Week Five - Entering the home stretch

Moses Yim and Jeremy Berens.

After reviving the cast after informing them of David Henry Hwang's visit, we've entered the stage where the rubber hits the road. People are pretty much off book (though actors can still get prompts from the stage manger by calling "Line?"). While a session or two may be devoted to particular scenes, each rehearsal is generally a run through---going through the entire with blocking, though costumes aren't used. With each run-through, blocking can and is usually tweaked, to help with the flow of action; it's not unusual to move scenes from one side of the stage to the other in order to facilitate the movement actors--make transitions smoother and avoid big gaps in the action.

Designer Maggie Lee (on the right),
donning her performing hat.

More designers are dropping into rehearsal; lighting designer Maggie Lee has come into to the run-throughs this week (not because she just felt like it, but because she was running the sketch side of Pork Filled Players for two performances)(the guy usually running it was off running damn fool artsy fartsy mockumentary show). As well, she has a ten minute piece in the Balagan show that's running in the Seattle parks. And, oh yeah, she's writing a new script for SIS Productions' Insatiable. Other designers have dropped in from time to time, and more will as we get more and more run throughs under our belts.

On the PR front, I've been trying to line up some interviews. I've gotten one lined up for DHH for the Seattle Times (I hope), and one for myself and David Hsieh for the International Examiner. Also will be talking to the NW Asian Weekly, and maybe trying to get a cast member interviewed for the Northwest Vietnamese News.


Just a reminder:
* there's a group deal with the Seattle chapter of National Asian American Professionals Association
* there's a group deal with the Seattle chapter of Asian American Journalists Association.
* there's a group deal with the Seattle Chinese Garden on August 27.

YELLOW FACE is a production of both the Pork Filled Players and Repertory Actors Theatre. It opens on Friday, August 5 and runs through Saturday, September 3 at the Richard Hugo House (1634 11th Ave in Seattle’s Capitol Hill area). Shows are 8 pm Fridays and Saturdays at 2 pm and 8 pm. Admission is $15 General Admission, $12 Students/Seniors/Artists at the door; tickets can also be purchased in advance at Brown Paper Tickets (http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/181433) for $12 General, $9 Students/Seniors/Artists. Discounted group rates are also available for parties of 10 or more. For more information and ticket reservations, please call the ReAct Box Office at (206)364-3283 or visit online at http://www.reactheatre.org or go to the Pork Filled Players website. 


Oh, and we've just released a video teaser:

Week 4 - An authorial visit!

The big news this week is the author, David Henry Hwang, will be coming to Seattle! (Guess that deserves an exclamation or two). 

The Pork Filled Players and Repertory Actors Theatre welcome David Henry Hwang to Seattle for the weekend of August 13. Winner of multiple Obies as well as the Tony for M. Butterfly, Hwang is in Seattle for the Pacific Northwest premiere of his play, Yellow Face (which the Players and ReAct are producing).

Hwang will first attend the 8pm, August 13 performance of Yellow Face, at the Richard Hugo House (1634 11th Ave., Seattle). Yellow Face runs August 5 to September 3, Fridays at 8 pm and Saturdays at 2 pm and 8 pm. Hwang will participate in a talkback session after the play. 

On Sunday, August 14, Hwang will be appearing at Elliot Bay Books (1521 10th Avenue, Seattle) starting at 2 pm, discussing his past works and plays, including his newest, Chinglish, now finishing up its run at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago and is now preparing for a run on Broadway.

David Hwang and Seattle actor Jojo Abaoag at the 2008 Asian American Theatre Conference

Much thanks to David for coming out to Seattle, who's had a very busy year, with versions of Yellow Face being produced in Toronto and Chicago, as well as in Seattle, a revised version of his book for the Disney musical version of Tarzan popping into Boston, plus exec producing the indie film White Frog (featuring Joan Chen, B. D. Wong and Harry Shum and written by Stanford grad Ellie Wen). Oh, yeah...and writing a brand new show, Chinglish, which he premiered at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago (great reviews), and which is being prepped for Broadway in between the trips David is making to Seattle, Minneapolis and Ashland, OR.

