2003 Staged Readings
November 17, 2003 Tea by Velina Hasu Houston
September 21, 2003 A Language of Their Own by Chay Yew
November 17, 2003:
TEA by Velina Hasu Houston
Directed by Lynn Ann Bernatowicz
Featuring: Mary Ann de la Cruz, Kate Garassino, Roxanne Lee, Stephanie Santos and Erika Winters
Dramaturg: Kyle Gorden
Chicago Cultural Center Claudia Cassidy Theatre 77 E. Randolph St., Chicago 7:00pm
Set in 1950’s small town Kansas, Tea tells the story of four women who come together to clean the house of a fifth after her tragic suicide upsets the balance of life in their small Japanese immigrant community. The spirit of the dead woman returns as a ghostly ringmaster to force the women to come to terms with the disquieting tension of their lives and find common ground. Her destiny requires she escape the limbo between life and death, and move on to the next world in peace, carving a future passage for the others.
Followed by a Q & A session with playwright Velina Hasu Houston.
Presented in conjunction with The Artful Teapot - 20th Century Expressions from the Kamm Collection, a teapot exhibit featuring over 250 teapots crafted by over 150 artists. The exhibit was presented by the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs at the Chicago Cultural Center.
September 21, 2003:
A LANGUAGE OF THEIR OWN by Chay Yew
Directed by Jay Paul Skelton
Featuring: Gordon Chow, Foo Nguyen, Erik Wetz, and Daniel Yabut
The Chicago Temple First United Methodist Church 77 West Washington St., Chicago Dixon Chapel 2:00 pm
An evocative journey into the lives of four gay men, three Asians and one Caucasian. A Language of Their Own is a lyrical and dramatic meditation on the nature of love, desire, sexuality, and self-definition as the four men come together and drift apart in a series of interconnecting stories.
Followed by a Q & A session with playwright Chay Yew.
Presented as part of the City of Chicago’s Unity Month celebration, observed every September in commemoration of the 1963 March on Washington. Co-sponsored by the Chicago Commission on Human Relations’ Advisory Council on Asian Affairs and the Advisory Council on Lesbian, Gay, Bi-Sexual and Transgender Issues.