Pan Asian Repertory Theatre Announces Cast And Creative Team For Return Engagement Of NO-NO BOY

by BWW News Desk Dec. 11, 2017  

     

Pan Asian Repertory Theatre (Tisa Chang, Artistic Producing Director), in tandem with "Day of Remembrance", opens its 41st season on themes of social justice and historic amnesia with the special return engagement of the acclaimed play NO-NO BOY by Ken Narasaki, based on the groundbreaking novel by John Okada. Directed by Ron Nakahara, the cast will feature Leanne Cabrera, Dinh James Doan, Chris Doi, David Huynh, Scott Kitajima, Karen Tsen Lee, Claro de los Reyes, Shigeko Sara Suga, Hansel Tan, and Tony Vo.

Performances are set to begin February 7, 2018 for a limited engagement through February 18, 2018 at The Studio Theatre at Theatre Row (410 West 42nd Street). Opening Night is set for Sunday, February 11, 2018 at 3:00 p.m.

Set after World War II as Japanese Americans return to the West Coast, NO-NO BOY follows Ichiro Yamada, who struggles to reconnect with the Seattle community, after taking a bold stance on questions of allegiance. NO-NO BOY received critical acclaimed when it was presented in 2014 by Pan Asian Rep, and returned to NYC in 2016 prior to embarking on a national tour where the play received rave reviews in Washington, D.C.

The limited run of NO-NO BOY is running in tandem with the Day of Remembrance (DOR), a day commemorating the Japanese American internment during World War II. Events in numerous U.S. States are held on or near February 19, the day in 1942 that Executive Order 9066 was signed, requiring internment of all Americans of Japanese ancestry.

Ken Narasaki stated, "Even today, the term ["No-No Boy"] can spark bitter explosions amongst people who remain angry about the kinds of real life-or-death decisions they and their generation were forced to make."

John Stoltenberg of DC Metro Theater Arts says: "No-No Boy is an extraordinary and essential play. It's about what happened to innocent people when this country demonized and incarcerated Japanese Americans during World War II. To witness it now-as anti-Muslim rumblings are being trumped up to a roar...I can only urge everyone who cares about how theater connects to this country's past and future to catch Pan Asian Rep's No-No Boy wherever whenever you can."

The creative team includes sets by Sheryl Liu (Sayonara, Film Chinois), costumes by Hyun Sook Kim (A Dream of Red Pavilions), lights by Leslie Smith (Acquittal), and sound by Ian Wehrle (Fishing For Wives). The Production Stage Manager is Elis C. Arroyo with Sabrina Morabito.

NO-NO BOY will play the following performance schedule: Tuesday through Saturday at 7:30 p.m., and Saturday & Sunday at 2:30 p.m.

Tickets NOW ON SALE are priced at $43.25 for all performances and may be purchased through Telecharge at www.telecharge.com<http://www.telecharge.com>, or by calling 212-239-6200. For information on Group, Senior, or Student Discounts, please email info@panasianrep.orginfo@panasianrep.org>, or call (212) 868-4030.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Ken Narasaki (Playwright). His plays include the recent adaptation of NO-NO BOY and the award-winning plays Innocent When You Dream (2006 Kuma Kahua Pacific Rim Award), The Mikado Project (co-written with Doris Baizley - 2008 Kuma Kahua Pacific Rim Award), and Ghosts and Baggage. As an actor, he starred in "Zwei Profis" for German television, and appeared in Lane Nishikawa's Only The Brave. He has also appeared in nearly 60 plays, including Po Boy Tango, A Winter People, and Theory of Everything, in Chicago, Los Angeles, Singapore, New York, Seattle, San Francisco, Sacramento, and elsewhere.

Ron Nakahara (Director) has been an actor/director in New York City since 1979 and was designated a Senior Artist with Pan Asian Repertory Theatre in 1987 and is an Artistic Associate. Ron has directed one-woman shows at Don't Tell Mama and The Duplex, and has worked extensively with and directed the Asian-American performance group SLANT at La MaMa ETC, and NYSF Public Theatre. His other directing credits in New York include NAATCO, and Ensemble Studio Theatre. His regional credits include The Studio Theatre (Washington, DC), Hartford Stage Co., Fulton Opera House (Lancaster, PA) where his production of Miss Ever's Boys won him a best director award, Honolulu Theatre for Youth, New York State Theatre Institute, Hangar Theatre (Ithaca,) Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Virginia Stage Company (Norfolk,) and Actor's Theatre of Louisville. In addition, Ron has also directed for New York University and Virginia Commonwealth University. He has served on several NEA panels and was one of the first recipients of an NEA/TCG Directing Fellowship. He is a member of SDC, SAG-AFTRA, and AEA.

Tisa Chang (Pan Asian Rep Founding Artistic Producing Director) has led the company since its inception promoting stories seldom told and voices seldom heard. She has been a theatre professional for 5 decades as actor, dancer director. Highlights include: Sayonara (2015); The Joy Luck Club (2007); intercultural epic Cambodia Agonistes which toured nationally and to Cairo and Johannesburg; Kwatz! The Tibetan Project; and Rashomon (2003) which was invited to Havana Theatre Festival. She innovated premieres in English and Mandarin Chinese of the Peking opera, Return of the Phoenix, and A Midsummer Night's Dream.

