Pang Spa, by David Johann Kim (Burbank, CA)

On the outskirts of Los Angeles’ Koreatown, Daniel Pang has been caring for his dementia addled parents, Tae and Avy, for 3 years since his older brother David committed suicide. This formerly prosperous grocery family now lives in their K-town tenement. Their neighbors, Mrs. Weiss, a Japanese American “bubbe” and Yong, a minimum wage warrior and Tai Chi aficionado make up the rest of this idiosyncratic enclave, when a flinty young army vet (Dora) arrives on a mission. Dora deftly inserts herself into the Pang’s dementia driven world until her true identity tumbles out in a long drunken night. Paradigms continue to shift as Dora experiences her first “Spa Day” in the Pang’s backyard that’s transformed into an improvised Korean spa, complete with “waterfall” and “dipping pool”. PANG SPA is a place where despite dementia, depression, suicides and the violation & violence of The ’92 LA Riots, healing can, at least, begin. Intended for an adult audience, may contain adult language and situations.