Dan Kwong
Encyclopedia
Dan Kwong is an American
performance art
ist, writer, teacher and visual artist. He has been presenting his solo performances
since 1989, often drawing upon his own life experiences to explore personal, historical and social issues. He is of mixed Asian American
heritage (Chinese American
/Japanese American
). His works intertwine storytelling, multimedia, dynamic physical movement, poetry, martial arts and music. Kwong is a graduate of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. He is an Artist with the performing arts organization, Great Leap, and a Resident Artist at the 18th Street Arts Center in Santa Monica, California
.
These works explore subjects such as cultural confusion and discovery in a mixed heritage family; allergic reactions to “Model Minority
Syndrome”; dysfunctional family “Asian American
-style”; Asian male identity; Japanese American internment
during WWII; the impact of HIV
/AIDS
on Asian American
s. Kwong has performed in venues across the United States and in England, Hong Kong, Thailand, Indonesia, Cambodia, Mexico, Canada, China and Korea.
, was developed with Cedar Grove OnStage
, and received its world premiere at East West Players
in Los Angeles, in September 2008, as part of the EWP mainstage season.
, again featuring music by Nobuko Miyamoto and produced by Great Leap as part of their environmental music video series.
, and various anthologies including On A Bed of Rice - A Feast of Asian American Erotica; Yellow Light - The Flowering of Asian American Art, and Living in America - A Pop Culture Reader. His visual artwork is included in Let’s Get It On - The Politics of Black Performance published by the Institute of Contemporary Arts
in London.
His book, "FROM INNER WORLDS TO OUTER SPACE - The Multimedia Performances of Dan Kwong", a collection of his performance texts from 1989 to 2000, was published by University of Michigan Press
in 2004.
and visual art festival, presented at Highways Performance Space in Santa Monica, California
and served as its curator through the 90s. Beginning in 1994, his ground-breaking performance workshops ("Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Asian Men...") ultimately led to the spawning of similar groups in New York, New Haven, Philadelphia and beyond, playing a key role in the development of the national Asian American performance community. Since 2005 he has served as Project Director of "Collaboratory", Great Leap's mentorship program designed to develop the next generation of artist-leaders in Los Angeles.
, the Rockefeller Foundation
, Asian Cultural Council
, Art Matters Inc., Brody Arts Fund, Franklin Furnace, N.Y., Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department
, California Community Foundation
, Durfee Foundation, and has been nominated twice for the Alpert Award in the Arts. In 2004 he was honored for "Outstanding Contributions to Japanese American Culture" by the Japanese American Historical Society, as well as with "Outstanding Mid-Career Artist" awards from the C.C.F. and LA Cultural Affairs Dept.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
performance art
Performance art
In art, performance art is a performance presented to an audience, traditionally interdisciplinary. Performance may be either scripted or unscripted, random or carefully orchestrated; spontaneous or otherwise carefully planned with or without audience participation. The performance can be live or...
ist, writer, teacher and visual artist. He has been presenting his solo performances
One man show
The term one-man show often referred to comedian, who would stand on stage and entertain an audience. With the advent of feminism, words and phrases such as one-woman show and comedienne have entered the modern-day lexicon....
since 1989, often drawing upon his own life experiences to explore personal, historical and social issues. He is of mixed Asian American
Asian American
Asian Americans are Americans of Asian descent. The U.S. Census Bureau definition of Asians as "Asian” refers to a person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent, including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan,...
heritage (Chinese American
Chinese American
Chinese Americans represent Americans of Chinese descent. Chinese Americans constitute one group of overseas Chinese and also a subgroup of East Asian Americans, which is further a subgroup of Asian Americans...
/Japanese American
Japanese American
are American people of Japanese heritage. Japanese Americans have historically been among the three largest Asian American communities, but in recent decades have become the sixth largest group at roughly 1,204,205, including those of mixed-race or mixed-ethnicity...
). His works intertwine storytelling, multimedia, dynamic physical movement, poetry, martial arts and music. Kwong is a graduate of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. He is an Artist with the performing arts organization, Great Leap, and a Resident Artist at the 18th Street Arts Center in Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica is a beachfront city in western Los Angeles County, California, US. Situated on Santa Monica Bay, it is surrounded on three sides by the city of Los Angeles — Pacific Palisades on the northwest, Brentwood on the north, West Los Angeles on the northeast, Mar Vista on the east, and...
.
