china

REVIEW:  Chuang Stage’s visionary ‘Nüwa in Fairyland’ explores the nature of love and belonging

Posted on by The Sleepless Critic

Words matter.  Formalities matter.  Commitments matter.

Wise words firmly stated by Jen Alison Lewis as Maryanne in Brandon Zang’s Nüwa in Fairyland, an insightful coming of age tale that crosses imagination with a number of interweaving elements in order to bring consolation and understanding in the face of change.    

Directed sensitively by Carla Mirabel Rodriguez, Chuang Stage continues Brandon Zang’s Nüwa in Fairyland live and in person at The Boston Center for the Arts Plaza Black Box Theatre in Boston, Massachusetts through Saturday, June 1.  This world premiere, semi-interactive, and bilingual play-within-a-play runs 100 minutes with no intermission.  Pay-as-you-are tickets are available.  Click here for more information and for tickets.

Jen Alison Lewis and Trevyn Wong in NÜWA IN FAIRYLAND by Ken Yotsukura Photography

Nüwa in Fairyland is primarily centered on the relationship between good natured, competitive, and playful Benji depicted by Trevyn Wong in an impressive and charismatic performance and Jen Alison Lewis as Maryanne, Benji’s protective and steadfast adopted mother.  Benji is starting to question his heritage beyond what he knows of his adopted life in America after seeing a documentary on China and Maryanne immediately feels anxious and uneasy.  Meanwhile, Bowen Huang movingly depicts a mystical creature frantically searching for a missing child.  There may be a connection here, but Nüwa in Fairyland explores a broader vision and branches out into fascinating territory and parallels that interweave imagination, reality and a certain Shakespearean play in order to cope with what is next.

Matt Goldstein, Trevyn Yong, and Jen Alison Lewis in NÜWA IN FAIRYLAND by Ken Yotsukura Photography

Navigating its various settings with precision while making the most of its theatrical space, Qingan Zhang’s ethereal and floral scenic design is highlighted by splendid translucent imagery and a sense of immersion due to Anna Drummond’s soothing and atmospheric sound design and Ashley Yung’s ambient lighting.  From feathers to crowns to capes to embroidered armor, Sandra Zhihan Jia’s costumes blend the fanciful with the contemporary while infusing a traditional Shakespearean influence. 

Jen Alison Lewis and Matt Goldstein in NÜWA IN FAIRYLAND by Ken Yotsukura Photography

This capable cast has very good camaraderie and comedic timing as they find nuances not necessarily in the script which enhance certain sweet moments within the production.   A gleeful glance, an awkward gesture, and a delayed pause help to strengthen the bond within this small cast.  Henry Dolgoff as chatty and anxious Damian share several of these moments infatuated with Wong in an array of awkward and mixed signals.  Matt Goldstein as stern yet supportive Mr. Bailey and Lewis as Maryanne both share some soulful moments with Wong as Benji struggles with where he belongs.

Trevyn Wong and Henry Dolgoff in NÜWA IN FAIRYLAND by Ken Yotsukura Photography

However, Bowen Huang shines as stunning Nüwa in an intense, sage and sympathetic performance.  Spoken in both Chinese and English, Huang is expressive, passionate, brave, and empowered with a wonderful charisma and zealousness convincingly drawing others to her plight in an unfamiliar place.   The cast collectively explores the bonds of love in a thought provoking and multi-layered journey while both Huang and Lewis uniquely and beautifully discover the unforeseen and unyielding expectations of motherhood.

Bowen Huang and Trevyn Wong in NÜWA IN FAIRYLAND by Ken Yotsukura Photography

Directed sensitively by Carla Mirabel Rodriguez, Chuang Stage presents Brandon Zang’s Nüwa in Fairyland live and in person at The Boston Center for Arts Plaza Black Box Theatre in Boston, Massachusetts through Saturday, June 1.  This world premiere, semi-interactive, and bilingual play-within-a-play runs 100 minutes with no intermission.  Pay-as-you-are tickets are available.  Click here for more information and for tickets.

REVIEW: Central Square Theater brings Lloyd Suh’s ‘The Chinese Lady’ to light

Posted on by The Sleepless Critic

Afung Moy is majestic, idealistic, and beautiful. In 1834, she has set foot on American soil from China at just 14 years of age to share her background, culture, and experiences. However, the details behind her arrival as well as her time and purpose in the United States is where the real story lies.

Directed impressively by Sarah Shin and in partnership with the Chuang Stage, Central Square Theater reveals a little known yet impactful figure in Lloyd Suh’s The Chinese Lady live and in person at Central Square Theater in Cambridge, Massachusetts through December 11. This semi-interactive production is 90 minutes with no intermission. Click here for more information and for tickets.

Sophorl Ngin as Afung in ‘The Chinese Lady’ Photo credit to Nile Scott Studios.

