Trying to Find Chinatown
Encyclopedia
Trying to Find Chinatown is a 1996 play by American
playwright
David Henry Hwang
. It deals with issues of racial identity by pitting an Asian street musician against a Caucasian man who claims Asian American
heritage.
The Caucasian man is on his way to his home, which he claims is Chinatown
. The violin
ist is angered by the white man's insistence he's Asian, not knowing that the white man was adopted by Asian-American parents.
The play premiered as part of the Actors Theatre of Louisville
's Humana Festival on March 29, 1996. It was directed by Paul McCrane
.
It is published as the titular play in the collection Trying to Find Chinatown: The Selected Plays by Theatre Communications Group
and as one title in a dual acting edition with Hwang's Bondage
published by Dramatists Play Service
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
David Henry Hwang
David Henry Hwang
David Henry Hwang is an American playwright who has risen to prominence as the preeminent Asian American dramatist in the U.S.He was born in Los Angeles, California and was educated at the Yale School of Drama and Stanford University...
. It deals with issues of racial identity by pitting an Asian street musician against a Caucasian man who claims Asian American
Asian American
Asian Americans are Americans of Asian descent. The U.S. Census Bureau definition of Asians as "Asian” refers to a person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent, including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan,...
heritage.
The Caucasian man is on his way to his home, which he claims is Chinatown
Chinatown
A Chinatown is an ethnic enclave of overseas Chinese people, although it is often generalized to include various Southeast Asian people. Chinatowns exist throughout the world, including East Asia, Southeast Asia, the Americas, Australasia, and Europe. Binondo's Chinatown located in Manila,...
. The violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
ist is angered by the white man's insistence he's Asian, not knowing that the white man was adopted by Asian-American parents.
The play premiered as part of the Actors Theatre of Louisville
Actors Theatre of Louisville
Actors Theatre of Louisville is a performing arts theater located in downtown Louisville, Kentucky. It was founded in 1964 by Louisville native Ewel Cornett, local producer Richard Block and actor Ken Jenkins of Scrubs fame, and was designated the "State Theater of Kentucky" in 1974. It is run as a...
's Humana Festival on March 29, 1996. It was directed by Paul McCrane
Paul McCrane
Paul David McCrane is an American film, television and theatre actor, as well as an occasional television director. He is perhaps best known for his portrayal of Montgomery MacNeil in the 1980 film Fame and Dr. Robert Romano on the NBC medical drama television series ER.-Early life:McCrane was...
.
It is published as the titular play in the collection Trying to Find Chinatown: The Selected Plays by Theatre Communications Group
Theatre Communications Group
Theatre Communications Group is an organization dedicated to the promotion of non-profit professional theatre in the United States. TCG has over 450 member theatres located in 47 states; 17,000 individual members; and a growing number of University, Funder, Business and Trustee Affiliates...
and as one title in a dual acting edition with Hwang's Bondage
Bondage (play)
Bondage is a 1992 play by American playwright David Henry Hwang. It deals with issues of race and racial stereotypes by placing a fully disguised man and woman in an S and M parlor playing out sexual games. The play premiered as part of the Actors Theatre of Louisville's Humana Festival on March 1,...
published by Dramatists Play Service
Dramatists Play Service
Established in 1936 by members of the Dramatists Guild and the Society for Authors' Representatives, Dramatists Play Service, Inc. is a theatrical publishing and licensing house...
.