Pan Asian Repertory Theatre, founded 41 years ago, is the East Coast's most veteran producer of Asian American theatre dedicated to providing a professional forum to Asian American and minority artists. Led by Tisa Chang, Pan Asian Rep has opened doors for many who enjoy careers in film, television and on Broadway. Daniel Dae Kim, Lucy Liu, Tina Chen, David Henry Hwang and Philip Kan Gotanda are some of the alumni artists who have collaborated with Pan Asian Rep over the years. The company has been invited to many international theater festivals including Edinburgh, Singapore, Cairo and Johannesburg. It was the first professional theater from the United States to be invited to the Havana Theatre Festival in 2003. As noted by Variety Magazine, "....the aesthetic mission and professional chops of the Pan Asian Repertory Theatre are admirable." The 41st Season will begin the company's multi-year process for growth and transition to embrace expanded leadership towards a visionary new future with national and international collaborations.

Pan Asian Theatre Programs are made possible, in part, by the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature, the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council; City Council member Margaret Chin and major support from the Ford, Shubert, Fan Fox & Leslie R. Samuels, and Lucille LortelFoundations; 21st Century Heritage Fund, and many Individual donors.

https://www.broadwayworld.com/off-broadway/article/Pan-Asian-Repertory-Theatre-Announces-Cast-And-Creative-Team-For-Return-Engagement-Of-NO-NO-BOY-20171211

NEWSFLASH FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Pan Asian Rep (212) 868-4030 | info@panasianrep.org

PAN ASIAN REPERTORY THEATRE

Tisa Chang, Artistic Producing Director

Presents

Written by Ken Narasaki

Adapted from the Novel by John Okada

Directed by Ron Nakahara

February 7-18, 2018 at the Studio Theatre
at Theatre Row (410 W. 42^nd Street)

(New York, NY) – Tisa Chang, Artistic Producing Director of PAN ASIAN REPERTORY THEATRE, announces for its 41st season with a special limited run - in tandem with DAY OF REMEMBRANCE - of NO-NO BOY by
Ken Narasaki, directed by Ron Nakahara, and based on the groundbreaking novel by John Okada
NO-NO BOY will run from February 7-18, 2018 at The Studio Theatre at Theatre Row (410 W. 42^nd Street).

John Stoltenberg of DC Metro Theatre Arts says “NO-NO BOY is… extraordinary and essential theater. It's a play about what happened to innocent people when this country demonized and incarcerated Japanese Americans during World War II. To witness it now—as anti-Muslim rumblings are being trumped up to a roar—is to be shell-shocked by how close we are to seeing that horrific and fear-fueled history repeat. …I urge
everyone who cares about how theater connects to this country's past and future to catch it if you can.”

Ken Narasaki says, “Even today, the term [“No-No Boy”] can spark bitter explosions amongst people who remain angry about the kinds of real life-or-death decisions they and their generation were foced to make…”

Tisa Chang says, “we are proud to continue the stage life of NO-NO BOY of a period of historical amnesia but where questions of allegiance and what it means to be an American are asked again.”

The sterling cast features Leanne Cabrera, Chris Doi, Scott Watanabe, Glenn Kubota, Karen Tsen Lee,
Claro de los Reyes, Shigeko Sara Suga, Hansel Tan, and Tony Vo. Stage Managers: Elis C. Arroyo and Sabrina Morabito.

 The veteran design team include: Sets by Sheryl Liu (SAYONARA, A DREAM OF RED PAVILIONS);
Lights by Leslie Smith, (ACQUITTAL); Costumes by Hahnji Jang (NO-NO BOY) and
Sound by Ian Wehrle (FISHING FOR WIVES).

Playwright KEN NARASAKI’s plays include the recent adaptation of NO-NO BOY, award-winning plays INNOCENT WHEN YOU DREAM (winner 2006 Kuma Kahua Pacific Rim Award), and THE MIKADO PROJECT (co-written with Doris Baizley – winner, 2008 Kuma Kahua Pacific Rim Award), and GHOSTS AND BAGGAGE. As an actor, he starred in ZWEI PROFIS for German television, and appeared in Lane Nishikawa’s ONLY THE BRAVE; he’s also appeared in nearly 60 plays, including PO BOY TANGO, A WINTER PEOPLE, and THEORY OF EVERYTHING, in Chicago, Los Angeles, Singapore, New York, Seattle, San Francisco, Sacramento, and elsewhere.

DC Metro Review 2016

Review: ‘No-No Boy’ at Pan Asian Repertory Theatre

by John Stoltenberg on June 20, 2016

No-No Boy is an extraordinary and essential play. It’s about what happened  to innocent people when this country demonized and incarcerated Japanese Americans during World War II. To witness it now—as anti-Muslim rumblings are being trumped up to a roar—is to be shell-shocked by how close we are to seeing that horrific and fear-fueled history repeat.

No-No Boy has been adapted into a tight, intense script by playwright and actor Ken Narasaki from the 1957 novel of the same name by John Okada. The pioneering New York City–based Pan Asian Repertory Theatre brought its simply staged production of the play to DC for two performances only, in the Burke Theatre, an auditorium with amphitheater seating inside the  Naval Heritage Center. The lobby display ambiance underscored graphically the military context of the play’s events. Directed with precision by Ron Nakahara and performed by a sterling cast of ten, No-No Boy blew me away from the very beginning.

