EVOKE: the next stop on my Artistic Journey

Dear Fans, Friends and Family,

I am writing to invite you to the EVOKE, A Festival of LGBT APA Voices at East West Players October 11 - 14, 2012. 

Please join me one of these dates as I embark on the next level of my artistic journey as Director of this New Works Festival at East West Players. As you may know, I'm not only interested in developing my own voice, but new voices sharing new stories and creating new performance work about our complex worlds. This festival has given me an opportunity to help not only take my own risks, but support new artists as they evoke imagination, stories, place, process, memory, spirit, healing and dialogue. 

It has also given me an opportunity to work with an amazing group of new artists:

Raja Bhattar

Chueh Jun-Fung

Nguyen Nguyen

Alicia Virani

Rich Yap

I am writing to invite you to support the work in 1 of 3 ways.

www.eastwestplayers.org

1. Buy a $10 ticket

2. Make a $10 Donation

3. Invite someone to join us

Its really that simple. Join us in the house and see what I've been working on artistically. Help me nurture this new generation of voices. Donate to EWP for their leadership in not only presenting new APA theatre, but nurturing the next generation of audiences. 

We have 4 performances, please help me spread the word, support the work and nurture new voices. 

Much love and light,

Alison 

Alison De La Cruz

Director, Evoke: A Festival of of LGBT APA Voices

A Poem for Edith

By Alison M. De La Cruz

On the occasion of the forthcoming 2012 production 

of 

the Artist’s at Play Production

of

EDITH CAN SHOOT THINGS AND HIT THEM

I love plays about Asian Americans.

I love plays starring, written, directed and PRODUCED by Asian Pacific Americans.

I love plays with complex story lines and overt gestures to humanize people like me.

People who are Filipino, people who are gay

People who are women, people who are daughters trying to protect their siblings.

I love plays about complex Asian American women and girls

who are trying to make sense of the world at a time in our development

when our parents should be… a lot things

And sometimes they fall short. Or sometimes they mess up that overtly

That one could begin to question whether safety can be created by families.

I love plays about fucked up, crazy Asian Americans

Who mess with the stupid model minority myth

Or racist notions of exotified otherness

I love plays set in the reality that there are Asian Americans living here in the US today.

Shit, I even want to see a play about Asian Americans in the 1990s and the 80s and 60s and 1860s and 1640s and 17-hundreds.

Now, I am not an advocate for fire arms

Or things that harm

Like violence or bullying or words that hit bodies like bricks and bats

I am not an advocate for things like that.

But that is not what a play is always about.

Though sometimes, and often, I think for the Artists at Play

A Play can actually be about things that harm

Or boyfriends who charm

Or little frogs that stand by as wisdom is chanted from the mouth of a babe like a blaring alarm.

See, a play, is a way to share a whole new world

Or to shine the light microscopic

On a culture

Or a time

Or a character who brings you a breath of fresh air.

And I think that you know this

If you are here today, shit we’re here today

Because of a play,

Or this amazing group of artists who want to make a play

That tells a story worth listening to

Explores a world we shouldn’t shrink from

And shoves characters in my face that require, actually that beg the question:

Why does Edith shoot and hit things?

Where is brother Kenny? And who is Benji?

And does pre-calc actually hold the key……. To….

Well you’ll just have to see.

See that’s the thing about a play,

It’s a reason to go, it’s a reason to stay

Stuck in a seat, from the time the curtain goes up

Till the time the last bow from head to feet.

It’s a way for us to stay engaged and exploring

Exaggerated and exhaustive in our search for the humanity in all of us.

And me,

I love a play that is written and directed, produced and costumed;

Set designed and sound designed, light designed and house managed

Produced and attended by Asian Pacific Americans and our allies

I’m here today because I believe in the power of a play

Hold a mirror up to society and say….

… well anything you want.

And once you meet Edith and Kenny and Benji and crew…

Well I wonder what things they will say… to you.

2 Performances in June 2012

Hey Friends and Fans!

I will be performing twice this month. Check it out!

Or join me on Friday, June 29, 2012 as part of:

Creating Queer Asian-American Visibility in the Arts by CA LGBT Arts Alliance - CC West Hollywood Public Meeting Room Council Chambers, 625 N. San Vicente Blvd., 7-9pm LGBT artists from Southern and Northern California present their work and strategies that bring greater visibility to the queer and Asian community. The panel will focus on art practice as activism and identity formation, building political and institutional alliances, creating community and developing personal and social responsibility. Panelists include: Tina Takemoto - performance artist, filmmaker and Associate Professor at the California College of the Arts; Arthur Dong - filmmaker and director of DeepFocus Productions; Mia Nakano - photographer and founder of the Visibility Project and Alison De La Cruz - multi-disciplinary artist. Admission is FREE, but please RSVP to calgbtarts@gmail.com. Parking is available at the West Hollywood Park 5-Story Parking Garage.

