The Long Journey Home

The homing instinct is a powerful force of nature. Each year huge numbers of swallows return to San Juan Capistrano, millions of salmon return to their spawning grounds, many species of birds follow long established paths of migration between the northern and southern hemispheres, and whales head to their favorite breeding and feeding grounds.

While some people reminisce about the homes in which they grew up, others remember those homes as places where they witnessed and/or suffered from domestic violence and sexual abuse. As we get older, our concept of home changes. After enough decades have passed, many of us have lived at numerous addresses and become accustomed to the quirks of our physical surroundings.


For those who enlisted to fight in battle, the drudgery of military life can make the home they left behind seem pretty good.




For those forced to leave their homes due to war, eviction, pogroms, natural disasters or genocide, the question of what once held their lives together often brings to mind poignant items of seemingly trivial importance.

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I first became aware of composer Jay Kuo in 2006, when his appealing musical (Insignificant Others) started drawing crowds to the Zeum Theatre and got a second booking in 2008 at the Pier 39 Theatre. A graduate of the U.C. Berkeley School of Law, Kuo's biggest musical to date has been Allegiance, which had its first reading at the Japanese American National Museum on July 13, 2009, received its world premiere in September 2012 at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego, and eventually made it to Broadway, where it opened on November 8, 2015 at the Longacre Theatre and ran for 111 performances.


With a book by Kuo, Mark Acito, and Lorenzo Thione, an original cast album of Allegiance was released on January 29, 2016 and a filmed performance of the Broadway production was screened in 600 theatres in December 2017. The man who inspired the musical was the beloved actor, Internet celebrity, and activist George Takei, who explains how the musical came about in the following delightful conversation with playwright David Henry Hwang.


In another video, Kuo gives his version of how he met Takei and discusses some of the challenges he faced in composing the musical score for Allegiance.


During the 1980s (under the leadership of the late David DiChiera), Michigan Opera Theatre attempted to make inroads among Detroit's various ethnic groups by staging a series of minority-oriented operas. Armen Tigranian's 1912 opera, Anoush, drew a great deal of support from the Armenian American community. Stanislaw Moniuszko's 1865 opera, Straszny Dwor (The Haunted Manor), sparked similar levels of enthusiasm among Detroit's Polish-American community. Scott Joplin's second opera, Treemonisha (which was composed in 1910 but did not receive its official premiere until 1972), drew audiences from Michigan's African American communities as well as fans of Joplin's ragtime music.

While the two Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals that created extensive performing opportunities for Asian-American artists (1951's The King and I and 1958's Flower Drum Song) were popular during the 1950s, more than half a century later they both seem like period pieces. Stephen Sondheim's 1976 musical, Pacific Overtures, focuses on Japan's transformation from an island culture to a global power and cannot be said to offer audiences a genuine Asian-American experience.

Allegiance, however, handsomely fills with gap with a story based on the experiences of Japanese Americans whose dignity and careers were stolen from them by the Federal government after President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued his loathsome Executive Order 9066 on February 19, 1942.

Lindsay Hirata, Vinh Nguyen, Bryan Pangilinan, and Dennis Yen
in a scene from Allegiance (Photo by: Ben Krantz Studio) 

Almost overnight, Japanese Americans were forced to sell or abandon their homes, possessions, and businesses in order to relocate to internment camps spread around the country. Takei's family began their humiliation being forced to sleep in the converted horse stalls at Santa Anita Park. Although, as a young boy, he found some excitement in being near horses, he also witnessed the pain and anguish suffered by his parents and other families who were interned at the Rohwer War Relocation Center in Arkansas and the Tule Lake War Relocation Center in California.

Pauli Amornkul, Joey Alvarado, Anne Kobori,and Jomar Martinez
in a scene from Allegiance (Photo by: Ben Krantz Studio)

Under the leadership of Marilyn Langbehn, the Contra Costa Civic Theatre is currently presenting the Bay area premiere of Allegiance in a production with costumes by Lisa Danz, lighting by Courtney Johnson, sound designed by Michael Kelly, and choreography by Allison Paraiso. Director Lily Tung Crystal (the founding artistic director of San Francisco's Ferocious Lotus Theatre Company) performed with George Takei in an early reading of Allegiance. When Langbehn asked her to direct the show nearly a decade later, Crystal very much felt like she was “coming home.” As she explains:

“All of Kuo’s work is full of heart, and Allegiance is no exception. It’s a story of family, resilience, and survival, of the human spirit prevailing through one of the worst moments in our nation’s history. Nearly 120,000 Americans who were at least 1/16th Japanese were incarcerated in the internment camps from 1942 to 1946. It was a period that cost them everything they had worked for, their emotional well-being, and in some cases, their lives. Allegiance is so powerful because it allows us to experience that tragedy, empathize, and most importantly, remember.”

