Veteran actor Francis Jue stars in the Audible Original production of Good Enemy by the remarkable young playwright Yilong Liu. Jue plays Howard, the immigrant Chinese American father of a young adult daughter who has grown tired of trying to get him to share about his past. Why has he always been so secretive? What will it take for him to take his daughter into his confidence?
Unlike most of us, Al Nakatani knows for a fact that he only has months left to live. But rather than feeling sorry for himself as he now is in managed hospice care, Al is using his remaining time to identify and thank the various people that have helped him grow as a person. And to my surprise, that included me.
Back in 2006 Gene Luen Yang created the graphic novel "American Born Chinese," a 3-part story of a Chinese American teenager who's trying to gain acceptance at school while dealing with the mystical occurrences surrounding his life. His book has won many awards and has long been required reading in many schools. In this special episode, Gene and I reunite to hear how his now-seventeen-year-old book is about to launch May 24th on Disney+ starring two Academy Award-winning actors!
Jon Ido Warden didn't get married until he was 38. His wife knew she was marrying an athlete and someone who actively served others in the name of Christ. But after a year, he began to experience health problems which ultimately led to a grim diagnosis of a chronic disease tied to his auto immune system. The doctors forecast that he wouldn't live more than five years, but it's now been 27 years! Much like rust on metal, his disease has continued to slowly eat away at his remaining vigor, keeping him more and more at home. While Jon has yet to experience a divine healing of his body, he is quick to testify that God's Spirit has healed and transformed his soul.
In coming together to create On This Side of the World, Tirol and Shapiro connected deeply to the experiences of countless Filipino Americans who flew over 7,000 miles to start new lives in America. Produced by East West Players in partnership with FilAm ARTS, this wonderful new musical makes its world premiere at the David Henry Hwang Theater in Little Tokyo, Los Angeles, from May 11 - June 4. For show times and tickets please visit www.eastwestplayers.org.