The play is set in Seattle in 1946 as Japanese Americans are returning to their homes from the internment camps (“fenced…in the desert like they do the Jews in Germany,” as we hear a voice say). It follows the story of a young man named Ichiro (played with compelling focus by Chris Doi), who has just returned from two years in prison for refusing the draft. In a cinematic flow of episodes from Ichiro’s encounters with his family, friends, and others, No-No Boy  tells interwoven stories of how the war changed the lives of some dozen Japanese American characters in disparate and interconnected ways.

Projected onto an upstage screen is a huge Selective Service System seal, along with the text of two questions that we hear an official voice intone, demanding young men to answer in the affirmative:

Question 27: Are you willing to serve in the Armed Forces of the United States on combat duty wherever ordered?

Question 28: Will you swear unqualified allegiance to the United States of America and faithfully defend the United States from any or all attack by foreign or domestic forces, and forswear any form of allegiance or obedience to the Japanese emperor…?

When that loyalty oath was administered to Ichiro in the internment camp where he and his family had been sent, he answered both questions in the negative—hence the slur “no-no boy.” Now that the internment is over, other young men are saying yes and yes—and signing on to fight against the country where their forebears live.

During the course of No-No Boy some of the recruits return, some don’t. Some of their family members cope, some are shattered. Some in their circles assimilate as patriotic Americans, some remain torn. But the implicit personal and cultural conflicts wrought by this momentous military engagement will implode inside the lives everyone we are about to meet.

No-No Boy dramatizes a complex of perspectives, some of them contradictory, among Japanese Americans at the time; admirably, it does not mythologize a monolithic ethnic viewpoint. For instance Ichiro’s family is  divided over the conflict. His Ma  (Karen Tsen Lee)  is certain that Japan has won the war—and all else to the contrary is propaganda. His Pa (Glenn Kubota) loves her very much though he knows she is delusional, and he chastises Ichiro for confronting her and calling her crazy. What happens when Ma finally realizes the reality of what has happened to her homeland is heartbreaking.

In another stirring scene, Ichiro visits the home of Mr. and Mrs. Kumasaka (Scott Kitajima and Shigeko Sara Suga). They had a son named Bobby, and as his battle buddy Jun (Claro de los Reyes) relates the story of how Bobby was shot (“Ping, and he’s dead”), we hear the inconsolable keening of Mrs. Kumasaka.

Ichiro meets a friend he hasn’t seen in years named Eto (another remarkable performance by de los Reyes). Upon learning that Ichiro is a No-No boy, Eto spits at him with contempt. Another friend of Ichiro’s who served in the U.S. military—Freddie (an impressive Hansel Tan)—is far more supportive, to the extent that he fixes Itchiro up with Emi (a wonderful Leanne Cabrera). Her husband has been away for four years, re-upping in the army in Germany apparently with no intention to come back to her. With Freddie’s encouragement as well as Emi’s, Itchiro begins a relationship with her. They have a sweet scene in which they mime playing the piano together (“Do you know ‘Chopsticks’?” she asks in an instance of the script’s wit). It is as if in their mutually healing romance, Itchiro finds the acceptance and place in the world he has been bereft of since the war.

Other notable performances are given by Don Castro as Kenji, a friend of Itchiro’s who lost a leg in combat, and Tony Vo as Taro, Itchiro’s younger brother, who intends to enlist. When Itchiro asks him to think it over, Taro replies angrily, in a speech that conveys something of the passions coursing through this play:

I had plenty of time to think about it when you were in prison and here’s what I think: We were BORN here, we play BALL here, we listen to music here, we’re gonna get married here, we’re gonna have kids here. We OWE this country something for that! Let Ma believe whatever she believes, let Pa go along with it if that’s what he wants, but me? I’m an AMERICAN and I’m going to fight like an American! You and your pals? You had your chance and what did you prove? That they were RIGHT NOT TO TRUST YOU!

Sheryl Liu’s minimalist set makes effective use of a small table (which became that piano) and wooden folding chairs (which become a hospital bed, an automobile, a living room). The sound design by Ian Wehrle amplified those simple set pieces with such a vivid sense of place no more seemed needed. A lighting design was not utilized at the Burke, just a plain wash on the stage, which worked fine in the circumstances. And knife-fight choreography by Michael C. Chin was electricly authentic.

I spoke after the show with Nakahara and Artistic Producing Director Tisa Chang, who confirmed my supposition that the choice to produce this play now and perform it in DC had intentionally to do with the fear mongering abroad in our land. No-No Boy deserves to have real run here; it is every bit as worthy a stage work as any number of recent plays with a political conscience. Till that day comes, I can only urge everyone who cares about how theater connects to this country’s past and future to catch Pan Asian Rep’s No-No Boy wherever whenever you can.

Running Time: 90 minutes, with no intermission.

No-No Boy played June 18 and 19, 2016 at Pan Asian Repertory Theatre performing at The Burke Theatre in the Naval Heritage Center – 701 Pennsylvania Avenue, in Washington, DC.