Nick Rodrigues (Frankie Suzuki) and Lindsay Hirata (Kei) with chorus
members in a scene from Allegiance (Photo by: Ben Krantz Studio)

“The internment was 70 years ago, and yet we need to stay vigilant today. In our current political climate, in a nation grappling with immigration, fear, and discrimination, history can repeat itself. It’s our collective responsibility to ensure that it doesn’t. As Takei says, ‘It’s vitally important for Americans to know about those moments where we fail our national ideals. We have enough chapters about the glory of our democracy, but we learn more from the chapters where we made mistakes.' Indeed, Allegiance reminds us of our failings, but in its soaring music and quiet moments, it also reminds us of our power, that through love, hope, and community, together we can be a light through the darkness.”

Dennis Yen as old Sammy in Allegiance
(Photo by: Ben Krantz Studio)

Upon entering the theatre, I was surprised to see an Aermotor-style windpump as one of the design elements of Kuo-Hao Lo's scenery (for a brief moment I wondered if it had been rescued from a production of Oklahoma! and whether a befuddled Aunt Eller might cross the stage before the show began). But, starting with the opening number ("Wishes on the Wind") which is set in Salinas in 1941, it immediately became apparent that the musical direction by Kenji Higashihama was phenomenal and that the mostly Asian-American cast was packed with powerful voices ready to deliver the goods.

Vinh Nguyen stars as Sammy in Allegiance
(Photo by: Ben Krantz Studio)

Allegiance covers a lot of historical, sociopolitical, and cultural ground including the uprooting and incarceration of Japanese Americans, the humiliation and legal peril of being asked to sign a loyalty oath, and the rift between young Japanese American men who chose to enlist and serve in the 442nd Infantry Regiment in order to prove their patriotism and those who stayed behind to protest the indignities suffered by their families. Add in the complications of war injuries and the emotional injury sustained by young Sammy, who falls in love with a Caucasian military nurse only to discover upon his return home that she was accidentally killed by the man who married Sammy's sister.

Lindsay Hirata as Kei Kimura in a scene from
Allegiance (Photo by: Ben Krantz Studio)

Standouts are the actors portraying the members of the Kimura family: Vinh Nguyen as Sammy, Lindsay Hirata as his older sister, Kei; Bryan Pangilinan as their father, Tatsuo; and Dennis Yen doubling as Sammy's grandfather Ojii-chan and Sammy as an elderly veteran. Strong performances also come from Nick Rodrigues as Frankie Suzuki (the man who marries Kei), Emma Onasch as Hannah Campbell (the white nurse who falls in love with Sammy), and Doy Charnsupharindr as Mike Masaoka (the National Secretary and Field Executive of the Japanese American Citizens League who many felt had sold out his fellow Japanese Americans during the war).

Doy Charnsupharindr as Mike Matsuoka in a scene
from Allegiance (Photo by: Ben Krantz Studio)

Although I did not get to see the original Broadway production of Allegiance (or the filmed performance that was broadcast to movie theatres), watching the show be performed by a talented cast of mostly Asian-American artists highlighted some of the reasons the show has such relevance for today's audiences.

• First, let's look at America's changing demographics. Asian-American communities have grown tremendously in cities across the United States since the end of World War II. Not only has America's trade with Asia bolstered our economy, many Asian-American communities make sizable contributions to their local economies. First and second generation Asian-Americans have become important business leaders, entrepreneurs, and familiar faces at news stations.
• The increasing number of Asian-American students enrolled in theatre departments and music conservatories around the country means that Americans are not only benefiting from the fruits of their talent, but that many large cities (as well as suburban communities like El Cerrito) are able to cast a production of Allegiance with local talent (Wikipedia lists 10 Asian-American comedy troupes, six Asian-Amereican dance companies, and more than 30 Asian-American theatre companies).
• The rampant xenophobia that has been exacerbated by the Trump administration has resulted in refugees seeking asylum being categorized as criminals, children being separated from their families and placed in cages in detention centers, and legal immigrants being threatened with deportation.

Male chorus members portray soldiers in the 442nd Infantry Regiment
in a scene from Allegiance (Photo by: Ben Krantz Studio) 

Kuo's musical makes all of this very clear while putting human faces on the stories of Asian Americans who have been and continue to be subjected to discrimination. Performances of Allegiance continue through October 21 at the Contra Costa Civic Theatre (click here for tickets).

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Commissioned by the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, the world premiere of Marcus Gardley's sprawling black odyssey took place on January 23, 2014 at the Space Theatre in Denver. “Usually I write this big stuff and they say, ‘You gotta tone this down. It’s too long. It’s got too many actors. This is really black,’ recalls Gardley. “This commission was, ‘Do what you want to do.' I’m obsessed with myths and legends and [how] a group of people from a specific culture explain creation. What I like about theater is it’s like an orchestra. There are these different sounds from different people. I think of my plays as compositions in a way.”




In August of 2017, the California Shakespeare Theater presented the West Coast premiere of black odyssey in a tantalizing, highly energetic staging by the company's new artistic director, Eric Ting. With Homer's epic poem providing the narrative skeleton for Gardley, audiences found many familiar moments from ancient Greek literature vividly re-imagined with comic flare, infused with cultural references to Oakland (where Gardley grew up), allowed to stew in African American folklore, and served up with a gut-busting poignancy.