Wilbur Hall, Stanford

Dave Hwang and I go way back; we were college dorm mates together (I like to joke that I knew him before he had a middle name). We were theme associates together in the Asian American theme dorm at Stanford (And, no, there are no surviving pictures of those days of either me or David...at least not from me)(which is why I NEVER mention anything about incriminating photographs myself....). We did a lot of dorm-type things (part of that was doing the Stanford tradition of putting on dorm dramas---and I had the theatrical acuity of casting Dave as a drama critic). Part of our job as TAs were to design and present programming that fit the theme of Asian American culture. We all pitched in on a variety of programs and events like bringing in outside speakers and movies to show folks in the dorm. One of Dave's projects was to do a play...an original play that he wrote, called F.O.B. It later went on to be accepted at the Eugene O'Neill Playwrights Conference, it was picked up by Joe Papp at the Public Theatre and it won him his first Obie. And that launched his career as a playwright

  

Philip Kan Gotanda

I worked on the very first production as a lighting designer, and I was  a designer again when David directed the world premiere of Philip Kan Gotanda's Song for a Nisei Fisherman and for the West Coast premiere of his House of Sleeping Beauties. And no lie, those were great times--I remember David and Phil and their band, travelling around the Bay Area, playing their music (many of the songs written by Phil) and raising money for local Asian American community causes. Over the years, I've produced Northwest premieres of a number of his plays, including Bondage and Trying to Find Chinatown, so it was very natural for me to go and produce Yellow Face as a Northwest premiere.

It's just another step in a long association David and I have had (and will continue to have, fates willing)(and I'm just glad David puts up with me and my blathering I've done over the years on this).

What else is happening? Well, we're at the stage where designers are flitting in and out. Tonight, the costume designer came in to take measurements and help fit actors and plumb the depths of their wardrobe (which may or may not be rather shallow)(Of course, I'm not the one to talk about that.....). Nothing from sound or lights (though, I have to admit, the lighting designer is busy).

We'll talk more later.

Week 3 Getting off book

This is the point of the rehearsal process where real strides get done. While actors have sketched in the broad outlines of their characters, it's only when they've memorized their lines, and linked dialogue with action and emotion that the production can really start to emerge as a living breathing entity.

Director David Hsieh is spending this time working with blocking, working scenes one way, then changing it to try another. Scenes begin in one area of the stage, then get moved to another to serve the flow of the show. Julia Beers gets to have fun and play with a variety of accents, from Southern to "New Yawk" to Yiddish (and even gets some more outré dialog). As always, actors are ready to take notes from the director and stage manager, noting incorrect lines and developing nuances of characterization from the director. This week ends with David giving links to a wide variety of YouTube footage featuring  some of the real life folks that are being portrayed in the show, from Wen Ho Lee to B. D. Wong to Lily Tomlin to Ed Koch.

Now, on the production side, I'm busy placing PR notices on web sites, publications and other electronic media. I've written press releases, calendar entries and PSAs and placed them across the country, in a variety of different areas. If I'm lucky, I'll be able to follow up with a number of papers or stations for feature stories and photos. If I'm not lucky, I'll get my articles ignored or thrown in the trash by the local "major" counter culture publications. You have to be persistent and almost annoying in getting through to folks (not an easy thing for someone who inadvertently embodies a fair number of the stereotypical Asian personality traits).

In addition, I'm lining up group sales. Right now, I've got some deals set up with the Seattle chapter of the National Association of Asian American Professionals (I served on their board a few years back), the local chapter of the Asian American Journalists Association and Seattle Chinese Garden. Not done yet, because I hope to line up more folks.

And....we have a special announcement for next week. So we'll talk later....

