31 Asian American Plays in 31 Days
#3 Tokyo Bound by Amy Hill
Among the first in the wave of solo shows that emerged in the 90s. First performed at the Japan American Cultural Center in 1990 and then at East West Players in 1991 and directed by Anne Etue, TOKYO BOUND is an autobiographical show telling what it is like growing up in the Seattle as the child of a Finnish-American father and a Japanese mother. Two additional solo shows followed, broadening this look at multicultural life in America.
At this point in time, there were only six Asian American theatres in the US (East West, AATC, NWATT, Mu, Pan Asian and Kumu Kahua). A lot of the impulse for the creation of solo shows was the pent up pressure of people wanting to create, but not finding the room in the six stages, so they began to leak out onto other venues (and then came back to the six stages).
First of the solo shows were Winston Tong (Bound Feet, 1978), Lane Nishikawa (I’m on a Mission From Buddha, mid-80s?), Jude Narita (Coming into Passion, 1987), Nobuko Miyamoto (Joanne is My Middle Name, late 80s), and Dan Kwong (Secrets of the Samurai Centerfielder, 1989).
(This is the program when the show hit Seattle and the Northwest Asian American Theatre)
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