Reds, Whites, And Blues Presented by Triumvirate Pi Theatre to be Performed at Japanese American National Museum, July 31-August 3

Two former classmates encounter each other at a luxury hotel. One is a privileged guest, the other a dissatisfied maid. Although the two women have gone on seemingly divergentpaths, both must confront the ramifications of their Asian American identities in the production of Reds, Whites, and Blues.

Join Japanese American playwright/director Leslie K. Gray and Triumvirate Pi Theatre (TriPi) as they present Reds, Whites, and Blues at the Japanese American National Museum for six performances:

Thursday, July 31, 7:30 p.m.
Friday, August 1, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, August 2, 1 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.
Sunday, August 3, 1 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.
This performance is a captioned event, as well as wheelchair accessible.

Reds, Whites, and Blues consists of two main characters—two Japanese American women who struggle for identity in contemporary Los Angeles—and takes place in an upscale hotel suite. The production had its world premiere at the historic Los Angeles Athletic Club in August 2002, and received outstanding reviews from publications such as L.A. Weekly, Backstage West, the Korea Times, the Downtown News, and The Rafu Shimpo. It was developed at Los Angeles Theatre Works’ Writers’ Dialogue workshops and the David Henry Hwang Writers Institute. The play went on to have readings at East West Players and the Asian American Theatre Company in San Francisco. The National Museum is honored to have the opportunity to present Reds, Whites, and Blues once again.

Janet Song, who plays “Daphne,” the sophisticated hotel guest, has recently performed in productions of Love’s Fire and Trial By Jury with the Antaeus Company in North Hollywood. Other stage appearances include A Comedy of Errors with Will and Company, Letters to a Student Revolutionary with East West Players, and Morticians in Love at the Celebration Theatre for which she received a Drama-Logue Award. TV appearances include Frasier, Gilmore Girls, Angel, and the new series, Threat Matrix.

Lisa Lefevre, who plays “Grace,” the hotel maid, was born in Seoul, Korea, attended Northwestern University and later studied with Howard Fine Acting Studios and Margie Haber Studios. She has performed in at least six theatrical productions, three independent films, two television pilots, and several commercials. She is a current member and serves on the administrative board for Vox Humana, the resident theatre company at the Hudson Backstage Theatre.

Playwright and Director Leslie K. Gray, a native of Los Angeles, has had readings and productions of her works at East West Players, ASK Theatre Projects, the Coronet Theatre, New Playwrights’ Foundation, and others. She is currently a Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department Artist in Residence and an L.A. Weekly Theatre Award winner

Gray, as well as Diane Lefer and Sachi Oyama, are the founders of Triumvirate Pi Theatre, a nonprofit theatre company dedicated to creating provocative live theatre that breaks down perceived barriers of race, gender, and disability for Los Angeles theatre artists and audiences. All TriPi shows are in venues that are wheelchair accessible and captioned, and they also have special audio-described performances for the blind. Their work with disadvantaged communities include workshops with deaf children, involvement in the Center for the Theatre of the Oppressed, and a commitment to reaching out to audiences that may not have many opportunities to experience live theatre. TriPi’s vision is to “assemble theatre artists from our diverse communities to present new work which challenges the constraints of ethnospecific, ability-limiting, and/or knee-jerk notions of the human face and form.” For more information about TriPi, visit www.tri-pi.org.

Reds, Whites, and Blues will be performed in the Terasaki Garden Café of the National Museum. Tickets are $15 each, which includes admission to the National Museum for the day of that specific performance. Seating is limited for each of the six performances. Please RSVP to John Guzman at (213) 830-5625.

THIS IS A CAPTIONED EVENT