Center Theatre Group invites current high school students to attend Reimagine Your American Dream, a teen youth summit inspired by David Henry Hwang and Jeanine Tesori's "Soft Power." The free event will take place on Friday, May 4, 2018, from 4:30 - 10:30 p.m. (includes performance time for "Soft Power") at The Music Center Annex and the Ahmanson Theatre in Downtown L.A.
KCET's Soft Power Ticket Giveaway /
A contemporary comedy explodes into a musical fantasia in the first collaboration between two of America's great theatre artists: Tony Award®winners David Henry Hwang (M. Butterfly, Flower Drum Song) and Jeanine Tesori (Fun Home). Soft Power rewinds our recent political history and plays it back through a Chinese lens: a future, beloved East-meets-West musical.
Enter to win a pair of tickets to the May 9 performance of Soft Power at the Ahmanson Theatre.
South Coast Rep Announces 10-Show Season for 2018-19: M. Butterfly /
COSTA MESA, CALIF.: South Coast Repertory has announced its 2018-19 season, which comprises 10 shows, as well as 3 offerings for young audiences and the annual Pacific Playwrights Festival.
The slate ranges from Jane Austen to Karen Zacarías, from Anna Ziegler to David Henry Hwang, from Culture Clash to Mo Willems.
“We’re enthusiastic about what next season has to offer,” said SCR managing director Paula Tomei in a statement. “The range of work is both compelling and entertaining and we look forward to the experience that our audiences and artists will have when they join together.”
Read more at American Theatre
At the theater, eager anticipation for 'Soft Power' /
The biggest opening in L.A. this spring is a work by two veterans that defies categorization — playwright David Henry Hwang and composer Jeanine Tesori’s “Soft Power,” which blazes its own trail between musical and dramatic genres.
The State of the Art: David Henry Hwang and Jeanine Tesori /
Show and Tell Series welcomes two of theater’s most unique and contemporary artists join us in a conversation about creating, collaborating, and the genesis of their exciting new work, SOFT POWER. They provide a rare peek behind the curtain that will show us what it really takes to get plays and musicals from Idea to Opening Night.
This Month In Theatre History; M. Butterfly /
BD Wong and John Lithgow in the original 1988 Broadway staging of "M. Butterfly."
30 YEARS AGO (1988)
M. Butterfly by David Henry Hwang opens on Broadway at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre (after bowing at Washington, D.C.’s National Theatre). The play is inspired by the true story of a French diplomat’s affair with a young male Chinese opera singer, whom he believed to be a woman. The production, directed by John Dexter and originally starring John Lithgow and BD Wong, will run for more than 700 performances and win the Tonys for best play, best featured actor in a play (Wong), and best direction of a play.
Cast Announced for SOFT POWER /
The cast has been announced for the upcoming world premiere of "Soft Power" by David Henry Hwang (play and lyrics) and Jeanine Tesori (music and additional lyrics). This play with a musical will be produced by Center Theatre Group at the Ahmanson Theatre from May 3 through June 10, 2018. Directed by Leigh Silverman and choreographed by Sam Pinkleton, the opening of "Soft Power" is set for May 16. Following its run at the Ahmanson, "Soft Power" will play San Francisco's Curran from June 20 through July 8, 2018.
Guggenheim Museum hosts Opera Theatre of Saint Louis: An American Soldier: David Henry Hwang and Huang Ruo /
March 18, 2018, 7:30–8:45 pm
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
Excerpts are performed from this new two-act opera based on the true story of Danny Chen, proud American and son of Chinese immigrants residing in Manhattan’s Chinatown. After enlisting in the U.S. Army, Chen is welcomed in boot camp, but in Afghanistan, his own base becomes enemy territory as military hazing turns deadly, posing powerful questions about what it means to be an American. Librettist David Henry Hwang and composer Huang Ruo discuss their collaboration with Nancy Yao Maasbach, president of the Museum of Chinese in America, prior to the opera’s premiere in Saint Louis.
Read more at New York Guggenheim.org
The Return of the Artistic Company /
The Oskar Eustis Troupe | The artistic director of the Public Theater creates productions that are the result of ongoing workshops that can continue for years. On its set for ‘‘Hamlet,’’ designed by David Zinn, in downtown New York are, clockwise from left: actor Oscar Isaac, composer Jeanine Tesori, actor Elizabeth Marvel, playwright David Henry Hwang, writer and director Alex Timbers, director Lear deBessonet, actor John Leguizamo, Eustis, playwright Suzan-Lori Parks and playwright, composer and actor Lin-Manuel Miranda. Photographed on Sept. 1, 2017.CreditPhotograph by Jason Schmidt. Location: The Public Theater’s Anspacher Theater on the “Hamlet” set designed by David Zinn.
The troupe — a roving band of actors, musicians and directors who produce a variety of plays and entertainment — is centuries old. So why has this generation of stage, television and cinematic impresarios found new resonance in this old form of communalism?
How Opera Theatre of Saint Louis Joined Forces With Huang Ruo & David Henry Hwang To World Premiere New Version of ‘An American Soldier’ /
For the upcoming 2018 festival, the company will be producing the world premiere of Huang Ruo and David Henry Hwang’s “An American Soldier.”
The opera follows the story of Private Danny Chen, a first-generation Chinese-American who enlists in the army in 2011 but soon finds himself at the center of deadly military hazing once he arrives in Afghanistan. The opera is based on a true story and brings up major themes of abuse and division in a time where the country is battling this very issue.