RATING: 

Pan Asian Rep to Produce No-No Boy in May

Great news!  Great news!  PanAsian Rep will doing a short run of NO-NO BOY in New York City this May 14 to May 18th at the Studio Theatre at Theatre Row - 410 W. 42nd St, NYC.  Directed by Ron Nakahara.  Click on the link below for more details!  If you're anywhere on the East Coast or can make it to New York City that week in May, be sure to go check it out, it's going to be a terrific production.

http://www.panasianrep.org/no_no_boy.shtml

Here's a link to a video from our LA production, just for old time's sake:

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=249577178405821

Hope you can make it - and please, spread the word!  Happy Year of the Horse!

reading filling up

Pan Asian says to be sure to RSVP to: info@panasianrep.org - the NO-NO BOY readings for 7pm Friday, 11/16 and 3pm Saturday, 11/17 are filling up!  Hope to see you there!

The Flyer for the Pan Asian Rep Reading

Pan Asian Repertory Theater

2012/13 36^th Masterpiece Season

Tisa Chang, Artistic Producing Director

PLAYS IN PROCESS Staged Readings 2012
November 16 at 7:00pm, November 17 at 3:00pm

at 520 8th Ave, Bruce Mitchell Room (between 36^th & 37^th Streets) 3^rd Floor

Suggested donation of $10 collected at the door for refreshments and Q&A
To RSVP please email info@panasianrep.org  or call 212/868-4030

NO-NO BOY

By Ken Narasaki

Directed By Ron Nakahara

Based on the book by John Okada, and set in the aftermath of WWII as Japanese Americans return to the West Coast, the play follows draft resister Ichiro Yamada after he is released from prison and STRUGGLES TO COME TO TERMS WITH HIS CHOICES, while the rest of the community tries to get back on its feet after a war that has uprooted them all.

Featuring: Don Castro, Kimiye Corwin, Chris Doi, Bobby Foley, Wai Ching Ho, Dom Huynh, Glenn Kubota, Ian Wen, Virginia Wing, Henry Yuk. Stage Manager: Swaine Kaui

“NO-NO BOY by John Okada, first published in 1957, is

something more than a book; it’s one of those works of art that transcends its actual form, becoming something much larger than just a novel…tackling the adaptation of this seminal novel to the stage… feels a little like saying, ‘We’re working on a stage adaptation of MOBY DICK; I think it’s going well!”

“NO-NO BOY is full of characters never seen on any stage I’ve seen.  Angry, self-destructive…wondering if they’ll ever find the America that was once promised to them.  Ironically, their nihilism is part of what makes them so vividly alive, proving that young people are the same in every generation – there exists in every generation an entire spectrum of feeling,

and the darker hues of NO-NO BOY’s characters are

ones not often seen in literature about the Nisei.”

-Ken Narasaki, playwright

To RSVP please email info@panasianrep.org  Or call 212/868-4030

Upcoming Reading in NYC

Pan Asian Repertory is going to do two readings of NO-NO BOY on November 16th and 17th, 2012 at the West End Theater in New York City as part of their Plays in Process Series. 

Will keep you informed with more information as it becomes available! 

Reaching Across Time and Space

Some projects are just bigger than the people working on them and this is certainly one of them.  The book has been a marker in many people's lives and it shouldn't be a surprise that any project connected to it would touch various people's lives across time and space, but there have been moments that have startled me: 

One was "meeting" an Egyptian woman online who contacted us because she was doing her Masters thesis in Cairo on No-No Boy.  She was reaching out for information and conversation about the play and how it differed from the book; I sent her a copy of the script and asked her how and why she was compelled to do her thesis on a fairly obscure book about a fairly obscure (certainly in a global sense) subject, and she said she was moved by his search for justice and his questions about identity, things that touched her as an Egyptian woman scholar.  I mentioned that in the aftermath of 9/11, Japanese Americans were among the first to speak out against racial profiling and the scapegoating of Muslims and Arab Americans; she was aware of that as well and said maybe that figured into whatever impulse she had to pick up the book at the American University in Cairo.

Another was meeting a Japanese national, a journalist, and his colleague, a Professor of Asian American Studies at Kanda University in Tokyo.  Who'd'a thunk there was any such thing as an Asian American Studies program in JAPAN?  They had heard of our project through Frank Abe, who had done a couple of documentaries, including CONSCIENCE AND THE CONSTITUTION (about the Heart Mountain Resisters) and IN SEARCH OF NO-NO BOY, an educational short about John Okada and the real-life basis for the story and some of the characters in the book.  He was gracious enough to let us post his study guide on our website on our For Educators page.  They flew from Tokyo to Los Angeles JUST TO SEE THE PLAY.  Can you believe that?  The journalist told me he'd been working on researching a book about John Okada but was beginning to think maybe he'd have to turn it into a work of fiction because he hasn't been able to find out enough to write a detailed non-fiction book about him - too many holes in the narrative because Okada died so young (at 49 in the early 70s).  I asked him what drew him to the book, and he said he'd found an old copy in a used bookstore in Tokyo and he was drawn to the cover - a sort of watercolor illustration of Mama looking through the dirty window of their grocery store that looked out onto a city street.  It was the anti-war sentiment that first struck him, and like the Egyptian scholar, the desire for justice denied, and surprisingly enough...identity.  He's about my age, and he says that his generation has felt a sort of questioning about identity having been raised after the war, and the next generation even more so wonders who they are, really.

