Asian-American theater artists grapple with the meaning of home

Home is not just a four-letter word. It envelops meaning, depth, diversity, stereotypes, and individuality. “The Way Home,” a series of play readings and other events presented by Asian Arts Initiative and InterAct Theatre Company, will explore what home means.

The goal is to shine a light on different perspectives and to promote Asian-American theater in Philadelphia.

Rick Shiomi will direct the readings, in which actors work with scripts in hand, but move around to provide a more usual-feeling theater production.

Shiomi, founder of Minneapolis-based Mu Performing Arts, created “The Way Home” as part of a residency focusing on raising the profile of Asian-American theater in Philadelphia. He decided to focus on four Asian-American plays: Mike Lew’s Tiger Style! (Feb. 10); Mia Chung’s You for Me for You (March 17); Boni Alvarez’s The Special Education of Miss Lorna Cambonga (April 21); and Michael Golamco’s Cowboy Versus Samurai (May 19).

There will be workshops with Asian student groups, youth groups, and hopefully with community organizations as well, Shiomi said. He’ll also create activities for a week in September and at the National Asian American Theater Festival and Conference, to be produced by the Consortium of Asian American Theaters and Artists (CAATA), in Philadelphia in October.

A comedic kickoff

Shiomi is excited to get started on February 10 and thinks Lew’s play is a good first offering. “For me, it’s a kind of comedic take on Asian Americans in our society,” Shiomi said. “Mike’s play has a quirky, fun vision of what it means to be Asian American. He’s a terrifically clever and funny playwright.”

The story: a brother and sister return to China, “a kind of return to the homeland and that doesn’t work out so well in many humorous ways,” Shiomi said. “It’s a learning journey for them about who they are and what they consider home.” That fits in well with the theme of the event, “from the typical ‘where are you really from’ to if you have family there or if you’re an immigrant, how does that affect who you are as an American? If you were born here, what is that about?” Shiomi said. “There’s all these levels of home to Asian Americans.”

The plays selected show a range of ideas, including, according to Shiomi, that Asian Americans have more of a sense of humor than some people think. There also will be powerful moments of survival, he said, for some of the characters.

In a way, directing this series is a homecoming for Shiomi, who was artistic director of Mu for 20 years and now freelances. He directed a play for AAI and InterAct about 18 years ago, he said, so he feels like he’s returning to a strong Philadelphia connection. And he loves what he does. “I’m excited to be able to do this project and see if we can generate some real excitement about Asian-American theater in Philadelphia,” Shiomi said.

Multiple perspectives on multiculturalism

Lew is eager for people to see Tiger Style! He says his comedy about a brother and a sister who were raised by strict Asian parents and have a quarter-life crisis is about multicultural identity for today’s age. “There are a lot of plays that have dealt with first-generation acclimatization in the U.S. This is meant to be from the perspective of those who were born here and are wrestling with multiculturalism, but in a different light,” he said.

He finds it interesting that the definitions of culture are not as black and white today when people have roots in other countries. And there are still stereotypes, like the idea that people with “strict Asian parents are prone to depression or have these crushing expectations,” he said. “I grew up with that, but I have a well-adjusted healthy relationship with my sister and my parents. You don’t see that perspective very much.”

Lew, who lives in Brooklyn, has been a playwright for more than 15 years. He went to college as a “science nerd,” he said, but quickly changed his mind. “All of the English classes started at 2pm and were in the center of campus. The science classes all started at 8am and at the top of a hill. So gravity did its thing,” he said.

He has directed a number of shows, but finds being a playwright more enjoyable, telling stories “in my own voice rather than augmenting the vision of others,” he said. He thinks that more plays by emerging writers, including people of color and women, are necessary. “Without that, you end up seeing plays that are homogenous. That’s not healthy for the future of our art form,” he said.

He thinks the current series is a great idea, especially in Philadelphia. “There’s an emerging Asian audience and theater community that could be more robust,” he said. “To show the community there’s work out there is very exciting.”

Lew feels like Philadelphia is a second artistic home for him, and because he’s so involved with the New York theater scene, it’s helpful to get new perspectives. As for where he feels most at home, it’s hard to say. Lew grew up in San Diego, now lives in New York, and is third-generation Chinese American. “I have these cultural aspects that are very Chinese, but I’ve only been to China once. I’ve lived in New York for 10 years, but identify as a West Coast person,” he said.

His conclusion: “The idea of home is elusive.”

The Way Home: An Asian American Play-Reading Series
Locations listed below. Events start at 7pm.
Admission: free ($5-10 sliding scale donations encouraged)

Monday, February 10: Tiger Style! by Mike Lew, at the Adrienne Theater, 2030 Sansom St., Philadelphia.

Monday, March 17: You for Me for You by Mia Chung at Asian Arts Initiative, 1219 Vine St., Philadelphia.

Monday, April 21: The Special Education of Miss Lorna Cambonga by Boni Alvarez at the Adrienne Theater, 2030 Sansom St., Philadelphia.

Monday, May 19: Cowboy Versus Samurai by Michael Golamco at the Asian Arts Initiative, 1219 Vine St., Philadelphia.

Additional Events

Family Style Open Mic (third Fridays, Feb.-May)

Attendees share their experience in five-minute spots through original songs, stories, dance, or poetry.

7:30-9:30pm at Asian Arts Initiative, 1219 Vine St., Philadelphia.

$5-$10 (sliding scale)

For more information, visit www.asianartsinitiative.org or interacttheatre.org.