Tag: Theater

Kollab ATL Chats With Julee Cerda About Smart People, “Twokens,” and Acting

Kollaboration Atlanta’s Qui Ho interviews actress Julree Cerda about her upcoming role in the play “Smart People,” premiering in Atlanta on July 12 at the True Colors Theatre Company. 

The quest for love, achievement and identity is universal, but what role does race play in the story of our lives? On the eve of Obama’s first election, four Harvard intellectuals find themselves entangled in a complex web of social and sexual politics. A whirlwind of crackling dialogue and tricky questions are thrown at us by the fearless and funny Lydia Diamond (Stick Fly) in this provocative and funny play
The quest for love, achievement and identity is universal, but what role does race play in the
story of our lives? On the eve of Obama’s first election, four Harvard intellectuals find
themselves entangled in a complex web of social and sexual politics. A whirlwind of
crackling dialogue and tricky questions are thrown at us by the fearless and funny Lydia
Diamond (Stick Fly) in this provocative and funny play

Julee Cerda is an American actress born in Seoul, South Korea. She was raised in New York but spent part of her childhood in her father’s home country, the Dominican Republic. Julee comes to Atlanta from New York City playing Ginny Yang, a well­ respected tenured Harvard Psychology professor, in Smart People. Her most recent theater credits include: The Bloodline of Shadrick Grace (FringeNYC) and Mad Dog Blues (Michael Chekhov Theater Company). On screen, Julee has recently appeared in House of Cards, Orange Is the NewBlack, and will be seen in Morten Tyldum’s upcoming film, Passengers.

Qui: How did the role in “Smart People” come about?

Julee: My agent asked me if I wanted to put myself on tape for the role of Ginny and having known the play and the role, I agreed to. I didn’t think anything would come of it and even went on a lengthy vacation to visit my husband’s family in England. That’s of course when I get a call saying the director wanted to meet so we ended up arranging a call over Skype.

Qui: Do you feel you face challenges in the industry due to race?

Julee: All the time. Roles for Asian Americans are few and far between and when a script calls for one, it usually requires you to play a stereotype. And while roles for Latinos are more available, I usually don’t get called in for those parts because I don’t “look” Latina enough. It’s a frustrating predicament to be in…especially if you’re an actress of mixed race. But I’m grateful playwrights like Lydia R. Diamond has created a role like Ginny who, like me, defines herself as a “twoken…proudly representing not one, but two under represented­populations”.

Qui: What’s your definition of “smart”?

Julee: Aware, insightful, thought­through. Although thanks to my husband, I’ve now adopted the British meaning which is neat and stylish as in “that outfit looks smart.”

Qui: What would you picture yourself doing if you weren’t acting?

Julee: I’d like to think I’d be doing is something creative like screenwriting or playwriting or filmmaking. But if it weren’t arts­related, I’ve always had this fantasy of being a carpenter and building houses. I don’t know why. I just like the idea of creating things by hand.

Qui: In a previous interview, you stated “Don’t let fear rule you. Dare to try. Dare to fail.” I believe in being confident leads to success. How would you suggest one getting over the fear of failure?

Julee: Take an improv class. It’s scary as hell but incredibly exhilarating! And it’s refreshing to know your peers are in the same sinking boat as you are.

Qui: The Shakespeare Tavern is a gem here in Atlanta. Any spots you’re looking forward to visiting during your Atlanta residency?

Julee: I’m actually just looking forward to getting to know the neighborhoods of Atlanta a bit more. I hear East Atlanta, Little 5 Points, Virginia Highlands, Poncey­Highlands, Edgewood are all worth checking out. And I’m also really looking forward to trying out some delicious southern comfort food so suggestions welcome!

Qui: Who is someone in your life who can always make you laugh?

Julee: My 18 month ­old daughter, Emmett. She’s full of surprises and always up to something cheeky. For instance, she’ll come over to me to give me a hug and I’ll think “aw, how sweet!” and then I’ll suddenly realize my iPhone is missing from my pocket and she’s running away giggling.

Qui: I am a huge fan of House of Cards having grown up in D.C. area. What’s it like on set of House of Cards?

Julee: Amazing! The cast and crew are one of the nicest, most relaxed, and warmest people I’ve ever met on set which is funny because it’s such a stiff and chilling show.