There have been connections across time, as well:  While researching the play, I came across David Mura's FAMOUS SUICIDES OF THE JAPANESE EMPIRE in which a Sansei looks for the truth about his father, a No-No Boy who eventually committed suicide after years of depression.  I was so struck by some of the passages, I looked up his contact info and found him on Facebook and friended him there. 

One of his FB friends is/was Garrett Hongo, a Sansei poet who was a director at what was then the Asian Exclusion Act in the mid-1970s - Garrett had directed me in a production of Momoko Iko's THE GOLD WATCH, a production which awakened and cemented a life-long love for Asian American theater in me.  I friended Garrett after not having seen him in well over thirty years and he almost came to our play before a death in the family pulled him away.  When he apologized to me, I realized that HE was the one who told me in 1977 that I HAD to read this book, that it was shocking that I hadn't already and he was going to kick my ass if I didn't.

There are other small bits of synchronicity and tangential connections, but here's one final one:  On Sunday, several members of the Okada family came from all over the country to see the show.  Roy Okada, John's brother, asked me, "Were you originally from Seattle?"  Yes.  "Was your father an engineer at Boeing?"  Oh my God, yes.  "I knew him!  We were friends!"  Jane Okada (I'm not sure if she was Roy's wife or sister-in-law) said, "Oh, yes.  I know your mother.  I just saw her two weeks ago.  She looks GOOD." 

I had no idea.

If you believe in signs (I do), then maybe this was all meant to be.  Either that, or Asian America is really just a small town and there's really only one or two degrees of separation from us all.  But then, how do you explain Egypt and Japan?  Maybe it's just the power of John Okada's book, a book he wrote from his heart, a book that was written way ahead of its time, but a book that is proving to be timeless and perhaps without boundaries.

Happy Moments and Hate Mail

First off, sorry I haven't kept up the blog AT ALL, but things have been far more hectic this time around than they were for INNOCENT WHEN YOU DREAM - maybe having a cast double the size of Innocent and a variety of replacements and minor fires to put out, combined with the happy problem of sold out houses has had something to do with it - plus (perhaps) being a couple of years older.  I meant to blog last week, since it was our halfway point, but I was behind at work because of a mysterious fainting spell, and before that, I meant to blog after our Opening Night, but I pretty much felt like someone had hit me over the head with an Acme anvil after we opened, so there are my excuses. 

It's also been a roller-coaster ride, with yesterday being the sharpest example:  On the one hand, we've been having great houses and great responses, like yesterday's matinee, in which many of the Okada family came, including John Okada's brother, his sister-in-law, and assorted nieces, nephews, and in-laws.  They were so gracious and amongst the sweetest people one could ever meet, and I'm incredibly grateful that they enjoyed the production.  On the other hand, someone I know from the Bay Area came to see the play, wrote to Frank Chin about it, and I got my first piece of hate mail...from Frank Chin.  It wasn't EXACTLY addressed to me, it was actually an email blast to numerous Asian American academics, activists, journalists, and writers, calling me "a White Racist", "an apologist for the JACL" (which isn't mentioned in either the book or the play), and a "gullible amateur" for having the gall to make changes in the adaptation from the book to the stage. 

We went out to dinner tonight and ran into some neighbors who saw the play and we talked about it; I mentioned the hate mail, and our neighbor cheered me up immensely, saying:  "That's how you know you're on the money - when you piss someone off."

Added Show 7pm Sunday, April 11th

ADDED SHOW FOR NO-NO BOY 7PM SUNDAY APRIL 11TH.


Due to overwhelming popular demand, we are adding an evening show this Sunday, April 11th at 7pm. Our actors and crew have been working their collective tailbones off, going far above and beyond the call of duty to get this play up and keep it up through sold-out houses, understudy rehearsals, put-in rehearsals, and the Miles has been kind enough to open up early and stay open late to accommodate our production, and we figure the best way to pay them back is to...add another show!

Seriously, besides giving our audience one more chance to see our play (we close on April 18th and we CAN NOT extend), we have added this show as a benefit for the actors and our crew. A portion is going towards the extra rental and staffing for the Miles, and all the rest of it is going to our actors and our crew. Come out and support your local theater and your local artists. If you’ve already seen the play, come see it again – there’s a chance you’ll see a different cast than you already saw since I think we’ve had slight variations in the cast for every performance so far! If you’ve already seen the play and you can’t make it on Sunday, April 11th, please tell your friends, some of whom haven’t been able to make it to our sold-out performances. And if you HAVEN’T seen it at all...we are getting close to selling out the rest of the run, so this might be your last chance at tickets.

This is a beautiful production with a wonderful cast and an amazing group of people, onstage and off, and this is our chance to thank them all.

Hope to see you at the Miles Memorial Playhouse at 7pm Sunday, April 11th!

Asia Pacific Arts Article by Ada Tseng

http://www.asiapacificarts.usc.edu/article@apa?answers_in_war_interview_with_the_cast_and_crew_of_no-no_boy_14902.aspx

Answers in War: interview with the cast and crew of No-No Boy

The stage adaptation of John Okada's No-No Boy, written by Ken Narasaki and directed by Alberto Isaac, plays in Santa Monica, California from March 26 to April 18.

by Ada Tseng
Date Published: 04/02/02

Over the years, there has been so much interest in adapting the 1957 landmark Japanese American novel No-No Boy into a film, that author John Okada's widow was sick of being approached about it.

