. Opening night is Friday, July 20, 2012. Single tickets start at $25 (adults) / $10 (students and children under 18) and are now on sale through the Park Square Theatre box office at 651-291-7005 or by visiting www.muperformingarts.org.

Mu Performing Arts’ Into the Woods, directed by Rick Shiomi. Photo by Michal Daniel

Into the Woods, a multiple Tony Award winning modern classic with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by James Lapine, takes familiar fairy tales and turns them on their heads. Sondheim’s memorable score includes crowd-pleasing musical numbers such as “Agony,” “Giants in the Sky,” and “No One is Alone.”

Randy Reyes, who has appeared in Mu Performing Arts’ productions of Little Shop of Horrors, Flower Drum Song, Yellowface, The Romance of Magno Rubio; at the Guthrie Theater in M. Butterfly, Two Gentlemen of Verona, The Government Inspector); and in Il Campiello, As You Like It with Ten Thousand Things, leads the cast of Into the Woods as the Baker. Sheena Janson (Theatre Latte Da’s The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee), whose sultry voice brought new life to Audrey II in Mu’s production of Little Shop of Horrors, plays the Baker’s Wife.

Also featured in the cast are Sara Ochs (Little Shop of Horrors, Flower Drum Song, Four Destinies) as Cinderella; Katie Bradley (CTC’s Mulan, Jr, Little Shop of Horrors, Four Destinies) as the Witch; Suzie Juul (Park Square’s Ragtime) as Little Red Riding Hood; Alex Galick (Edith Can Shoot Things and Hit Them), as Prince Charming; Maxwell Thao (Stages Theatre Co.’s Where the Mountain Meets the Moon) as Jack. Eric Sharp, who has appeared in numerous Mu productions and in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Odyssey and Oliver Twist at Park Square Theatre returns to play the Wolf and Rapunzel’s Prince.

Jeannie Lander, Tom Thao, Lara Trujillo, Meghan Kreidler, Danice Cabanela, Alice McGlave, Tom Lee, Jennifer Kelley, Natalie Chung, Michael Sung Ho, Kim Egan, and Brianna Heu round out the twelve member ensemble, many of whom are making their Mu Performing Arts debut.

Rick Shiomi Photo by Lia Chang

Mu concludes its landmark 20th Anniversary Season, by diving further into its musical theater initiative. Into the Woods marks the Midwest’s first production of the show by a nationally recognized Asian American theater company. Director Rick Shiomi explains how the popular musical will been re-imagined from an Asian American perspective:

“Ever after… like you’ve never seen it before. We are transporting the musical from the woods of Europe to the forests of Asia. Imagine Jack and his mother in Hmong attire, Little Red in a Cambodian skirt, Cinderella in a Filipino gown and the Baker and his wife in Korean hanboks. It will be a striking variation on the original and yet, since the stories are so universal (many of these fairy tales have Asian equivalents) they will feel as funny and real, sad and sweet, beautiful and moving as ever, but in a totally different context.”
~ Rick Shiomi, Director

The artistic team includes Denise Prosek (Music Director). Maria Kelly (Choreographer), Jennifer Weir (Assistant Director),Gunther Gullickson (Scenic Designer), Karin Olson, Lighting Designer, Tom Sandelands (Sound designer), Paula Lee (Costume Designer), Sarah Salisbury (Props Designer) and Lisa Smith (Stage Manager).

Into the Woods begins preview performances on July 17, opens on July 20 and continues through August 5 at Park Square Theatre (20 W. 7th Place, St. Paul, MN 55102). Single tickets start at $25 (adults) / $10 (students and children under 18) and are now on sale through the Park Square Theatre box office at 651-291-7005 or by visiting www.muperformingarts.org

Click here for more photos of the production by Michal Daniel.
citypages.com Into the Woods at Mu Performing Arts Shows Dark Side of Fairy Tales
startribune.com: Mu Performing Arts ventures ‘Into the Woods’
pioneerpress.com: Mu’s Take on ‘Into the Woods’ lively, fresh and full of highlights
howwastheshow.com: Into the Woods by Mu Performing Arts’ at Park Square Theatre
startribune.com: Going all in for ‘Woods’
Mu Performing Arts
blogs.citypages.com: Mu Performing Arts goes ‘Into the Woods’
Mu was first founded in 1992 as Theater Mu, a theater company dedicated to bringing Asian American voices to the stage in the Twin Cities at a time when Asian American theater did not exist in the area and the Asian American community was rarely recognized. After forming Mu Daiko, a taiko drumming ensemble, the company rebranded itself as Mu Performing Arts, reflecting their broad artistic base of theater, taiko, and artist development. Mu Performing Arts remains Minnesota’s only pan-Asian performing arts organization, and has grown into the second largest Asian American performing arts company in the United States. In 2011, Mu Performing Arts published a new anthology of plays through Temple University Press, Asian American Plays for a New Generation. Six of the seven plays included were commissioned and/or produced by Mu. Each season, Mu produces three mainstage plays and one mainstage taiko concert, along with numerous artist development programs and other special events. Celebrating its 20th Anniversary mainstage season, Mu Performing Arts continued its string of ‘Best of’ top end of year picks by The Minneapolis Star Tribune and St. Paul Pioneer Press, with last year’s musical offering Little Shop of Horrors. In the last three seasons, seven out of nine productions have been listed on end of year lists. www.muperformingarts.org.

Other articles on Mu Performing Arts:
Randy Reyes Embraces his Passion for Storytelling as an Actor, Director and Theater Educator
Randy Reyes directs Mu Performing Arts’ production of EDITH CAN SHOOT THINGS AND HIT THEM by A. Rey Pamatmat at Mixed Blood Theatre, March 13-April 1, 2012
Mu Performing Arts’ Little Shop of Horrors on 2 ‘Best of’ Lists; Women in Arts Panel on 1/29, in Conjunction with Mu Daiko’s 15th Anniversary Concert and Tour
Mu Daiko 15th Anniversary Concert and Minnesota Tour, February 9-19, 2012
Photos: Yellow Fever Playwright Rick Shiomi Explores New Territory with An All-Female Cast
Photos: Opening Night of Mu Performing Arts’ Katie Hae Leo’s Four Destinies
Photos: Backstage at Mu Performing Arts’ Four Destinies by Katie Hae Leo
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
Up Close and Personal with Rick Shiomi, Award-winning Playwright & Artistic Director of Mu Performing Arts
Photos: On the town with Rick Shiomi, Co-Editor of “Asian American Plays for a New Generation”, in D.C. & NY
Temple Press: Rick Shiomi recounts his tour for “Asian American Plays for a New Generation”
Mu Blog: Rick Shiomi’s Book Tour Logbook
knightarts.org: Reading on the road inside the book tour
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: 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 “Asian American Plays for a New Generation”, A New Anthology of Asian American Plays Is Subject of Book Talk
Click here for more articles on Rick Shiomi.

Other Articles by Lia Chang:
Daniel Hsia’s Shanghai Calling, Simon Yin’s Supercapitalist & Michael Kang’s Knots to Screen at 35th annual Asian American International Film Festival (AAIFF) in New York, which runs July 25 – August 5, 2012
Tony Award-winning Playwright Terrence McNally to be feted at Westport Country Playhouse Annual Gala, September 24, 2012
Dian Kobayashi, Emily Kuroda and Jeanne Sakata set for Daniel Akiyama’s A Cage of Fireflies at 2012 Sundance Institute Theatre Lab
Epic Theatre Presents Jeanne Sakata’s Hold These Truths, starring Joel de la Fuente, May 20-21, 2012
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
Photos: BD Wong, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Brandon Victor Dixon, Tom Viola at “Passing It On: An Evening of Mentorship to Benefit Rosie’s Theater Kids”
Photos: Highlights of Shinsai: Theaters for Japan (3pm) with Andre Bishop, Mary Beth Hurt, Jennifer Lim, Angela Lin, Philip Kan Gotanda, Thom Sesma, Sab Shimono, Richard Thomas, Jay O. Sanders, and more
Photos: Highlights of Shinsai: Theaters for Japan (8pm) with Oskar Eustis, Patti LuPone, Lisa Emery, Ann Harada, Paolo Montalban, Thom Sesma, Sab Shimono, Henry Stram, Richard Thomas, John Weidman and more
Photos: In Rehearsal with Director Bartlett Sher and the cast of Shinsai: Theaters for Japan
David Henry Hwang Set as Signature Theatre’s Residency One Playwright for the 2012-2013 Season
Photos: In Rehearsal with BD Wong at Dixon Place for Live Concert Recording of Herringbone
Photos: David Henry Hwang, Oskar Eustis, BD Wong, Brian d’Arcy James, Francis Jue, Jennifer Lim and Leigh Silverman at WNYC’s The Greene Space
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

Lia Chang Photos: David Henry Hwang, John C. Whitehead, Mayor Michael Bloomberg at Asia Society Awards Dinner in New York

The Asia Society held its 2011 Asia Society Awards Dinner in the Grand Ballroom of the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York on Wednesday, January 11, 2012.