Soft Power will play at the Curran in 2018 /
A new play by David Henry Hwang, will run as part of the Curran’s 2018 lineup. Featuring music by Jeanine Tesori, Mr. Hwang’s “Soft Power” examines Chinese-American relations in the present and future. Leigh Silverman will direct the production, which is scheduled to run from June 20 to July 8 after a premiere in Los Angeles at the Center Theater Group in May.
Read more at nytimes.com
David Henry Hwang and Daniel Dae Kim Developing TV Series Adaptation Of ‘First Rule Of Ten’ Book /
Courtesy of EPR
Daniel Dae Kim’s 3AD production company, which is behind breakout ABC drama series The Good Doctor, is developing First Rule of Ten, based on the successful books by Gay Hendricks and Tinker Lindsay, as a television series. Kim has partnered with Tony-winning playwright David Henry Hwang (M. Butterfly) on the project, which is set at ITV Studios America where 3AD recently signed a two-year first-look deal.
Read more at Deadline.com
The Dance and the Railroad at the Under the Sal Tree Festival /
The Dance and the Railroad was presented as part of Under the Sal Tree, a four-day annual theatre festival that takes place in the small, sleepy hamlet of Rampur in Goalpara, located some 200 kms west of Guwahati in India. The festival takes place outside, and The Dance and the Railroad was presented by the Inter Cultural Theatre Company of Imphal, directed by Joy Maisnam.
Read more about the festival at TheHindu.com.
Julie Taymor on the stage magic of The Lion King, the real shock of M. Butterfly & more /
Julie Taymor on Show People with Paul Wontorek
It’s no secret that Tony-winning director Julie Taymor is a visionary icon. The talented creator is having a major moment: The Lion King, Broadway’s box office bursting king of the jungle that earned her two Tony Awards in 1998, celebrated its 20th anniversary on the Great White Way on November 13. She is at the helm of a resplendent revival of David Henry Hwang’s M. Butterfly, currently playing at the Cort Theatre. Taymor shows no signs of stopping her creative streak. Hear all about her days as a traveler full of wanderlust before hitting it big in show business, why she’s beyond ready to bring Across the Universe to Broadway and more on this week’s Show People with Paul Wontorek.
Read more at Broadway.com
Clive Owen on Broadway starring in revival of 'M. Butterfly' /
Actor Clive Owen is usually recognized for his roles in TV and movies, but now, he is starring on Broadway in the show "M Butterfly."
See the video of his interview on abc7ny.com
Foreign Goods: Collection of writings by British East Asian Artists to be released /
The book marks the first collection of modern dramatic writing by British East Asian writers.
Foreign Goods features eight contemporary pieces including full plays, short plays and monologues. Its new material is relevant for actors and new plays are available for production.
Edited by award-winning playwright Jingan Young and veteran theatre writer David Henry Hwang, Foreign Goods contributes to the representation of British East Asian people in the theatre and beyond.
Read more at weareronate.com
Jenn Colella-Led GROUP, Plays by David Henry Hwang, Enda Walsh and More Set for Drama League's 'DirectorFest' /
The Drama League announced today the expansion of their annual event, DirectorFest, into a multi-week, city-wide festival focusing on the art of Contemporary Stage directing.
For its 34th year, the festival will include five fully-staged productions, a showcase evening of new musicals, staged readings, discussion panels, books signings, workshops and conversations with America's most notable directors.
Taking place over two weeks in venues across Manhattan, highlights of the festival include rarely-seen plays by David Henry Hwang (M. Butterfly), Enda Walsh (Once: The Musical), new works by Gabrielle Reisman, Alejandro Ricaño and more, all directed by the 2017 Drama League Directors Project Fellows: Laura Brandel, Bonnie Gabel, Matt Dickson, Flordelino Lagundino, and Rebecca Martinez.
Read more at Broadwayworld.com
BWW Interview: Celeste Den Conducts Dangerous Liaisons in M. BUTTERFLY /
Celeste Den, who plays Comrade Chin in David Henry Hwang's M. Butterflyrevival, was searching for a UPS truck after a recent matinee, a box tucked under her arm. "I was told a truck would be here but I guess that was bad information," she said with a laugh.
Den knows about passing on information.
Chin is the Communist Party liaison who meets with the famed actor Song Liling, played by Jin Ha. He is the Butterfly of the play. Song is having a torrid affair with a Parisian diplomat, Rene Gallimard, played by Clive Owen. Chin extorts sensitive military secrets from Song and, well, you know how it goes.
Read the full story at Broadwayworld.com.
11 Asian-American Shows to Watch For in the 2017-18 Season /
David Henry Hwang will be collaborating with Jeanine Tesori on Soft Power, to receive its world premiere in Los Angeles next year.
(© Joseph Marzullo / Tristan Fuge)
"With Asian-American theater off to a fairly strong start in 2017, we put together a list of the productions (from New York to Los Angeles and places in between) to look for throughout the rest of the 2017-18 season."
Read the full story at Theatermania.com
Hale Centre Theatre debuts high-tech, $80 million stage with ‘epic’ production of ‘Aida’ /
Courtesy photo) Kandyce Marie as Aida, Casey Elliott as Radames, and Amy Shreeve Keeler as Amneris in Hale Centre Theatre's new production of "Aida."
On many levels, Hale Centre Theatre’s new production of “Aida” has a full-circle sensibility.
The Elton John/Tim Rice Broadway musical will be the first show performed on the company’s new high-tech, arena-style Centre Stage. The 900-seat house is one of two new theaters in Sandy’s $80 million Mountain America Performing Arts Centre. The show opens with a gala preview Nov. 16, and the run continues through Jan. 20.
Read the full story at the Salt Lake Tribune website.