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Panel Discussion: The Next Generation of Asian American Comedians |
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Written by Administrator
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Monday, 10 May 2010 11:42 |
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Home > Panel Discussion: The Next Generation of Asian American Comedians
Panel Discussion: The Next Generation of Asian American Comedians
Thursday, May 13, 2010
5:30 pm Registration
6:00-7:30 pm Program followed by reception
SoMArts Cultural Center
934 Brannan St., San Francisco
Asia Society/Cosponsor Members/Students $7
Non-members $12
To register, please visit https://secure.acceptiva.com/?cst=8a9cc2 [1] or call 415.421.8707
Cosponsored by Asian Pacific Islander Cultural Center (APICC), Center for Asian American Media, Hyphen Magazine, and Kearny Street Workshop
Asian American comedians like Margaret Cho and Dat Phan have now become household names. But has mainstream exposure changed the perceptions and interpretations of Asian Americans in stand-up comedy? How do comics play off or subvert audience expectations and media-driven stereotypes? And how do these stereotypes, and comics’ personal identities, shape their material, performances, and careers?
Speakers
Oanh Ha (moderator) of KQED Radio has reported on Asian American issues and Asia for the last decade. Her stories have explored the impact of globalization and the connections between Asia and America – from venture capital to Korean hip hop. Her stories have also appeared in The Wall Street Journal, Newsday, and The Orange County Register.
Tina Kim, started her comedy career in New York City. Since then, she has sold out her self-produced shows in venues across America. Tina blends her humor with stories about her wacky Korean family, dating, dieting, and much more. She has recently been featured on CNN, VH-1, Comics Unleashed and the Style Network.
Samson Koletkar was born and raised in Mumbai, and now lives in San Francisco. His comedy offers a unique perspective on life as an Indian Jew in the West. His observations are refreshingly new and turn existing stereotypes on their head. Samson’s comedy often echoes the voice of the seldom-heard first-generation immigrants.
Edwin Li began working as a comedian at the age of 16. Since then, his earnestness and shameless curiosity have made him a favorite with comedy veterans and club owners alike. His rambunctious new set is a portrait of the wild, untamed energy of a youngAmerican man.
Darby Li Po Price, Ph.D. teaches Asian American and Ethnic Studies at Laney College in Oakland. His Ph.D. thesis at UC Berkeley focused on multiracial comedians. Darby received a Telly Award for his PBS documentary "Crossing the Line: Multiracial Comedians."
Date:
May 13, 2010 - 5:30pm - 7:30pm
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Hips don't lie: S.F. hula troupe gets creative with creation |
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Written by Administrator
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Monday, 10 May 2010 02:10 |
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from SFGate.com
Hips don't lie: S.F. hula troupe gets creative with creation
One of the Bay Area's best Hawaiiana events of 2009 is back this weekend -- and not only is it still free, it's sure to be fabulous all over again. San Francisco's ever-popular and provocative hula troupe Nā Lei Hulu I Ka Wēkiu, directed by kumu hula Patrick Makuakāne, returns to the Yerba Buena Gardens Festival at 1 p.m. Saturday, May 8, for a 90-minute display of ancient, modern and its signature "evolving" dance (hula mua.) Consider it a complimentary appetizer to an equally enticing entree: the world premiere of "Kumulipo," dances set to portions of the epic Native Hawaiian creation chant, in an Asian Pacific Islander Cultural Center presentation later this month.
Nā Lei Hulu I Ka Wēkiu
Instead of taking it to the streets, Patrick Makuakāne's dancers will stage their next free San Francisco show at Yerba Buena Gardens.
Nā Lei Hulu I Ka Wēkiu
The troupe will premiere dances set to the "Kumulipo" chant at SOMArts Cultural Center May 21.
The genial Makuakāne will host the family-friendly Yerba Buena show in "talk-story" style, explaining the origins and cultural references behind the dances, which in 2009 included everything from a jaunty fireman's hula (with real S.F. firefighters), an audience-participation seated hula kahiko (traditional) and a disco-inspired tribute to Honolulu's most famous gay bar, Hula's Bar and Lei Stand. Arrive early to get a good viewing spot on the lawn (off Mission Street between Third and Fourth streets); bringing a blanket or cushion to sit on, as well as a hat for shade and something to drink, is advised, if the weather is anything like last year's sunny blaze.