Asia Society Cultural Achievement Award winner David Henry Hwang, Diana Taylor and Mayor Michael Bloomberg. (Lia Chang)

Kathryn Layng and her husband Asia Society Cultural Achievement Award winner David Henry Hwang. (Lia Chang)

Comedian and actor, Dan Nainan emceed the festivities, which included a special performance by members of the Silk Road Ensemble.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Ray Kelly, Commissioner of the New York City Police Department, were among the 400 who came out to honor and to celebrate the 90th birthday of former Deputy Secretary of State John C. Whitehead, who was presented with an Asia Society Award.

Tony Award-winning and two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist playwright and librettist David Henry Hwang (M. Butterfly), whose hilarious and sexy new comedy CHINGLISH is currently on Broadway at the Longacre Theatre (220 West 48th Street) in New York was presented with the 2011 Cultural Achievement Award.

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the leading pro-democracy opposition leader in Myanmar, received the 2011 Asia Society Global Vision Award, and a videotape of her acceptance speech was played during the dinner.

Asia Society Cultural Achievement Award winner David Henry Hwang, journalist Kati Marton, widow of former Asia Society Chairman Richard Holbrooke, and Former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State John C. Whitehead. (Lia Chang)

Seated, from left: Cynthia Whitehead, Former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State John C. Whitehead. Standing, from left: Asia Society President Vishakha Desai, Asia Society Cultural Achievement Award winner David Henry Hwang and Former Asia Society President Bob Oxnam. (Lia Chang)

Asia Society President Vishakha Desai and Asia Society Cultural Achievement Award winner David Henry Hwang. (Lia Chang)

Seated, from left: Former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State John C. Whitehead and Ray Kelly, Commissioner of the New York City Police Department. Standing, from left: Cynthia Whitehead, David Earls, Samantha Earls, Asia Society Co-Chair Ronnie Chan, Asia Society President Vishakha Desai and Asia Society Co-Chair Henrietta Fore. (Lia Chang)

Asia Society Trustee Lulu Wang, founder of Tupelo Capital Management, presented the 2011 Cultural Achievement Award to Chinglish playwright and librettist David Henry Hwang.

Asia Society Cultural Achievement Award winner David Henry Hwang and Asia Society Trustee Lulu Wang, founder of Tupelo Capital Management. (Lia Chang)

David Henry Hwang’s plays include M. Butterfly (1988 Tony Award, 1989 Pulitzer Prize Finalist), Golden Child (1998 Tony Award nomination, 1997 OBIE Award), Yellow Face (2008 OBIE Award, 2008 Pulitzer Prize Finalist), FOB (1981 OBIE Award), The Dance and the Railroad (1982 Drama Desk Award nomination), Family Devotions (1982 Drama Desk Award nomination), Bondage.

Video excerpts from David Henry Hwang's Chinglish. (Lia Chang)

His latest Broadway offering Chinglish, was recently named by TIME Magazine, Bloomberg Radio, NY1 and WNYC as one of the Top 10 Broadway shows of the year. He wrote the libretti for the Broadway musicals Elton John and Tim Rice’s Aida (co-author), Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Flower Drum Song (revival, 2002 Tony Award nomination) and Disney’s Tarzan. In opera, his libretti include four works with composer Philip Glass: The Voyage (Metropolitan Opera), 1000 Airplanes on the Roof, Sound and Beauty (seen in Chicago at the Court Theatre), and Icarus at the Edge of Time; as well as Osvaldo Golijov’s Ainadamar (two 2007 Grammy Awards), Unsuk Chin’s Alice in Wonderland (Opernwelt 2007 “World Premiere of the Year”) and Howard Shore’sThe Fly. Hwang penned the feature films M. Butterfly, Golden Gate and Possession (co-author), and co-wrote the song “Solo” with Prince. Hwang sits on the Council of the Dramatists Guild, and served by appointment of President Clinton on the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities. More information about Chinglish
Click here to view his speech.

