A free performance of “Tales of Clamor” will be presented on Sunday, April 30, at 5 p.m. at the Bing Theatre on the University of Southern California campus.
Mashing up rarely seen video footage from the 1981 hearings that led to redress for Japanese Americans and their families who were incarcerated during World War II, theatrical scenes set in the present and past, and aerial apparatuses, “Tales of Clamor” is a hybrid theatre-circus piece that examines the sound of silence, the echoes of a little-known yet major moment of American history, and its universal reverberations to this day.
Exploring how difficult it was for many Japanese Americans to come to terms with having their property, freedom, and often families taken from them on the basis of ancestry, the surprising theatrical case study created by PULLproject Ensemble members traci kato-kiriyama, Kennedy Kabasares, and Howard Ho provides rare insight and powerful encouragement for all to speak out and demand justice.
Howard Ho is a writer, composer, YouTuber, and Ovation-nominated sound designer. His YouTube Channel “Howard Ho Music” is known for the series “How Hamilton Works,” which has garnered millions of views and been recognized by Lin-Manuel Miranda. Ho has scored many short films, and has sound-designed shows for Center Theatre Group, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, East West Players, Playwrights’ Arena, Native Voices, The 18 Mighty Mountain Warriors, PULLproject Ensemble, and Company of Angels.
Kennedy Kabasares is a performer, aerial artist, and circus choreographer for PULLproject Ensemble who attended high school and studied acting and circus arts at the San Francisco School of the Arts. He has worked with East West Players, Singapore Rep, Center Theatre Group, The 18 Mighty Mountain Warriors, performance trio zero3, Bindlestiff Studio, Playwrights’ Arena, Navarasa Dance Theater, and Kinetic Theory Circus Arts.
traci kato-kiriyama (they and she) is an award-winning multidisciplinary artist, community organizer, educator, cultural producer, and author of “Navigating With(out) Instruments.” She is also the director and co-founder of the Tuesday Night Project in Little Tokyo, a core organizer of the National Nikkei Reparations Coalition and Nikkei Progressives/NCRR Reparations Committee, a core artist of Vigilant Love, and founding member of the Okaeri Nikkei LGBTQ+ Network.
“Tales of Clamor” was made possible with funding by the New England Foundation for the Arts’ National Theater Project, with lead funding from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and additional support from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation.
Presented by USC Visions and Voices. Organized by Velina Hasu Houston (Dramatic Arts) and Susan H. Kamei (History). Partners on this project include the USC Shinso Ito Center for Japanese Religions & Culture, the USC Dornsife Center for the Political Future, the Dornsife Department of History, the USC School of Religion, the USC School of Dramatic Arts, the Iovine Young Academy, and KCRW.
To RSVP and to see a teaser, go to: https://visionsandvoices.usc.edu/eventdetails/?event_id=40253667378811&s_type=&s_genre=
For directions and campus map, go to: https://visit.usc.edu/maps-directions/