Photos: First Look at THE GREAT LEAP at Asolo Repertory Theatre

Asolo Repertory Theatre presents the third and final show of its 2022 winter repertory season - Lauren Yee's THE GREAT LEAP. Vanessa Stalling returns to direct the comedic drama, which was days away from its first performance when it was cancelled because of the pandemic in March of 2020. THE GREAT LEAP begins previews on Feb. 9, opens on Feb. 11 and runs through April 2, in the Mertz Theatre, located in the FSU Center for the Performing Arts.

The play's title refers to both the athleticism of basketball and the Communist Party of China's Great Leap Forward campaign in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Born in the United States but inextricably tied to far off and forbidden China, Manford Lum finds his home on the basketball courts of San Francisco's Chinatown. As fast-talking as he is athletically skilled, Lum wisecracks and dazzles his way onto a college team headed for a "friendly" exhibition game in Beijing. As the story bounces between 1989 and 1971, past relationships collide with present day revelations right up to the final buzzer. Smart, feisty and hilarious, THE GREAT LEAP is about family, history and learning that every game is a second chance.

THE GREAT LEAP runs Feb. 9 - April 2, 2022. Previews are Feb. 9 - 10. Visit asolorep.org for a full performance schedule. Orchestra and Mezzanine seats start at $52 and Balcony seats start at $29. Tickets are available now in person at Asolo Rep's Box Office at 5555 N. Tamiami Trail, by phone at 941.351.8000 or 800.361.8388, or online at asolorep.org.

Photo Credit: Cliff Roles