"We actually tried to get the rights ten years ago," says Ken Narasaki, writer of the 2010 No-No Boy stage adapation. "But his widow was sort of fed up: 'You guys keep calling and bothering me, and you never do anything! Just leave me alone!'" Narasaki laughs at the memory, holding his hands up in mock surrender. "We're just trying to make a play! Sorry!"

Eight years later in 2008, after Narasaki and their artistic team (which include Sharon Omi, Alberto Isaac, Emily Kuroda, and others) had completed a successful run of their play Innocent When You Dream, Narasaki and Omi decided to try again. By that time, the University of Washington Press owned the rights to No-No Boy.

"We said, 'We don't want the film rights. We just want the stage rights,'" says Narasaki. "And they said, 'Oh, no one's ever asked us for that before. How about $1000?''" Narasaki laughs. "And we said, 'How about less?' You know, cause we're a non-profit, mom-and-pop organization. So they ended up giving it to us for about a dollar."

That was the beginning of a two year journey to get No-No Boy onto the stage.

The term "no-no boy" refers to the loyalty oath that was given to Japanese Americans in the internment camps during World War II. Interned Japanese Americans were asked two questions: whether they were willing to serve in the US armed forces and whether they swore unqualified allegiance to the US during wartime. The "no-no boys" were the ones who answered "No" to both questions, angry that the US government expected them to fight on behalf of a country that had stripped their entire community of their constitutional rights. Most of the No-No Boys were moved to Tule Lake, where they were segregated for the rest of the war.

This stance caused a rift between the No-No Boys/draft resisters and the Japanese Americans veterans who believed answering "No" to these questions and refusing to fight was the cowardly thing to do -- that it gave the US government more reason to distrust their community.

"The veteran side -- the acclaim of the [all-Japanese American] 442 [Infantry Regiment] -- is more often told," actor Chris Tashima (Eto, Jun) explains, "Whereas, the No-Nos were shamed into silence. We didn't really get a chance to hear much about them, which is why the novel is so progressive and amazing, especially for its time."

Naraski's play starts where Okada's book begins: it's 1946, and the main character Ichiro is returning to his hometown of Seattle. He had just come from prison where he was sent for refusing to sign up for the draft. Ichiro is filled with self-loathing and doubt over the decisions he's made, and he's antagonized by many of his peers, including his little brother Taro, who consider him a traitor. Later, he's reunited with his friends Freddie, one a No-No Boy who just wants to drown his troubles in sex and booze, and Kenji, a veteran who has made peace with their differences. Kenji introduces him to Emi, a side character in Okada's novel who has been brought to the forefront of Narasaki's play. Emi becomes the only person who can provide Ichiro hope for redemption.

The No-No Boy producers assembled a talented group of Japanese American actors to fill these roles: Robert Wu as Ichiro, Keiko Agena as Emi, Sab Shimono as Pa, Sharon Omi as Ma, Jared Asato as Taro, John Miyasaki as Ralphie, Greg Watanabe as Kenji, Chris Tashima as Eto and Jun, and Emily Kuroda in various roles.

"One of the things I love about John Okada's book is that there's a whole spectrum of characters that represent all kinds of different individual reactions to what happened during the war," says Narasaki, "The characters are so vital, so alive. They're jumping out of their skin, they're so alive, and I loved them for that. So much Asian American literature is about how much we repress -- and that's there in the book too -- but these guys are live wires, so hungry to latch onto something that makes sense to them. It's this hunger for a life which I think is the reason that so many people fall in love with this book."

However, when No-No Boy was first published, both sides -- the veterans and resisters -- hated the book equally. Narasaki takes this as a sign that Okada got it right.

"The vets believed that he was trying to make heroes out of the No-No Boys," says Narasaki. "And the No-No Boys and the draft resisters get pissed at the book, because they say, 'Why are these people are so filled with self loathing? I'm proud of what I did!'

"But if you look at the book," Narasaki continues, "it's neither of those things. I think one of the things that [director] Alberto's been doing with this play and what the actors have been able to bring out -- how complicated that world really was."

"You have to remember that this was World War II," says Tashima. "Everybody was behind the war and patriotic. To even think about resisting or refusing to serve was unheard of -- let alone from a Japanese American and someone who was in camp. I cannot begin to guess the amount of pressure you'd face, especially being 17-18 years old. But these guys said, 'Wait a minute, this isn't right.'"

"My grandfather was in Manzanar," says actor John Miyasaki (Freddie), "so when I first heard about the 442 when I was really young, around 7 or 10, I asked him, 'How come you weren't in the 442? And my grandfather said, 'There's no way I'd be in the 442. There's no way I'd fight for a country who took everything away from us. And he looked at me and smiled, kind of like 'How could you ask me that question?' And I really never understood. I still don't know if I understand, but I'm hoping to find some of those answers for myself."

"I grew up in Hawaii," says actor Jared Asato (Taro), "and all the stories were from my grandpa and the people who had gone to war -- their perspective. So for me, to learn about all these other things that had happened was very eye-opening."

Adapting the novel into a play had many challenges: juggling multiple storylines, deciding which characters to focus on, moving in and out of multiple places, and getting out of Ichiro's head, where much of the book takes place.

"To be honest, when I read the book, I thought, 'This will be tough to put on the stage,'" says actor Robert Wu (Ichiro). "I couldn't see it initially, but they're doing some amazing things, working with the set designer [Alan E. Muraoka] to create the different environments. I'm impressed with how it's come together."

"Because there are so many locations, the set will be very simple and representational, but big," says Narasaki. "A lot of the worlds that we're going to create are going to be through sound and light. We're going to cover a lot of space, and the design element is going to be very important."

It was also important to maintain a balance: taking some creative liberties with the script in order to make the story more stage-worthy, while still maintaining the spirit of the original novel.

"Another nice thing that's in the play is the way Ken inserted the Momotaro story," says actor Keiko Agena (Emi). In the Japanese fairy tale, Momotaro the Peach Boy meets a dog, a monkey, and a pheasant, and they all have to work together in order to defeat the demons. The story is mentioned in Okada's book, but Narasaki threaded it throughout the entire play to act as a metaphor for Ichiro's psychological journey.

Miyasaki agrees, "It's really is the Goldilocks, the Jack and the Beanstalk of our culture. Almost every JA [Japanese American] kid knows that story, and I was really touched by that."

"There's a million different versions of the story," says Narasaki, "but there's one version where, when Momotaro is about to leave on his journey, he tells his parents, 'Thank you for raising me.' And the mother says, 'A parent's duty is to the child, the child's duty is to the parents.' And this is another thing that comes up in this play a lot: what are these duties and how far do you have to take them? There were just so many things about the story that was perfect for the play."

For the actors, one of the biggest challenges was re-creating a time period that was so drastically different than anything they had experienced themselves.

"A lot of us have relatives that are of that period or of that experience," says Miyasaki, "but trying to be in that late 40s, early 50s period -- the language, the dress, and even the interactions are so different. As an Asian American, you hardly get to go out for a '40s play or a period piece, period. It's exciting, but it's very challenging."

Tashima, a writer/director himself who has spent a lot of time looking at this history for other projects, was instrumental in helping the actors get into character.

"It's nice because there is so much material for us to draw from," Tashima says, "Documentary films, books, photographs. There's a lot of interviews of these guys. Some of them go back 20 years, so they're in their 60s, 70s, 80s by now, but at least you can get a sense of their personality, what they had inside, what they were fighting for."

Although the No-No Boy cast and crew seem to be having fun (most of them have worked together previously and known each other for years), they are very aware of the enormity of the project they've taken on. They are very aware of the controversy that still surrounds No-No Boy, especially amongst the aging generation of Japanese Americans, some of whom are still not interested in exploring their painful past.

"When we did the last show, Innocent When You Dream, I played the No-No Boy character," says Miyasaki, "We'd have all these people come in, and I didn't know if they were vets, but it felt like they were vets, a lot nisseis that were of that age. After the show, there'd be food and most of the time people would go talk in the lobby, but no one would talk to me because I was that character. Also, [jokes] because I led an alternative lifestyle, but mostly I think it was because I played the No-No Boy character."

"It's a good thing is that there's a lot riding on the play," says Tashima, "because it's such an important work and because these issues remain in our community. They haven't really been addressed, because each side is hesitant, and they're all moving on in their years. So hopefully, it will cause a big stir. The hardest thing will be getting those who need to hear it, into the house to see the play, because right away, they're gonna think, 'I don't want to see a play about No-No Boys. Hell no, I'm not going to go see that.'"

"But there may be one or two that might get dragged into it, or be curious, or be willing to hear," Tashima continues, "And hopefully, they'll come. Maybe curiosity will get the best of them, maybe it's been enough years. I'm hearing very interesting stories, where a vet will say something that you never thought you'd hear them say: just some form of acknowledgement of what the resisters did. And that's my hope. It's such a shame that so many people are taking this to their graves with some form of regret, so here's an opportunity for something to happen."

No-No Boy had its world premiere on March 27, 2010, and it continues at the Miles Memorial Playhouse in Santa Monica until April 18.

For more information, go to their official website and blog. Tickets are selling out, and an extra Sunday night show has been added on April 11th at 7pm, where John Miyasaki will be playing Ichiro and Mike Hagiwara will be playing Freddie.

LA Weekly Review

http://www.laweekly.com/2010-04-01/stage/theater-reviews-the-confusion-of-my-illusion-the-psychic-sweet-sue/2