Excited to be producing this wonderful event on Monday, April 30th! 

Visit www.eastwestplayers.org 

Call 213-625-7000

Twitter @EWPlayers #EWPGala46 

Here is the YouTube link to the FLASH LA Piece that I wrote and we presented in February at the Park's Finest BBQ in Echo Park on the outskirts of Historic Filipinotown and the Downtown LA :)

Join the FLASH Theater LA movement!
Via Twitter   http://twitter.com/#!/flashtheaterla
Via Facebook www.facebook.com/flashtheaterLA

L.A. Malong Malong

LA Malong Malong

November 10th - 12th: 8pm

November 13th: 2pm

Miles Playhouse in Santa Monica, CA

TeAda Productions for more information

photos: Michelle G. Magalong

Join me for my first SOLO show in 6 years: L.A. Malong Malong

Opening Night Tickets are only $11 when you click here and use the code: 11FOR11 by 10/16/11

Short on cash: Pay What You Can Preview is on 11/10/11.

Wanna come with a group? Email kat@teada.org

For more info visit: www.teada.org

Description:

Who would you climb a tower for? Might be good to know that answer. Zelle knows enough to know that she doesn’t feel at home in her own skin and she’s the one stuck in the tower! Join Zelle, Princely Butch and a host of other characters in Alison M. De La Cruz’s new solo show L.A. Malong Malong. This re-imagined, interactive fairy tale takes part of its name from a Southern Philippines folkdance where the malong transforms into over 30 objects. Zelle knows there’s more to the story. Come help her explore the question.

Bio:

Alison M. De La Cruz is a multi-disciplinary theatre artist, arts educator and cultural organizer. Her solo works include SUNGKA (1999) and NATURALLY GRACEFUL (2005); she also pulled together 9 collaborators on her last original piece: WHERE YOU STAY? (2006). De La Cruz is the Administrative Director for About Productions. She is also the Lead Teaching Artist for East West Player’s PEAC Program & Special Event Producer. She collaborated with Playwrights’ Arena. De La Cruz also served as a Director, Dramaturg, and Writing/Performance Teacher for TEADAWORKS 2010.

N.E.T. National Gathering 8/11 - 8/14 Minneapolis, MN

The EYE of the ROOM

From August 11th - 14th, 2011, I served as part of the Facilitation Team for the Network of Ensemble Theaters' National Gathering in Minneapolis, MN. That's me there on the right, facilitating in the eye of the room.

I will leave the synthesis of the actual content to the forthcoming NET publishings. However, I did want to take a personal moment to share the larger context of Patti McGuire's image above.

I was guiding an activity to help the Ensemble Theater Artists assess 3 things:

1. their own thoughts about the major foci of our national conversation
2. where our colleagues stand across a variety of these foci
3. the larger field of ensemble artists and allies gathered for the conference.

One of my favorite discoveries in this process was:

sometimes, the conversation helps us get to the task

and other times, the conversation is the task.

I spent part of the time sitting in circles;

standing in circles

at my breakout session located in

the Southern Theater.

with my colleagues

in each of the 3 sessions:

We created flashcards about

developing new plays.

We played in space,

collaborated and observed.

We generated questions to take home to

our ensembles and copied them

to share with the field.

Shymala Moorty's picture reminds me that a lot of the process was devised, but a lot of the work was just being up on my feet with the people in the room.

My favorite traffic advisory during the conference came

when getting directions for the Minneapolis Fringe Festival:

"Get there early and beat the lines."

THANKS SO MUCH to the Twin Cities.

Minneapolis, MN,

I loved being hugged

by your concrete soaked with nature.

I loved traversing the

urban spaces of of St. Paul, MN.

I definitely had an opportunity to take a couple of breaths while on this trip.

I look forward to returning.

Patti McGuire took this while we were at the Guthrie lookin' out over the original interstate highway - the Mississippi River.

My water ancestors were happy and content.

Thanks, it'd been a minute since I'd felt connected to a river.

Blessings.

A final footnote as I offer thanks to all the places in MN: It was announced and discussed on the last day of the Gathering, that NET was going to enter a new phase of dialogue and exploration that they are calling the Place Cycle. From what I understand - over the course of the next two years, our ensemble theater colleagues will spotlight ensemble theatre making and dialogue in places in MI, LA, KY and HI.

the Place Cycle...

I'm excited to listen and participate in dialogue in those places

and witness what ensembles are creating within their places.