Qui: Your go­to place for Korean cuisine & Dominican Republic cuisine in New York?

Julee: Definitely Flushing, Queens for some authentic Korean dining and Washington Heights for Dominican food. You have to go where the people are.

Qui: One sentence. What do you hope to be able to say 5 years from now?

Julee: “Siri, do my hair and makeup.”

image

Cover image via juleecerda.com

Cinnabon Monster Recaps: East West Players’ CHINGLISH

Since this is my first time writing anything for Kollaboration, allow me to introduce myself! Edward Hong is my name, the Cinnabon Monster is my nickname. I’m gonna start right off the bat that before I begin the recap of the most recent East West Players production Chinglish, I would say that this was perhaps not only one of the best EWP productions I’ve ever seen but also one of the best plays I’ve seen this year. From the directing, acting, and presentation, Chinglish managed to hit all the marks in a sharp fashion in such a way that I would highly recommend this to not just my Asian folks because they should support Asian theatre but to my non-Asian & Asian folks alike because it’s good theatre period. I say all this because when it comes to Asian American entertainment, I can be rather harsh and this play was able to satisfy all my critical demands and more.

(L-R) Leann Lei as Prosecutor Li, Joy Yao as translator Zhao, Ewan Chung as Judge Xu Geming, Kara Wang s Vice Minister Xi Yan, and Mattew Jaeger as Daniel Cavanaugh in East West Players production of David Henry Hwang’s Chinglish.
(L-R) Leann Lei as Prosecutor Li, Joy Yao as translator Zhao, Ewan Chung as Judge Xu Geming, Kara Wang s Vice Minister Xi Yan, and Mattew Jaeger as Daniel Cavanaugh in East West Players production of David Henry Hwang’s Chinglish.

So what IS Chinglish all about?

Written by David Henry Hwang (author of the Tony Award-winning M. Butterfly) & directed by Jeff Liu, Chinglish tells the story of “an American businessman who is desperately looking to score a lucrative contract for his family’s firm travels to China only to learn how much he doesn’t understand: his translators are unreliable, his consultant may be a fraud, and he is captivated by Xi, the beautiful, seemingly supportive government official who talks the talk – but what is she saying, anyway?” The cast is comprised of Kara Wang as Xi Yan, Matthew Jaeger as Daniel Cavanaugh, Jeff Locker as Peter Timms, Ben Wang as Cai Guolang, Leann Lei as Miss Qian and Prosecutor Li, Ewan Chung as Bing and Judge Xu Geming, and Joy Yao as Zhao.

If you’re fan of David Henry Hwang, fast witty comedy with a political bite, or just good Los Angeles theatre in general (those can be hard to find), I highly recommend you watch this play. For a play that heavily relies on subtitles, the set design was created in such an effective and stylish way so that non-Mandarin speaking audience members can also understand the mis-translations. It is perhaps one of the most effective and innovative means and I must give a lot of credit to the set designer Hana Sooyeon Kim with masterful stage management by Sylvia Trinh to put it all together.

(L-R) Jeff Locker as British ex-pat Peter Timms and Ben Wang as Minister of Culture Cai Guoliang in East West Players production of David Henry Hwang’s Chinglish.
(L-R) Jeff Locker as British ex-pat Peter Timms and Ben Wang as Minister of Culture Cai Guoliang in East West Players production of David Henry Hwang’s Chinglish.

 

For those who have concerns that this Asian themed play with a white guy as the main character rely on any stereotypes, fear not! The central concept of how the main character’s “foreign” western ideals are taken advantage of in Xi’s political game runs very strong with all performances revealing incredibly fleshed out characters. The actors were all terrific but my standout would be Jeff Locker who played a rather difficult role in portraying a character you want to root for but then you realize the complexities that create the confused man that he is. Not only that but he is also fluent in Mandarin and he utilizes that unique skill set to its fullest advantage as he banters back and forth with his Chinese costars. It’s also worthy of note that this was the first production ever done for Chinglish that was directed by a Chinese American so it definitely plays a factor in how the direction was done for this East West Players rendition.

logo2

Featured Photo: Xi Yan, Vice Minister of Culture, played by Kara Wang, explains a situation to American businessman Daniel Cavanaugh, played by Matthew Jaeger in East West Players production of David Henry Hwang’s Chinglish.

For more information on the theater or the production, visit www.eastwestplayers.org