So, remember, YELLOW FACE is a production of both the Pork Filled Players and Repertory Actors Theatre. It opens on Friday, August 5 and runs through Saturday, September 3 at the Richard Hugo House (1634 11th Ave in Seattle’s Capitol Hill area). Shows are 8 pm Fridays and Saturdays at 2 pm and 8 pm. Admission is $15 General Admission, $12 Students/Seniors/Artists at the door; tickets can also be purchased in advance at Brown Paper Tickets (http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/181433) for $12 General, $9 Students/Seniors/Artists. Discounted group rates are also available for parties of 10 or more. For more information and ticket reservations, please call the ReAct Box Office at (206)364-3283 or visit online at http://www.reactheatre.org or go to the Pork Filled Players website. 

Week 2 - Rehearsals go on....

Um, what happened below? Oh, well...


Four weeks, you rehearse and rehearse
Three weeks, and it couldn't be worse
One week, will it ever be right?...


Cole Porter (Yes, an old Broadway tune. No, not an indication of orientation)

Stephanie Kim and stage manager Jason Panzer.

The cast has made it past the first week of rehearsal. The adrenaline rush of diving into a new script and meeting a new cast of soon-to-be friends and acquaintances has worn off. Now, all of us have settled into the routine of rehearsal. Rehearse a scene. Take stock. Do it again. Take stock, do it again, slightly different. Do it again, taking in suggestions from the direction, and do it once again. At times, there will be a take that's DELIBERATELY exaggerated and over the top, just to get a sense of the emotional underpinnings of the scene, so THAT can be played in the future (if the exact emotional outbursts won't be).

Bit by bit, the production begins to take shape. Some actors take giant leaps to where they should be, then do a slow evolution of that. Others take gradual but even steps, knocking away the bits that don't fit until what is left will be something that fits into the overall concept of the sow. And still others work slowly, but surely, and then make a whooshing quantum leap at the end. (All the while, the director thinking, "Off book! Off book! Let's get off book! Then we can REALLY get going!").


Off stage, this is a very friendly, social cast. That's unsurprising with the folks who've worked with David and myself before, but every one's stepped into their roles with ease, like we've all been friends and worked on dozens of shows together.


Hey, new stuff! Our poster:

And some publicity shots:

So, remember, YELLOW FACE is a production of both the Pork Filled Players and Repertory Actors Theatre. It opens on Friday, August 5 and runs through Saturday, September 3 at the Richard Hugo House (1634 11th Ave in Seattle’s Capitol Hill area). Shows are 8 pm Fridays and Saturdays at 2 pm and 8 pm. Admission is $15 General Admission, $12 Students/Seniors/Artists at the door; tickets can also be purchased in advance at Brown Paper Tickets (http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/181433) for $12 General, $9 Students/Seniors/Artists. Discounted group rates are also available for parties of 10 or more. For more information and ticket reservations, please call the ReAct Box Office at (206)364-3283 or visit online at http://www.reactheatre.org or go to the Pork Filled Players website. 

We'll talk later.

We interrupt this regularly scheduled blog---

---with an important announcement!

The sketch comedy portion of the Pork Filled Players is superbly thrilled to be opening for Charles: The Ace of Bass in 2 weeks! 


Come check it out the show July 22 & 23 at the Satori Loft in Pioneer Square, as PFP joins Charles (who's in charge of the whole thing), Ubiquitous They and The DK & Morgan show for an evening of mayhem and mirth!


Satori Loft: 
619 Western Ave

Seattle, WA

Shows start at 8:30 pm!

Week One (cont.): Table work and beginnings

They aren’t the first things that happen on a production, but the first few rehearsals are considered, without question, pretty damn important. People get together, they meet, they greet and dimly, the outlines of the show-to-be starts to emerge from the first read-through of the script.

But actors don’t get up and start walking around from the first minute. The cast and crew first do table work, where the director and actors sit down and try to dig a little deeper into the text. It’s literary CSI, where we look at the explicit AND implicit in the script, figuring what the author said and didn’t say and why—then using that to inform action in the play.