June 4th -

It was a beautiful night with almost 500 people in attendance! As the Administrative Director at About Productions, I had the pleasure of helping to organize and produce the LA Premiere and Benefit Concert - Stories & Songs: An intimate evening with Los Lobos' David Hidalgo & Louie Perez at the LA Theatre Center.

The event supported About Productions' innovative literacy through theater programs: YOUNG THEATERWORKS. YT, as we call it, has been doing amazing work building literacy among East LA Youth. Its such a pleasure to watch youth transform as they develop communication and interviewing skills, interview elders, work with a mentor and develop an original theaterwork from these interviews. Our Through the Ages project was featured in the LA Times (Click HERE) earlier this year.

During the benefit concert, About PD also shared an excerpt from the new piece in development - Evangeline, The Queen of Make-Believe. This new theaterwork features the music of David Hidalgo & Louie Perez and is co-written by Perez and AP's Theresa Chavez and Rose Portillo.

Below: Alison w/ Louie Perez. Photo: paul-redmond.com
You know I have to admit - I first heard of Los Lobos because of the movie La Bamba. But over the last 3 years, while working at About PD, my appreciation for Louie and David's music has grown tremendously. Its been exciting to see how the creators of Evangeline are engaging with the Perez & Hidalgo songbook. Its been exciting to meet the poets and composers behind the Lobos catalogue and to hear David and Louie talk about their work. In the course of creating the video promo (see below) I fell in love with the song "Saint Behind The Glass."So it makes total sense that my favorite moment of the concert was hearing David and Louie perform it.

Since the event was pretty much sold out - I didn't sit in my seat - I gave it to a friend. Besides, as a producer and organizer, I actually had more fun standing in the back of the theatre, the doors swung open from the theatre, and hearing the music pour through the mini-lobby and out into the marbled-fabulousness of the great lobby at LATC.

If you know anything about me I hope it would be - I am from Los Angeles. I was born here. I LOVE being from L.A. I LOVE L.A. and by extension, I particularly love producing, supporting, and sharing in the work of LA artists (whether native or now rooted transplants). It was also particularly fun to watch David and Louie get a Proclamation from the City of Los Angeles (presented by Councilman Jose Huizar) honoring their 40 years of artistic collaboration, their artistic work and their international impact.

I'm so honored that I got a chance to help produce this musical homecoming in such an intimate venue for long-time fans and friends - as well as the newbies just discovering more of these East LA poets.

For more information about Louie Perez and David Hidalgo check out their website. Its an awesome site!

Excited about my work at About Productions? Join us - donate today.

Here is the promo DVD that I helped to create for the event.

EWP's 45th Anniversary Visionary Awards Dinner & Silent Auction

Its taken me a minute to breathe, but its time to share.




On May 2, 2011 the lights went up and lights went down on East West Players' 45th Anniversary Visionary Awards Dinner and Silent Auction at the Universal Hilton. It was my first time at the event as the Producer. I had been as a guest (thanks to brother Jim) and I had been as crew (thanks to Meg). But being the producer of an event with lots of moving parts is always a great ride.

It was truly a beautiful night. After several months of scheduling and inviting, we were excited to be able to honor HARRY SHUM JR., from GLEE; Bank of America for their support of East West Players and the larger ARTS COMMUNITY; and Michael Hagiwara - a long time East West Players family member. Karin Anna Cheung, Dante Basco, George Takei, John Cho, Rodney Kageyama and Aaron Takahashi were awesome presenters! James Kyson-Lee and Tamlyn Tomita were our MCs for the evening.

Its a fundraising Gala - but many people who attend say that its their favorite fundraiser of the season - because its not just a boring dinner and silent auction - its a show. This year - we had some amazing entertainment:
The 3 Filipino Tenors (Antione Diel, Randy Guiaya and Lino Villareal) turned it out with their Opening Medley - takin' us through the decades 4.5 decades that EWP has been producing Asian Pacific American theatrical work. Laurie Cadevida rocked it with 'Born This Way' and Joan Almedilla sent us all to the dessert buffet and final moments of the silent auction with "Song For You."




The night was amazing for many reasons. It was of course a personal milestone, since I've been a fan of EWP and a part of the community for over 10 years. It was great because I am also the Lead Teaching Artist for their PEAC Program. It was also great because my wife Ellen is part of the EWP family and crew regularly working shows.

I invite you to check out East West Players. I invite you to DONATE to them.

I invite you to join us next year for the 46th Anniversary Visionary Awards Dinner and Silent Auction on 4/30/12! If you'd like to volunteer you can email: galavolunteers@eastwestplayers.org

I am today's Filipino - circa 2006

And while I'm on the documenting past collaborations, projects and pop-ups... here is another lil' somethin' somethin'.

http://www.iamtodaysfilipino.com/AlisonDelaCruz.htm