Asia Society Cultural Achievement Award winner David Henry Hwang (center) is flanked by (L-R) his wife Kathryn Layng, Joanna C. Lee, Rachel Cooper, Director of Cultural Programs and Performing Arts, Ken Smith and Yoshie Ito, Assistant Director, Business Programs, Asia Society. (Lia Chang)

Hwang was joined by his wife actress Kathryn Layng; and his Chinglish crew: Museworks. Ltd.’s Joanna C. Lee and Ken Smith, his cultural advisors; his director Leigh Silverman, and his costume designer Anita Yavich.

Chinglish director Leigh Silverman, Kathryn Layng, Asia Society Cultural Achievement Award winner David Henry Hwang, Chinglish costume designer Anita Yavich. (Lia Chang)

Kathryn Layng with her husband Asia Society Cultural Achievement Award winner David Henry Hwang, Asia Society Trustee Harold Newman and Yoshie Ito, Assistant Director, Business Programs, Asia Society. (Lia Chang)

Asia Society Cultural Achievement Award winner David Henry Hwang (L) and Mayor Michael Bloomberg. (Lia Chang)

Kathryn Layng with her husband Asia Society Cultural Achievement Award winner David Henry Hwang, Lisina M. Hoch, Asia Society Honorary Life Trustee and Steven Hoch, Co-Founder of Highmount Capital. (Lia Chang)

Kate Levin, Commissioner of the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, Asia Society Trustee Lulu Wang, founder of Tupelo Capital Management, Asia Society Cultural Achievement Award winner David Henry Hwang and Former Asia Society President Bob Oxnam. (Lia Chang)

Asia Society Co-Chair Ronnie Chan and Asia Society Cultural Achievement Award winner David Henry Hwang. (Lia Chang)

Chinese Opera star Qian Yi, Asia Society Cultural Achievement Award winner David Henry Hwang and Hafez Nazeri, Iranian composer. (Lia Chang)

Asia Society Cultural Achievement Award winner David Henry Hwang (L) and Nicholas Platt, former president of the Asia Society. (Lia Chang)

Asia Society Cultural Achievement Award winner David Henry Hwang, Ralph Samuelson, and Andrea Samuelson. (Lia Chang)

Asia Society Cultural Achievement Award winner David Henry Hwang and Ida Liu. (Lia Chang)

Asia Society Trustee J. Michael Evans, Vice Chairman of Goldman Sachs, presented the 2011 Global Vision Award to former Deputy Secretary of State John C. Whitehead.

Former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State John C. Whitehead and Asia Society Trustee J. Michael Evans, Vice Chairman of Goldman Sachs. (Lia Chang)

Former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State John C. Whitehead celebrates his 90th birthday this year. (Lia Chang)

Born in Evanston, Illinois, John C. Whitehead graduated from Haverford College in 1943 and served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. After receiving his M.B.A. degree from Harvard in 1947 he began at Goldman, Sachs & Co., where he became Partner in 1956 and Senior Partner in 1976. In 1985 President Reagan appointed Mr. Whitehead Deputy Secretary of State, a position he held from July 1985 until January 1989. Click here to view his speech.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State John C. Whitehead. (Lia Chang)

He is the former Chairman of such diverse organizations as the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, the Harvard Board of Overseers, the International Rescue Committee, the United Nations Association, Haverford College, Asia Society and the Hungarian-American Enterprise Fund. He is Chairman of the Boy Scouts of America/GNY.

Cynthia Whitehead, Former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State John C. Whitehead and Harold Newman. (Lia Chang)

In late 2001 Mr. Whitehead was appointed as Chairman of the Lower Manhattan Development Corp, the organization responsible for the rebuilding and revitalization of Lower Manhattan, and served in that position until May 2006. He is also the Founding Chairman of the National September 11th Memorial and Museum at the World Trade Center.

Paul B. Kazarian, Chairman & CEO of Japonica Partners, John C. Whitehead and Asia Society Chairman Emeritus Maurice R. Greenberg. Asia Society Co-Chair Ronnie Chan. (Lia Chang)

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi
Global Vision Award

Burmese democracy icon Aung Sang Suu Kyi accepts her Asia Society Global Vision Award. (Lia Chang)

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is the leading pro-democracy opposition leader in Myanmar and the daughter of Aung San, a martyred national hero, and Khin Kyi, a late Burmese diplomat. She has spent most of the past two decades under detention after her party, the National League for Democracy, won a victory in the 1990 elections but was denied power by the ruling military junta. In the midst of her struggle, she has endured the loss of her husband, Michael Aris, and continued separation from her two sons. She was eventually released from house arrest on November 13, 2010 following the election of a new government, and a year later announced she would rejoin the political system.

