BWW Preview: NEW EYES FESTITVAL at Theater Mu

This series of staged readings of new works from Asian American Playwrights is an artistic incubator for thoughts and ideas looking to be born onto the stage. For the 2022 festival, our playwrights are our Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Playwright-in-Residence Saymoukda Duangphouxay Vongsay, Katie Ka Vang and composer Melissa Li, and Keiko Green, who was one of our inaugural Mu Tang Clan members this past year.

A staged reading is a form of theater without sets or full costumes. The actors read from scripts and incorporate minimal stage movement. The purpose is to gauge the effectiveness of the dialogue, pacing and flow, and other dramatic elements that the playwright or director may wish to adjust. Audience feedback also contributes to the process. Past works at New Eyes include Isabella Dawis and Tidtaya Sinutoke's Half the Sky, Leah Nanako Winkler's Two Mile Hollow, and Lloyd Suh's Charles Francis Chan Jr.'s Exotic Oriental Murder Mystery, but those are only a handful across the festival's legacy since 1993.

Saturday, Apr 9, at 4 p.m.

KUNG FU ZOMBIES VS. SHAMAN WARRIOR

written by SAYMOUKDA DUANGPHOUXAY VONGSAY

In the post-apocalyptic mountains of northern Laos, Arun must rescue her sister, Khwan, from an unpredictable cult leader. With Hanuman as her spiritual guide, she battles zombies in the jungle, demons from the underworld, and her own personal monsters. As the prequel to Kung Fu Zombies Vs. Cannibals, Shaman Warrior highlights Akha spiritual practices and interrogates foreign colonization and hegemony with plenty of "easter eggs" for fans of pop culture.

Saturday, Apr 9, at 7:30 p.m.

AGAIN

written by KATIE KA VANG

composed by Melissa Li

Memoirist and cancer survivor Mai See meets a young filmmaker named Quest, who is inspired by her story despite suffering from her own chronic cancer. When Mai See relapses, their unlikely friendship helps her understand her own life-things that are worth keeping and things that are worth letting go. Again is an irreverent, moving, heartbreaking new musical about what to do when shit gets real.

Sunday, Apr 10, at 5 p.m.

EXOTIC DEADLY: OR THE MSG PLAY

written by Keiko Green

It's 1999, and Ami is an awkward, Japanese American high school girl, just trying to stay as invisible as possible. But her world comes crashing down with a terrible discovery: Her family is responsible for manufacturing MSG, the poison spice getting all the kids hooked. Meanwhile, a mysterious new girl arrives from Japan. Her name? Exotic Deadly. She's loud, she smokes, and she's not playing by the rules. In this time-traveling adventure, Ami vows to save the world from MSG and realizes what she's capable of, if she would just stop being invisible.

This event is free and open to the public. Seating is limited, so please RSVP. For more information, click here