NAATCO to Present NY Premiere of Blind Mouth Singing

The National Asian American Theatre Company (NAATCO), best known for its revivals of classics and new works starring all Asian-American casts including its recently acclaimed production of The House of Bernarda Alba, presents the New York premiere of Jorge Ignacio Cortinas' play Blind Mouth Singing, with previews starting September 14, prior to an official opening September 19 at Baruch Performing Arts Center (55 Lexington Avenue) in Manhattan. Ruben Polendo (Artistic Director of Theater Mitu) directs.

Jorge Ignacio Cortinas' play "is about an overly strict matriarch; her young son Reiderico who sneaks out of the house to visit his best friend who lives at the bottom of a well; her sister who treats syphilis patients in the open-air market; and her older son who bullies everything within his reach. Secret desires and confrontations surface when Reiderico and his friend switch places," state press notes.

Blind Mouth Singing features Alexis Camins (The Dispute), Mia Katigbak (Dogeaters at The Public Theater and NYTW's Light Raise the Roof), Sue Jean Kim (BFE at Playwrights Horizons), Orville Mendoza (Drama Desk-nominee for Adrift in Macao and most recently in the Shakespeare in the Park production of Romeo and Juliet), and Jon Norman Schneider (Durango at The Public Theater). 

Directed by Ruben Polendo, the artistic director of Theater Mitu and known for his "Total Theater" aesthetic, combining live music, foley effects, visual design and athletic staging, the production has set design by Zachary Zirlin, lighting design by Kate Ashton, costume design by Candida K. Nichols, and sound design by Jane Shaw.

The play had its world premiere at Teatro Visto in Chicago in February 2006.

"Blind Mouth Singing is the inaugural production of NAATCO's expanded mission to present new plays not specifically by, for, or about the Asian American experience, but realized with an all Asian-American cast," notes NAATCO co-founder and actress Mia Katigbak. 

"NAATCO after all was founded to combat the still prevalent stereotypic representations of Asians and Asian Americans in the performing arts," continues Ms. Katigbak. "By producing plays such as Blind Mouth Singing, we give Asian American actors the opportunity to portray roles not usually made available to them, and challenge audiences to examine their perception and expectations of other cultures. We continue our exploration of scripts that reflect the rigor and imagination we associate with the classics, realized in bold productions that are thoroughly contemporary."

Playwright Jorge Ignacio Cortinas' many awards include fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the New York Foundation for the Arts; the Helen Merrill Award; "playwright of the year" in El Nuevo Herald's 1999 year-end list; a Writers Community Residency from the YMCA National Writer's Voice; and the Robert Chesley Award, among others. His plays include Maleta Mulata, Sleepwalkers and Bird in the Hand. He has been commissioned by the Mark Taper Forum, South Coast Repertory, and Hartford Stage. He is both a Usual Suspect and Creative Fellow at New York Theatre Workshop, and is also a member of New Dramatists and the Playwrights Coalition at MCC.

Performances run September 14-October 6 at Baruch Performing Arts Center (55 Lexington Avenue; entrance on 25th Street between Lexington and 3rd Avenues); Mondays through Fridays at 7:00pm; Saturdays at 3:00pm and 7:00pm. Tickets are $20, and can be reserved by calling Ticket Central at 212-279-4200 or online at www.TicketCentral.com.  Visit www.naatco.org for more on NAATCO.