Silk Road Ensemble members Sandeep Das (L) and Shane Shanahan. (Lia Chang)

Aung San Suu Kyi’s reemergence into politics has ushered in a new state of dialogue between Myanmar and the international community, highlighted by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s visit in early December 2011, the first visit from a foreign secretary to the country in over 50 years. She formally registered her National League for Democracy as a political party in December 2011. The government of Myanmar approved the National League for Democracy’s registration on January 5, 2012, and the party is ready to begin campaigning for the by-elections to be held on April 1 of this year.

Silk Road Ensemble members Sandeep Das (L) and Shane Shanahan. (Lia Chang)

In 1991, Aung San Suu Kyi was awarded the Nobel Peace Price for her non-violent struggle for democracy and human rights.
Click here to view her videotaped message.
Click here for highlights of the dinner.

Grand Ballroom of the Waldorf Astoria Hotel. (Lia Chang)

Asia Society is the leading educational organization dedicated to promoting mutual understanding and strengthening partnerships among peoples, leaders and institutions of Asia and the United States in a global context. Across the fields of arts, business, culture, education and policy, the Society provides insight , generates ideas, and promotes collaboration to address present challenges and create a shared future.

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

Related Articles:
Asia Society Honors Chinglish Playwright David Henry Hwang and Former Deputy Secretary of State John C. Whitehead at the Waldorf Astoria on January 11, 2012
CHINGLISH Celebrates 100th Performance on 1/5/12 – Meet David Henry Hwang & the Cast After Post-Show Talkback
Photos: Maya Lin, BD Wong, David Henry Hwang, Yeohlee, Oscar L. Tang and Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg at MOCA Legacy Awards Gala
Click here for more articles on David Henry Hwang.
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 and David Henry Hwang. (Rachel Cooper)

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



All text, graphics, articles & photographs: © 2000-2011 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: Asia Society Honors Chinglish Playwright David Henry Hwang and Former Deputy Secretary of State John C. Whitehead at the Waldorf Astoria on January 11, 2012

On Wednesday, January 11, 2012, Tony Award-winning and two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist playwright David Henry Hwang (M. Butterfly), whose hilarious and sexy new comedy CHINGLISH is currently on Broadway at the Longacre Theatre (220 West 48th Street) in New York, will receive the 2011 Cultural Achievement Award at the Asia Society New York Awards Dinner, at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, 301 Park Avenue in New York.

Chinglish playwright David Henry Hwang (center) is flanked by (l-r) his cultural advisurs Joanna C. Lee and Ken Smith, actors Johnny Wu, Christine Lin, Gary Wilmes, Angela Lin, Stephen Pucci, Jennifer Lim and Larry Lei Zhang after the 100th performance of Chinglish on Broadway at the Longacre Theatre in New York on January 5, 2012. Photo by Lia Chang

The 2011 Global Vision Award will be presented to Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the leading pro-democracy opposition leader in Myanmar. The evening is also a celebration of the 90th birthday of John C. Whitehead, Former Deputy Secretary of State, who will be presented with the Global Vision Award. Comedian and actor, Dan Nainan will emcee the festivities, which will feature a special performance by members of the Silk Road Ensemble.

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi
Global Vision Award
Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is the leading pro-democracy opposition leader in Myanmar and the daughter of Aung San, a martyred national hero, and Khin Kyi, a late Burmese diplomat. She has spent most of the past two decades under detention after her party, the National League for Democracy, won a victory in the 1990 elections but was denied power by the ruling military junta. In the midst of her struggle, she has endured the loss of her husband, Michael Aris, and continued separation from her two sons. She was eventually released from house arrest on November 13, 2010 following the election of a new government, and a year later announced she would rejoin the political system.

Aung San Suu Kyi’s reemergence into politics has ushered in a new state of dialogue between Myanmar and the international community, highlighted by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s visit in early December 2011, the first visit from a foreign secretary to the country in over 50 years. She formally registered her National League for Democracy as a political party in December 2011. The government of Myanmar approved the National League for Democracy’s registration on January 5, 2012, and the party is ready to begin campaigning for the by-elections to be held on April 1 of this year.

