M. Butterfly - Affirmative (Re)Action Episode 32

Welcome back to Affirmative (Re)Action! Join us now for a new format of your favorite show!

we're baaaacckk. 

This one's for the fans and the hosts. Tune in to hear Ryan's most genuine laugh, a second shout out to communism, and Annika's editing notes get incorporated for the first time.  Podcast cover was made by Kyra Tantao @klasticdayz in Brooklyn, N Venmo’s: @jacob-santos-22 ; @rda956 ; @annika-pk

Disgraced is a 2012 play by novelist and screenwriter Ayad Akhtar. It premiered in Chicago and has had Off-Broadway and Off West End engagements. The play, which won the 2013 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. The play is centered on sociopolitical themes such as Islamophobia and the self-identity of Muslim-American citizens. It focuses on a dinner party between four people with very different backgrounds. As discussion turns to politics and religion, the mood quickly becomes heated. Described as a "combustible powder keg of identity politics, the play depicts racial and ethnic prejudices that "secretly persist in even the most progressive cultural circles. It is also said to depict the challenge for upwardly mobile Muslim Americans in the post-9/11 America. Venmo’s: @jacob-santos-22 ; @rda956 ; @annika-pk

M. Butterfly is a play by David Henry Hwang. The story, while entwined with that of the opera Madama Butterfly, is based most directly on the relationship between French diplomat Bernard Boursicot and Shi Pei Pu, a Peking opera singer. Venmo’s: @jacob-santos-22 ; @rda956 ; @annika-pk

A Doll's House, Part 2 is a 2017 play written by Lucas Hnath. The play premiered at the South Coast Repertory, in April 2017, before transferring to Broadway at the John Golden Theatre. The play "picks up after Henrik Ibsen's 1879 play A Doll's House concludes" Venmo’s: @jacob-santos-22 ; @rda956 ; @annika-pk

The story is set in the mid 1950s in the Upper West Side of New York City, then a multiracial, blue-collar neighborhood. The musical explores the rivalry between the Jets and the Sharks, two teenage street gangs of different ethnic backgrounds. The members of the Sharks, from Puerto Rico, are taunted by the Jets, a white gang. The young protagonist, Tony, a former member of the Jets and best friend of the gang's leader, Riff, falls in love with Maria, the sister of Bernardo, the leader of the Sharks. The dark theme, sophisticated music, extended dance scenes, and focus on social problems marked a turning point in musical theatre. Venmo’s: @jacob-santos-22 ; @rda956 ; @annika-pk

The Frasier family is gearing up for Grandma’s birthday, and Beverly needs this dinner to be perfect. But the silverware’s wrong, the radio’s on the fritz, Jasmine is drinking, Dayton isn’t helping, Keisha’s a teenager, and Tyrone might not show up at all! Venmo’s: @jacob-santos-22 ; @rda956 ; @annika-pk

First staged in 2011, the play is a “satirical” examination of the beliefs and practices of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The musical ultimately endorses the positive power of love and service. Parker and Stone were best known for creating the animated comedy South Park; Lopez had co-written the music for the musical Avenue Q.

Company is a 1970 musical comedy with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by George Furth. The original production was nominated for a record-setting 14 Tony Awards, and won six. Originally titled Threes, its story revolves around Robert (a single man unable to commit fully to a steady relationship, let alone marriage), the five married couples who are his best friends, and his three girlfriends. Unlike most book musicals, which follow a clearly delineated plot, Company is a concept musical composed of short vignettes, presented in no particular chronological order, linked by a celebration for Robert's 35th birthday.