The Chinese Lady is gripping from the start and much of that is due to its two powerful leads that at first share amiable banter, humor, and building tension. With bright and expressive eyes, Sophorl Ngin depicts Afung Moy with compelling curiosity as she gradually discovers the life that has been set out in front of her. Ngin’s sweet and understated ingenuity beams adorned in exquisitely-detailed gold embroidered lavender and lilac attire crowned with a colorful guan by costume designer Sandra Zhihan Jia.

Scenic designer Qinan Zhang has a meticulous eye for detail and each piece of furniture and prop provides a significant purpose. Nothing in this vast room is just for show. Translucent curtains blanket the room and add a mysterious quality to the space. Steel structures hang above a Chinese floral blossoms arrangement and the matching end tables and chair quickly become essential to this historical account.

Jae Woo as Atung and Sophorl Ngin as Afung Photo credit to Nile Scott Studios

From China’s history of inventing tea to the gruesome details of foot binding, Ngin delivers her lines pragmatically and with a cheery glow, treating her time onstage at first an adventure with delusions of grandeur. With a wide eyed countenance, Ngin brilliantly depicts Afung from her imaginative humor and naivete to the subtle evolution in her ripened demeanor, weary walk, and her conflicted style of speaking as years gradually progress. The Chinese Lady is confronted with the ugly side of humanity and lays it bare as her time slowly fades into a land she has little choice but to adapt to it.

Ngin as Afung and Jae Woo as her older translator and guide Atung illustrate their absorbing camaraderie as they embody their complex characters, particularly exemplified in a chilling scene with the President. This intense and carefully executed scene is riveting and difficult to witness, but punctuates the sheer marvel of these two together onstage. Jae Woo portrays Atung as mysterious, subdued, polite, and unassuming as he keeps himself as minimal as the furniture. He is kind, protective, and squarely knows his place, but hints at a painfully buried intensity. Woo handles this complicated and austere character with tight lipped finesse in spite of or more hauntingly, because of all he has been through.

Sophorl Ngin as Afung and Jae Woo as Atung Photo credit to Nile Scott Studios

The Chinese Lady is best experienced without revealing the true nature of the story. Afung’s endearing personality provides a temporary distraction of what is actually happening onstage. Director Sarah Shin and author Lloyd Suh’s clever unfolding of historical and contemporary events and the actors’ subtle navigation in their performances on issues that are anything but subtle are weaved into a striking and message driven historical work that peels away that subtlety piece by piece and by the final act, leaves everything astonishingly and unsettling bare.

Jae Woo as Atung and Sophorl Ngin as Afung Photo credit to Nile Scott Studios

Central Square Theater reveals a little known yet impactful historical figure in Lloyd Suh’s The Chinese Lady live and in person at Central Square Theater in Cambridge, Massachusetts through December 11. This semi-interactive performance is 90 minutes with no intermission. Click here for more information and tickets.

CAEG’s ‘Princess Zhaojun’s’ Yang Donglin envisions how one woman united a nation

Posted on by The Sleepless Critic

Continuing with the theme of International Women’s Day is a show about real life heroine.  During the Han Dynasty, an amazing, intelligent woman considered one of the four beauties of Ancient China left the world she knew to marry Huhanye in order to achieve peace on the Northern Border of China.

Princess Zhaojun, presented by China Arts and Entertainment Group (CAEG), is a compelling dance drama and features detailed, beautiful sets and costumes.  The Sleepless Critic interviewed accomplished costume designer Yang Donglin about his work and what is was like to visually bring the Han Dynasty and this story to life.

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China National Opera and Dance Drama Theatre present Princess Zhaojun for one weekend only at the Boch Shubert Theatre in Boston, MA March 16-17.  Its mission is to share traditional and contemporary Chinese performing arts around the world.  Click here for more information and tickets.

Yang Donglin

Accomplished costume designer Yang Donglin Photo courtesy of China Performing Arts Agency

Sleepless Critic:  Is this your first time working with the China Performing Arts Agency and what other shows have you worked on?

Yang Donglin:  For China Performing Arts Agency I was costume designer for the dance drama Confucius when it toured the US in 2017 and Dragon Boat Racing in 2016 and 2018.  I have also worked in dance drama for Du Fu, Chinese Orphan, Lotus and Li Bai and Opera for Jianzhen Crosses the Ocean to Japan, Turandot, The White-Haired Girl and Peasant Takes a Wife.

Princess Zhaojun. China National Opera & Dance Drama Theater. (20)

Princess Zhaojun. Photo courtesy of China National Opera & Dance Drama Theater

SC:  The China Performing Arts Agency has a reputation for featuring the most beautiful costumes and scenery I have ever seen and Princess Zhaojun is no different.  I saw the Soaring Wings production last January and it was stunning.  This show serves as a piece of Chinese history and Princess Zhaojun is a real person who lived during the Han Dynasty.  Please tell me about how you selected and put together the costumes for this show.