In 1991, Aung San Suu Kyi was awarded the Nobel Peace Price for her non-violent struggle for democracy and human rights.

David Henry Hwang Photo by Lia Chang

David Henry Hwang
2011 Cultural Achievement Award
David Henry Hwang’s plays include M. Butterfly (1988 Tony Award, 1989 Pulitzer Prize Finalist), Golden Child (1998 Tony Award nomination, 1997 OBIE Award), Yellow Face (2008 OBIE Award, 2008 Pulitzer Prize Finalist), FOB (1981 OBIE Award), The Dance and the Railroad (1982 Drama Desk Award nomination), Family Devotions (1982 Drama Desk Award nomination), Bondage. His latest Broadway offering Chinglish, was recently named by TIME Magazine, Bloomberg Radio, NY1 and WNYC as one of the Top 10 Broadway shows of the year. He wrote the libretti for the Broadway musicals Elton John and Tim Rice’s Aida (co-author), Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Flower Drum Song (revival, 2002 Tony Award nomination) and Disney’s Tarzan. In opera, his libretti include four works with composer Philip Glass: The Voyage (Metropolitan Opera), 1000 Airplanes on the Roof, Sound and Beauty (seen in Chicago at the Court Theatre), and Icarus at the Edge of Time; as well as Osvaldo Golijov’s Ainadamar (two 2007 Grammy Awards), Unsuk Chin’s Alice in Wonderland (Opernwelt 2007 “World Premiere of the Year”) and Howard Shore’sThe Fly. Hwang penned the feature films M. Butterfly, Golden Gate and Possession (co-author), and co-wrote the song “Solo” with Prince. Hwang sits on the Council of the Dramatists Guild, and served by appointment of President Clinton on the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities.
More information about Chinglish

John C. Whitehead
Former Deputy Secretary of State
Born in Evanston, Illinois, John C. Whitehead graduated from Haverford College in 1943 and served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. After receiving his M.B.A. degree from Harvard in 1947 he began at Goldman, Sachs & Co., where he became Partner in 1956 and Senior Partner in 1976. In 1985 President Reagan appointed Mr. Whitehead Deputy Secretary of State, a position he held from July 1985 until January 1989.

He is the former Chairman of such diverse organizations as the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, the Harvard Board of Overseers, the International Rescue Committee, the United Nations Association, Haverford College, Asia Society and the Hungarian-American Enterprise Fund. He is Chairman of the Boy Scouts of America/GNY.

In late 2001 Mr. Whitehead was appointed as Chairman of the Lower Manhattan Development Corp, the organization responsible for the rebuilding and revitalization of Lower Manhattan, and served in that position until May 2006. He is also the Founding Chairman of the National September 11th Memorial and Museum at the World Trade Center.

Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Waldorf Astoria Hotel
301 Park Avenue
New York City
Reception: 6:30 pm
Dinner: 7:30 pm
Dress: Asian National Dress or Black Tie

CHINGLISH Celebrates 100th Performance on 1/5/12 – Meet David Henry Hwang & the Cast After Post-Show Talkback
Photos: Maya Lin, BD Wong, David Henry Hwang, Yeohlee, Oscar L. Tang and Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg at MOCA Legacy Awards Gala
Click here for more articles on David Henry Hwang.

Other Articles by Lia Chang:
Photo Call: BD Wong and the Cast of Heading East at the Asia Society
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
Photos: Yellow Fever Playwright Rick Shiomi Explores New Territory with An All-Female Cast
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
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
Up Close and Personal with Darren Pettie, Star of The Milk Train Doesn’t Stop Here Anymore
Photos and Video: Disney’s The Lion King Las Vegas- In the Makeup Chair with Thom Sesma
Photos: “How To Succeed” stars Daniel Radcliffe, Rose Hemingway and John Larroquette at Lord & Taylor for Windows Unveiling
Multimedia: Promises, Promises’ Stars Kristin Chenoweth and Sean Hayes at Lord & Taylor Fifth Ave
Broadwayworld.com Photo Flash: Library of Congress’ IN REHEARSAL Exhibit
Photos: David Duchovny, John Earl Jelks, Amanda Peet, Tracee Chimo at Opening Night Party of Neil LaBute’s Break of Noon
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.

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.