NAATCO's OUT OF TIME to Begin Next Week at The Public

NAATCO (The National Asian American Theatre Company) and The Public Theater will begin performances of the world premiere of OUT OF TIME, a collection of five brand-new monologues by five award-winning Asian American Playwrights, on Tuesday, February 15. Each of these monologues has been written for and will be performed by an Asian American actor over the age of 60, something that has never before been done in the history of New York theater. Conceived and directed by Obie Award-winning director Les Waters and commissioned by NAATCO, OUT OF TIME is a theatrical tapestry exploring age, memory, parenthood, and identity in moving new works by writers Jaclyn Backhaus (Black Market Caviar), Sam Chanse (Disturbance Specialist), Mia Chung (Ball in the Air), Naomi Iizuka (Japanese Folk Song), and Anna Ouyang Moench (My Documentary). OUT OF TIME will run through Sunday, March 13 in The Public's Martinson Hall, with an official press opening on Tuesday, March 1.

The seasoned cast of OUT OF TIME includes Mia Katigbak (Ena; Actor-Manager and Co-Founder of NAATCO), Glenn Kubota (Taki), Page Leong (Woman), Natsuko Ohama (Leonie), and Rita Wolf (Carla).

OUT OF TIME features scenic design by dots, costume design by Mariko Ohigashi, lighting design by Reza Behjat, sound design by Fabian Obispo, dramaturgy by Sarah Lunnie, props management by Caitlyn Murphy, and magic consulting by Steve Cuiffo. Kasson Marroquin serves as production stage manager and Narissa Agustin serves as stage manager.

The piece was conceived after Waters attended Mitten wir im Leben sind/Bach6Cellosuiten, a dance performance choreographed by Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker that featured an ensemble of aging dancers. Struck by inspiration, Waters asked NAATCO's Mia Katigbak: "Wouldn't it be wonderful to make a piece for older actors saying wonderful words and one wonderful actor following one wonderful actor saying more wonderful things? Actors have all this experience and are up against the limitations of memory. How cruel it is. And how magnificent it is. And how underused older actors are." When Katigbak agreed and suggested commissioning five Asian American writers to pen these monologues during the pandemic for Asian American actors over the age of 60, OUT OF TIME was born.

NAATCO and The Public Theater have a long-standing and collaborative partnership dating back to the 2015 production of Awake and Sing!, which NAATCO performed at The Public. Coming together to create a piece that amplifies Asian American voices, particularly those over the age of 60, feels pertinent in light of the pandemic's impact on this community.

"The pandemic's imposition of isolation, an affliction generally thought to more devastatingly affect the elderly, was suddenly familiar to the population at large," said NAATCO Actor-Manager and Co-Founder Mia Katigbak. "The eruption of civil unrest brought about protests against racism, police brutality, and white supremacy. The accrual of these turbulent discontents has altered the state of our world."

The Public's audience policy requires complete COVID-19 vaccination, including a booster dose (for those eligible according to CDC guidelines), by the date of attendance for access into the facility, theaters, and restaurant. For complete health and safety protocols, visit Safe At The Public.

The Library at The Public has reopened, serving food and drink Tuesday through Sunday beginning at 5:00 p.m. and closing at midnight. The Library will be closed on Mondays. For more information, visit publictheater.org.

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