2nd National Asian American Theater Featival to Launch 10/13

The 2nd NATIONAL ASIAN AMERICAN THEATER FESTIVAL will take place in New York City October 13 to 18, with productions presented at Theater for the New City. More than 100 Asian-American theatre artists from across the U.S. - playwrights, directors, actors, designers - will converge in New York for a week of performances ranging from Chekhov to a musical about Imelda Marcos to new plays that demonstrate the emerging voices of a young generation of Asian-American writers.

Highlights include:

--Shishir Kurup's play SHARIF DON'T LIKE IT about the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's dubious treatment of people of Asian and Middle Eastern descent post-9/11.

--BAHU-BETI-BIWI (Daughter-in-law, Daughter, Wife), Sheetal Gandhi's contemporary dance-theater piece that blends traditional North Indian music with movement to depict the generational shift of contemporary Indian and Indian-American women in the 21st century.

--20th CENTURY PERFORMANCE IN THE 21st CENTURY: THE FUTURE OF ASIAN AMERICAN THEATRE, a series of public forums that examine Asian American theatre past and present through a variety of performance art and interactive panels, presented by Asian Pacific Americans C*ntemporary Unilateral Neo-Theatre (APAC*NT), a collective comprised of playwrights and performers including Kristina Wong, AlIce Tuan, Katie Pearl and Hatnim Lee.

--LABFEST III, readings of new plays by Asian-American writers presented by the Obie Award-winning Ma Yi Theater's Writers Lab.

--DON'T YOU FEEL IT, TOO? a new work about freeing one's inner spirit by dancing your inner life in public spaces by Minneapolis-based theatre artist Marcus Young.

--THE SEAGULL, the Obie Award-winning National Asian American Theatre Company's uncommon revival - with an all Asian-American cast - of Anton Chekhov's play.

--IMELDA, a new musical about Imelda Marcos, presented by the Obie Award-winning Pan Asian Repertory Theatre. (Please note: this NAATF production is being presented at Julia Miles Theater, 424 W. 55 St. www.panasianrep.org)

Tickets to National Asian American Theatre Festival productions range in price from $5 to $55. The performance schedule varies from Oct. 13 to 18. For performance and ticket information visit www.naatf.org or call 646 522 0931.