Poster art for black odyssey

Bay area audiences who thrilled to previous productions of Gardley's plays (2009's This World In A Woman's Hands at the Shotgun Players, 2010's ...and Jesus Moonwalks the Mississippi at Cutting Ball Theatre, and 2014's The House That Will Not Stand at Berkeley Repertory Theatre) quickly warmed to this hugely ambitious work filled with Gardley's poetry and loving embrace of magical realism as a major storytelling tool. If you've ever wanted to see the great Margo Hall impersonate Tina Turner, this is one show you simply can't afford to miss. As Gardley explains:

“What I love about the Odyssey is that it’s the story of a man who is essentially lost. He’s lost not necessarily because he can’t find his way, but because he has inner turmoil. It’s really [a story about] a man who’s on a journey to self discovery. Meanwhile, his wife and son are left alone and have to fend for themselves, so it’s sort of a parallel story. I really love that sort of structure in storytelling where you’re waiting the whole time to see the hero, if you will, and his family reunite."

Aldo Billingslea (Great Grand PawSidin) and Margo Hall (Pale-ass
Athena) in a scene from black odyssey (Photo by: Jay Yamada)

"For me, this was sort of the perfect context to tell the story of the history of African Americans in the United States. I feel like, as a culture, we are a group of people who have had an immense amount of struggle; this ability to survive against all odds really is remarkable and is unlike any other group of people in history. The chorus asks you to step in [Ulysses’] shoes because this being lost and being found really reflects to me the central point of the culture. What makes African American culture so fascinating is that there is something greater than who we are that unites us and that always allows us to get through the turmoil. We are always found, you know? We are always found when we are lost.”

J.D. Mollison as Ulysses Lincoln and Safiya Fredericks as
(Benevolence Nausicca Sabine) in a scene from black odyssey
(Photo by: Jay Yamada)

With an ensemble of 10 actors tackling more than 20 roles (and occasionally forming a Greek chorus with solid musical chops), Ting's staging boasts the kind of fluidity and quick costume changes that allow a gifted artist like Margo Hall to transform herself from the goddess "Pale-ass" Athena into a sympathetic human named Great Aunt Tina, to morph from a hard-rocking Calypso who bears a stunning resemblance to Tina Turner into an exhausted elderly domestic worker who can barely stand up after so many of years of scrubbing white people's floors.

Margo Hall as an old woman and J.D. Mollison (Ulysses Lincoln)
in a scene from black odyssey (Photo by: Jay Yamada)

Cleavant Derricks (the original James "Thunder" Early in 1981's Dreamgirls) does double duty as a regal Great Grand Daddy Deus (Zeus) and a blind Super Fly Tireseas while Velina Brown triumphs as a waitress named Alsendra Sabine, the slyly seductive Circe (whose song about the foods she likes to eat oozes with sexual innuendo), and the animated Carib'diss, who appears to resemble Diana Ross as she attempts to lure Ulysses from the safety of Super Fly's souped-up pimpmobile.

Cleavant Derricks as Super Fly Tiresias in a scene
from black odyssey (Photo by: Jay Yamada)

Aldo Billingslea lends his powerful presence to the role of Great Grand Paw Sidin (Poseidon) while Michael Gene Sullivan is Louisiana's Artez Sabine. Safiya Fredericks portrays his young daughter, Benevolence Nausicca Sabine. Those cast in key family roles include Santoya Fields as Nella Pell (Penelope), J.D. Mollison as her itinerant husband, Ulysses Lincoln, and Michael Curry as their son, Malachai.

Santoya Fields (Nella Pell) and Michael Curry (Malachai)
in a scene from black odyssey (Photo by: Jay Yamada)

Gardley's magnificent adaptation is beautifully framed by Michael Locher's towering set design, Dede M. Ayite's costumes, Xavier Pierce's lighting, and the excellent sound design by T. Carlis Roberts. Linda Tillery and Molly Holm have woven their music into the production with
choreographers Latanya D. Tigner and Kendra Kimbrough Barnes helping the story to erupt in the kinds of movement befitting gods and mortals alike. A special shout-out goes to Dave Maier for his fight direction.

Velina Brown as Carib'diss in a scene from black odyssey
(Photo by: Jay Yamada)

I was thrilled last fall when Cal Shakes announced that, thanks to public demand, for the first time in its history it would revive this production. There is so much to take in the first time one experiences black odyssey that a return visit is almost mandatory. Seeing this show a second time was a revelatory experience -- not just for the sheer ebullience of the performance and the power of Ting's ensemble -- but for the sheer wealth of dramatic craft onstage combined with the magic of Gardley's writing. Following the opening night performance on Wednesday, September 26, the playwright was called onstage to be honored by Mayor Libby Schaaf with an official proclamation of "Marcus Gardley Day in Oakland."

Those who struggled through Homer's epic poems while in high school and college may be surprised at how deeply moved they will be by the power of Gardley's adaptation. While some of that may be due to having acquired a lot more life experience since their teens, the dramatic contributions of Eric Ting and a strong ensemble of gifted artists help immensely. Performances of black odyssey continue through October 14 at the Bruns Amphitheatre in Orinda (click here for tickets). Here's the trailer: