CALLIGRAPHY Plays Silk Road Theater Project 8/25-28

Silk Road Theater Project presents Velina Hasu Houston's CALLIGRAPHY- An Intergenerational, Cross-Cultural, Transnational Sojourn into Aging and Alzheimer's DiseaseThree Staged Readings

Thursday, August 25 at 7:30pm
Saturday, August 27 at 8:00pm
Sunday, August 28 at 2:00pm

Featuring: Cheryl Hamada, Christine Lin, Anthony Peeples, Jennifer Shin, and Lisa Tejero

With the humor that survival demands, two cousins-one in Los Angeles and one in Tokyo-struggle to navigate change as they confront their mothers' aging and the impact it has on their lives.

From Playwright Velina Hasu Houston: "I was inspired to write the play because of changes that I began to observe in the lives of friends and colleagues, namely how the aging of their parents affected their own lives, how it provoked them into thinking about who they are and what they want to do with their lives. I began to talk to individuals in the Los Angeles area who were going through these kinds of experiences and I augmented this work with interviews conducted in Japan. In Japan, I visited senior centers and also interviewed caregivers. In addition, I researched the topics of caregiving and aging in a specific cultural context. What interested me the most was how the lives of Asian women changes as they confront their mothers' aging. The cultural issues inherent in Asian families seemed to complicate the choices more."

Each staged reading will be followed by a Q & A session with playwright Velina Hasu Houston and director Lisa Portes, moderated by SRTP Artistic Director Jamil Khoury.

Where: Silk Road Theatre Project at The Historic Chicago Temple Building, 77 W. Washington St., Pierce Hall, Chicago

When: Thursday, August 25 at 7:30pm, Saturday, August 27 at 8:00pm and Sunday, August 28 at 2:00pm

Cost: Free and open to the public

Reservations strongly recommended. Call 312-857-1234 ext. 201 or email boxoffice@srtp.org.