Henry Y. Hwang

It’s a little more complex than usual, since YELLOW FACE is a mockumentary, based on real life. Jane Krakowski actually did star in David Henry Hwang’s FACE VALUE, and FACE VALUE actually did flop, closing before it ever opened in 1993. There actually were extensive Congressional investigations into Chinese campaign finances during the Clinton Administration (well, OK, Republicans are always acting like racist assholes). Henry Y. Hwang actually was called in front of Congress because of it. The cast and crew spent a lot of time figuring out what’s true and what’s no true. We spent even more time figuring out exactly how much of that gets on stage—either truth or fiction.

During all this, director/ReAct producer David Hsieh asks a lot of questions. This is his job as director, not to TELL the actors what to do, but to guide and enable them to do an effective performance. “Where is this meeting taking place? One of their offices, or in a public area?” “Why is he using ‘Mr. Hwang’ there and not David?” “How long were they going out and did they live together?” There is a LOT of backstory being built in this week, not only to give depth to the characters, but because a lot of characters are appearing on stage, portrayed by only a handful of actors.

Speaking of the cast, let’s meet them. Playing the pivotal role of DHH (David Henry Hwang) is veteran actor Moses Yim. A long time actor with SIS Productions and its Sex in Seattle series, Moses tackles the role with a healthy amount of trepidation about portraying an Asian American theatre icon. ‘Course, I’ll just tell what happened at one of the Junipero dorm party—deep background research and all….(Bonus fact: Moses was Teen Crush of the month last year for Seattle’s Teen Tix and has been nominated for Teen Crush of the Year).

Lee Osorio (Marcus Gee) is an experienced actor about town, though he’s new to ReAct and the Pork Filled Players. You may have seen him at Book It, or you may have seen him around the Woodland Park Zoo where he has a connection. He’s also done high level work in other cities (which makes me fall down on my knees thanking the fates we were able to cast someone of his caliber).

Stephanie Kim (Leah, Charla Chang, Margaret Fung, etc.) is also new to ReAct and Seattle, after hopscotching around the country (Florida, Chicago, Memphis et al). Stephanie is a scarily versatile actor in the show, playing characters who are in their 20s, 30s, 40s and even 60s. At one point during rehearsal, she pitched her voice just this way and inflected it just that way, and I swore I was listening to the real life woman who inspired one of the characters in YELLOW FACE.

Jeremy Behrens (Name Withheld on Advice of Counsel, etc.) is also new to Seattle, ReAct and PFP. In fact, Jeremy is so brand new that he graduated from Bradley in May, hopped on board a plane and was settled in Seattle by June. This just missed the summer of David Henry Hwang that’s now occurring in Chicago, but YELLOW FACE is more than keeping him busy.

Henry Vu (HYH, Rodney, etc.) is brand new to ReAct and PFP (hm, a very set pattern here), as he just graduated from the University of Washington with a degree in drama. Like a lot of the other actors in the cast, Henry gets to play a wide array of characters, including David Henry Hwang’s Republican activist immigrant father. It’s not exactly sketch comedy (which Pork Filled does very well), but it’s using closely related skills to quickly establish character and persona.

Julia Beers (Jane Krakowski, Lily Tomlin, etc.) is brand new to yadda yadda yadda. However, you may have seen her in Seattle in a wide variety of places, including Balagan, GreenStages, Unexpected Productions and many, many others. And she rocks a blonde wig as Jane Krakowski (see PR shots).

Agastya Kohli (Narrator, etc.) is last, but not least, because—surprise!!—he’s been a veteran performer for both Pork Filled Players and ReAct (in fact, he was in PFP’s last sketch show in May). On top of all that, he is head of Pratidhwani, the east Indian (East Indian? What's that? I think you mean Indian. Just because Columbus got lost 500 years ago does not mean I need a qualify my Indian-ness with an 'East'. There is only one Indian Ocean, and it's not near West Indies - AK) drama troupe (which co-produced ReAct’s last show, the smash hit Mother in Another Language). If that weren’t enough, Agastya sees more shows in a month than most people see in a decade; he laughs at JUST 52 shows in 52 weeks.

Whew. That’s a lot. So we’ll talk more later.