Hope, It’s Good to Hear From You

This entry: hearing — from people, by people, for people.

Great news! I heard from one of my old friends from college; she’s having her first baby next month in Hong Kong. So many of my friends and family are having babies this year!

As the Asian American International Film Festival centerpiece film, Michael Kang’s The Motel is a wonderful coming of age film. A Chinese family runs a seedy New Jersey motel; the 13 year old Earnest Chin, played by Jeffrey Chyau, explores the ways he can express himself and be heard prodded by a Korean American guest with a clouded background. I originally saw the workshop reading at NYU during the 2001 AAIFF; being able to see the final result after its four year evolution was very rewarding. Recommended.

Today, P– and I went to see my co-worker’s appearance in an off-Broadway play called Top Ten. Ten actors are only initially identified by number, but gradually we learn about who these people are, and how they live, calculate and interact with each other, providing political and social commentary in the process. My co-worker was “Nine”, who served the narrator’s role, somewhat like El Gallo in The Fantasticks. The double entendre of the play’s last line is the moral that we need in these uncertain times:

“Hope… it’s good to hear from you.”

Recommended. It plays until the end of the month, so catch it before it ends.