Surviving the Nian
Encyclopedia
Surviving the Nian is an American musical written by Melissa Li (music, lyrics and book) and Abe Rybeck (book). The world premier on April 14, 2007 was directed by Patrick Wang, staged at the Boston Center for the Arts
, and produced by The Theater Offensive
.
The story of the play involves Kaylin, a Hong Kong native, returning home for a two-week vacation after having spent five years in the US. She is travelling with her lover, Asha, but her family knows neither that the two are lesbians nor that Asha is African American. The "nian" of the title refers to a mystical beast and also to the Chinese New Year festival in which they will be participating.
Li began writing the musical when she was just 19 and worked on it for four years before its premier. She had met Rybeck when she was 17 and participating in The Theatre Offensive's True Colors Out Youth Theater Troupe. http://www.thephoenix.com/article_ektid37284.aspx The musical was developed through the Plays at Work play development program of The Theater Offensive.
Boston Center for the Arts
The Boston Center for the Arts is a 501 nonprofit visual and performing arts complex in the South End neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. The BCA houses several performance and rehearsal spaces, restaurants, a gallery, the headquarters of the Boston Ballet, the Community Music Center of Boston...
, and produced by The Theater Offensive
The Theater Offensive
The Theater Offensive is a Boston-based theatrical organization dedicated to the production of queer works. The Theater Offensive was founded in 1989 by Abraham Rybeck "to form and present the diverse realities of queer lives in art so bold it breaks through personal isolation and political...
.
The story of the play involves Kaylin, a Hong Kong native, returning home for a two-week vacation after having spent five years in the US. She is travelling with her lover, Asha, but her family knows neither that the two are lesbians nor that Asha is African American. The "nian" of the title refers to a mystical beast and also to the Chinese New Year festival in which they will be participating.
Li began writing the musical when she was just 19 and worked on it for four years before its premier. She had met Rybeck when she was 17 and participating in The Theatre Offensive's True Colors Out Youth Theater Troupe. http://www.thephoenix.com/article_ektid37284.aspx The musical was developed through the Plays at Work play development program of The Theater Offensive.