YD:  I added proper contemporary interpretation of the piece instead of simply copying and restoring what it looked like in history.  We need to constantly deny ourselves and make textured clothing that can keep abreast of the body language expression of our actors. Taking Zhaojun for example, we have tried to change at least 5-6 kinds of fabrics to make a sample, and the director has even personally tried it on for rehearsal action until the most satisfactory texture and effect comes out.

Artistic creation is neither restoring history nor making things up. We have incorporated more dramatic elements into the traditional Han dynasty clothing, and many of the costumes are inspired by the wooden terracotta figures, Han portrait stones, and bricks portraits in the ancient Han dynasty tombs. At the same time, costumes are endowed with different souls according to the personalities and fates of the characters. For example, the overall cool color of the Han dynasty palace and the warm orange color on the grassland have all indicated the change in the character of the protagonist.

Princess Zhaojun. China National Opera & Dance Drama Theater. (12)

Princess Zhaojun. Photo courtesy of China National Opera & Dance Drama Theater

SC:  What has been the most difficult part of putting this show together and what has been the best part?

The most difficult part is finding the balance between the communication of the main actors’ images and the restriction of their dance movements in single, double, or triple dance.  The most satisfying is the characteristics of each costume are exactly the same as the director’s ideas such as the leashed called dance, free Zigui dance, and bold pouring wax dance full of exotic flavors. Each has its own traits, but together they have a unified style to construct distinctive aesthetic style on the stage.

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SC:  What do you like best about being a costume designer?

YD:  I like the creativity.  I like the feeling of swimming freely in the ocean of creation.

Witness Yang Donglin’s exceptional costume design and experience China National Opera and Dance Drama Theatre’s Princess Zhaojun for one weekend only at the Boch Shubert Theatre at 265 Tremont Street in Boston, MA March 16-17.  Click here for more information and tickets.  Click here for more about China Arts and Entertainment Group and their future productions.

 

REVIEW: Moving and visually stunning, ‘Soaring Wings: Journey of the Crested Ibis’ took flight in Boston

Posted on by The Sleepless Critic

The richest beauty comes from a striking, beloved bird as The Boch Center Shubert Theatre debuted the Shanghai Dance Theatre’s ethereal and historical tale, Soaring Wings:  Journey of the Crested Ibis in Boston from January 11 and 12.   The show is part of China Arts and Entertainment Group’s Image China and has been touring all over the world since 2014.  A few of Image China’s featured past performances include The Legend of Mulan, Confucius Dragon Boat Racing, and the Peking Opera.  Click here for more information about Boch Center’s upcoming events.

Soaring Wings, January 11-12, 2018 at the Boch Center Shubert Theatre (11)

Crested Ibis Photo courtesy of China Arts and Entertainment Group’s Image China

With elements similar to Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake, Soaring Wings is a majestic celebration of nature’s harmony with man and how delicate that relationship can be.  From harp-infused, mystical rhythms and horn-infused intensity composed by Guo Sida to the distinct, elegant choreography by Tong Ruirui, Soaring Wings delivers a stunning portrait of love, camaraderie, and what comes of neglect in a tree-lined utopia.

Soaring Wings, January 11-12, 2018 at the Boch Center Shubert Theatre (13)

Courtesy of China Arts and Entertainment Group’s Image China

Written by Luo Huaizhen, directed by Ton Ruirui, and starring Zhu Jiejing and Wang Jiajun, Soaring Wings is part love story, part environmental awareness, and part historical account of the Crested Ibis, China’s sacred bird of good fortune, from its first appearance centuries ago to what has become of them today.  The simple and beautiful setting under a low hanging, multi-branched tree entangled with a mist covered lake is a vision to behold and prefaces the grace and charm of these spectacular birds as a group of explorers look on.  Wearing intricately detailed, lacy costumes accented by a feather plume and dainty red slippers, the dancers move in simultaneous elegance.   They joyfully chirp, prance, float, twinkle, and expressively cock their head while outstretching their wide, magnificent wings under streaming, multi-colored lights.

Soaring Wings, January 11-12, 2018 at the Boch Center Shubert Theatre (7)

The ‘flock’ of Crested Ibis Photo courtesy of China Arts and Entertainment’s Image China

Zhu Jijng and Wang Jiajun possess an instant, sweet fascination with each other as man and bird.  Their intimate dance and the radiant joy they exude from each other is a captivating centerpiece of the performance.  Divided into three parts, the stark contrast between the warmth and jarring indifference that develops in its characters and the symbolic relevance of a floating, single feather drives this altruistic tale.  As visually stunning as its universal message, Soaring Wings: Journey of the Crested Ibis embodies the power of kindness and the importance of harmony in an ever changing world.

Zhu Jiejing and Wang Jiajun with cast Photo courtesy of China Arts and Entertainment’s Image China
Zhu Jiejing and Wang Jiajun Photo courtesy of China Arts and Entertainment’s Image China
Zhu Jiejing and Wang Jiajun dance Photo courtesy of China Arts and Entertainment’s Image China

Click here for more information about China Arts and Entertainment Group’s Image China and here for more about Boch Center’s upcoming events.