Na Lei Hulu will include favorite performances from the past 25 years along with the premiere of "Kumulipo" at 7 p.m. May 21 at SOMArts Cultural Center. The source chant, believed to have been composed in 1700, is more than 2,000 lines long and includes a royal geneaology as well as a Hawaiian origin of life, which as with Darwin begins with the creatures of the sea.
Tickets to "Kumulipo," part of the API Cultural Center's 13th annual United States of Asia America Festival, are $15-$20.
And here are other highlights of this weekend's Hawaiiana in the Bay Area:
Avalon's Aloha Friday: Island Sol's popular Jawaiian-themed concert series at Santa Clara's Avalon nightclub continue tonight, May 7, with 'Ekolu (mostly from Maui) and Vintage Music Collective (East Palo Alto). The 21-plus show, with starts at 9 p.m.; admission is $30.
Lei Day rolled into Mother's Day: The annual Hawaiian May Day Festival takes place this weekend, May 8-9, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Alameda County Fairgrounds in Pleasanton. Arts and crafts, "local" food and other Hawai'i-themed items will be for sale, with daylong Hawaiian music and dance in the amphitheater (including Steven Espaniola at 5 p.m. Saturday). Admission is $10 for ages 6 and over ($5 for mothers on Sunday, with this downloadable coupon; younger free.)
Posted By: Jeanne Cooper (
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, Twitter) | May 07 2010 at 08:30 AM
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Written by Administrator
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Sunday, 09 May 2010 20:02 |
The Next Generation: Asian-American Stand-Up Comics Panel Discussion
Thu., May 13, 6:00pm 
Everyone's a Comedian
By Tara Jepsen
The quality of American comedy is complex, interesting, and intelligent, with a swell dose of stupid. And of course, comedy is a well-documented cultural element with an important history, reflecting the social fabric in many ways, as via the mirror held up by The Aristocrats. Although the accomplishments of Anglo- and African-American comedians take up most of our comedy headspace, The Next Generation: Asian-American Stand-Up Comics Panel Discussion explores the realm of Asian-American comedy. How has the superstardom of comedians like Aziz Ansari, Mindy Kaling, and Margaret Cho affected the way Asian-Americans are perceived, both as a culture and as comedians? How do these comedians play with the public’s and their own notions of ethnicity? Tina Kim, Samson Koletkar, Edwin Li, and Darby Li Po Price bandy about some theories, moderated by KQED’s Oanh Ha. While you could reasonably look forward to a day when these conversations are unnecessary, it’s fascinating to consider how we’re evolving as a society — notions about race and cultural inheritance expanded with Barack Obama’s election (jokes to be made there), and contracted with the passage of Arizona’s SB 1070 (too soon).
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Peace About Life: Dancing with Parkinson's |
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Written by Administrator
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Friday, 07 May 2010 09:46 |
Peace About Life: Dancing with Parkinson's
When: May 7-8, 8 p.m.
Price: $15-$20
Some dances seem to reach straight into the heart. Claudine Naganuma's peace about life; Dancing with Parkinson's, at Laney College Theatre (900 Fallon St., Oakland) on Friday and Saturday, May 7 and 8, is one such dance. Performers in varying stages of Parkinson's partner with young modern dancers from Naganuma's company, dNaga, in this tender exploration of what Parkinson's has meant to the adults -- which they express in stirring voiceovers that accompany Slow Six's smooth electronic score. It's moving, to be sure, but not simply because the performers have Parkinson's: Their willingness to move forward with life amid often overwhelming challenges reminds us all, in the words of one dancer, to "appreciate, appreciate, appreciate everything you can do now." The show evolved out of Naganuma's movement class for EastBay adults with Parkinson's, the West Coast branch of the Mark Morris Dance Group's Dance for PD program. 8 p.m., $15-$20. 510-464-3543 or DanceNaganuma.com
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Last Updated on Friday, 07 May 2010 09:51 |
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