GO  NO-NO BOY Grief and bitterness are the unspoken but constantly present co-stars of playwright Ken Narasaki's compelling drama, adapted from John Okada's classic Asian-American novel. At the end of World War II, second-generation Japanese-American Seattle teen Ichiro (Robert Wu) is finally released from U.S. prison, where he has served time for refusing to participate in the draft. Ichiro's refusal to join the U.S. Army has nothing to do with cowardice. Rather, his choice is the result of being torn between his beloved American upbringing and his Japanese cultural roots. When he returns home, however, he finds wreckage and bitterness where he once had friends and family. His Japan-loyal mother (Sharon Omi), who drove Ichiro to make his choice, lives in denial and has nearly lost her mind, supported by Ichiro's stoic, sad-faced father (Sab Shimono). Ichiro's former best friend Kenji (Greg Watanabe), despite coming home from the war horribly crippled, is more accepting of his buddy's choice. Assisted by Narasaki's deft dialogue, exchanges that belie the depth of fury and bitterness over the American dream turned sour, the play presents characters whose piercing suffering becomes eloquent. Director Alberto Isaac's deftly subtle production never overplays its emotional hand, opting instead for an understated melancholy that is both elegant and searing. Few dramas have as effectively depicted the sense of being torn between two cultures in a time of war — along with the unique Japanese-American tragedy arising from being simultaneously victorious and defeated. Wu's devastating boy-next-door turn as Ichiro depicts a figure desperately torn between his American upbringing and his Japanese cultural roots — and who discovers that both bring little but sorrow. Other ferociously moving turns are offered by Shimono's pained but undemonstrative father and Omi's brittle, hate-filled mother. Miles Memorial Playhouse, 1130 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica; Fri.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 3 p.m.; through April 18. (800) 838-3006, brownpapertickets.com/event/91917. Timescape Arts Group. (Paul Birchall)

Somebody Mess with Texas

You've all heard about the ultra-right in Texas lobbying for an ultra-right-wing view of history in their textbooks...sounds like a pretty bad idea, right?  Here's an example of how it affects those of us who want some good to come out of the Japanese American internment, namely greater awareness of our precious civil rights:  Texas would like to puncture that idea with some spurs that jingo, jango, jingo.  (from Angry Asian Man - http://www.angryasianman.com/2010/03/texas-board-of-education-to-rewrite.html

3.17.2010

texas board of education to rewrite japanese internment

Some news from last week that I can't believe is actually happening... In Texas, the Board of Education approved a social studies curriculum that will put a conservative stamp on history and economics textbooks, stressing the superiority of American capitalism, questioning the Founding Fathers' commitment to a purely secular government and presenting Republican political philosophies in a more positive light: Texas Conservatives Win Curriculum Change.

The board, whose members are elected, has influence beyond Texas because the state is one of the largest buyers of textbooks. In the digital age, however, that influence has diminished as technological advances have made it possible for publishers to tailor books to individual states.

Among other things, here's the "tailoring" that really got my attention:

Mr. Bradley won approval for an amendment saying students should study "the unintended consequences" of the Great Society legislation, affirmative action and Title IX legislation. He also won approval for an amendment stressing that Germans and Italians as well as Japanese were interned in the United States during World War II, to counter the idea that the internment of Japanese was motivated by racism.

Texas, what is wrong with you? Why do you want to brainwash your kids? Sadly, this clearly illustrates that there are plenty of powerful people out there who would like rewrite the world into place where the wartime incarceration of thousands and thousands of innocent Japanese Americans was justified. This, among many other parts of American history the Board has taken a scalpel to.

I'm sure Michelle Malkin is jumping for joy.

A 24 hour Blazing Hot Deal for Blacklava One Hot Minute Followers!

A 24 hour  Blazing Hot Deal for Blacklava One Hot Minute Followers!

“No-No Boy”

A new play by Ken Narasaki.

Directed by Alberto Isaac

Based on the novel by John Okada.

$16.00 tickets for any available seat!

(regular price: $25.00)

Where?

Miles Memorial Playhouse

1130 Lincoln Blvd
Santa Monica, CA 90403

When?

March 27 – April 18, 2010

Friday and Saturdays at 8pm
Saturday and Sunday Matinees at 3pm

(March 27th, 8pm and April 11th, 3pm sold out)

Who?

The cast (in alphabetical order) Keiko Agena, Jared Asato, Michael Hagiwara, Emily Kuroda, John Miyasaki, Sharon Omi, Sab Shimono, Chris Tashima, Greg Watanabe and Robert Wu.

Why?

It’s gonna be awesome.

Week Two Down

Actually, we've just begun Week Three, which means we're almost halfway through rehearsal and I think we're in pretty good shape right now, knock wood.  We're already doing run-throughs, which I think is pretty amazing - I've been in shows where the first real run-through was dress rehearsal and maybe one where the first real run-through was the first preview.  It's good for us because this play has so many scenes and locations; this way, we can see how it all hangs together.

It's interesting from a writing standpoint too, because the staging and the evolution of the play requires line changes and cuts that come from pure necessity or whatever the opposite of that is; in other words, sometimes lines are needed for transitions or to cover exits; and in this case, there were a number of brief interstitial lines that I wrote to cover what I thought would be blackout transitions, but Alberto has figured out a way to get from scene to scene with no blackouts, so most of those transitional lines are now gone.  It's brilliant on Alberto's part because it makes the entire play flow better and we have a lot more space than I originally imagined, so we'll be able to do a lot of transitions through light shifts alone.

We have a great cast - something we already knew - but it's always interesting to see how everyone works, and in this case, everyone is incredibly conscientious.  Last week, we were doing some sound recordings, and people were going in one at a time while the rest of the cast waited their turn.  Darlene, our stage manager, said that it felt like study hall - the room was almost dead silent, as everyone was studying their scripts.  A room full of eight or nine actors and no one was talking?  Hard to believe, but that went on for half an hour before rehearsal proper began.

So far, so good - we're using almost every single minute of rehearsal from start to finish, every night, but the time is just FLYING by, which I guess time does when you're having fun.  I love these guys.