Major Solo Performances
- Secrets of the Samurai Centerfielder
- Tales From the Fractured Tao
- Monkhood in 3 Easy Lessons
- Correspondence of a Dangerous Enemy Alien
- The Dodo Vaccine
- The Night the Moon Landed on 39th Street
- It's Great 2B American
These works explore subjects such as cultural confusion and discovery in a mixed heritage family; allergic reactions to “Model Minority
Model minority
Model minority refers to a minority ethnic, racial, or religious group whose members achieve a higher degree of success than the population average. It is most commonly used to label one ethnic minority higher achieving than another ethnic minority...
Syndrome”; dysfunctional family “Asian American
Asian American
Asian Americans are Americans of Asian descent. The U.S. Census Bureau definition of Asians as "Asian” refers to a person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent, including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan,...
-style”; Asian male identity; Japanese American internment
Japanese American internment
Japanese-American internment was the relocation and internment by the United States government in 1942 of approximately 110,000 Japanese Americans and Japanese who lived along the Pacific coast of the United States to camps called "War Relocation Camps," in the wake of Imperial Japan's attack on...
during WWII; the impact of HIV
HIV
Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
/AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
on Asian American
Asian American
Asian Americans are Americans of Asian descent. The U.S. Census Bureau definition of Asians as "Asian” refers to a person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent, including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan,...
s. Kwong has performed in venues across the United States and in England, Hong Kong, Thailand, Indonesia, Cambodia, Mexico, Canada, China and Korea.
Major Collaborative Performances
- Samurai Centerfielder Meets The Mad Kabuki Woman (with Denise Uyehara) 1997
- The Art of Rice (international ensemble) 2003
- Sleeping With Strangers (with Chinese opera artist Peng Jingquan. Beijing, China) 2006
- Once We Wanted (with dancer/choreographer Iu-Hui Chua) 2011
Plays
Kwong's first play, Be Like WaterBe Like Water
Be Like Water is a play written by Dan Kwong, originally produced at East West Players, in association with Cedar Grove OnStage. The play received its world premiere in Los Angeles on September 17, 2008, directed by Chris Tashima, at East West Players' David Henry Hwang Theater at the Union...
, was developed with Cedar Grove OnStage
Cedar Grove OnStage
Cedar Grove OnStage is an Asian Pacific American theatre arts organization established in 2006, based in Los Angeles, co-founded by playwright Tim Toyama and actor/director Chris Tashima who serves as Artistic Director...
, and received its world premiere at East West Players
East West Players
East West Players is an Asian American theatre organization in Los Angeles, founded in 1965. As one of the nation's first Asian American theatre organizations, East West Players today continues to produce works and educational programs that give voice to the Asian Pacific American...
in Los Angeles, in September 2008, as part of the EWP mainstage season.
Video
In 2010 Kwong directed and edited the award-winning environmental music video B.Y.O. CHOPSTIX, featuring music by Nobuko Miyamoto, for Great Leap. In spring of 2011 he will direct & edit MOTTAINAIMOTTAINAI
is a Japanese term meaning "a sense of regret concerning waste when the intrinsic value of an object or resource is not properly utilized." The expression "Mottainai!" can be uttered alone as an exclamation when something useful, such as food or time, is wasted, meaning roughly "Oh, what a waste!"...
, again featuring music by Nobuko Miyamoto and produced by Great Leap as part of their environmental music video series.
Published works
Kwong's essays and performances have been published in The Journal of American Drama and Theatre, Getting Your Solo Act Together, High Performance MagazineHigh Performance Magazine
High Performance was a quarterly arts magazine founded in 1978 and published until 1997. Its editorial mission was to provide support and a critical context for new, innovative and unrecognized work in the arts....
, and various anthologies including On A Bed of Rice - A Feast of Asian American Erotica; Yellow Light - The Flowering of Asian American Art, and Living in America - A Pop Culture Reader. His visual artwork is included in Let’s Get It On - The Politics of Black Performance published by the Institute of Contemporary Arts
Institute of Contemporary Arts
The Institute of Contemporary Arts is an artistic and cultural centre on The Mall in London, just off Trafalgar Square. It is located within Nash House, part of Carlton House Terrace, near the Duke of York Steps and Admiralty Arch...
in London.
His book, "FROM INNER WORLDS TO OUTER SPACE - The Multimedia Performances of Dan Kwong", a collection of his performance texts from 1989 to 2000, was published by University of Michigan Press
University of Michigan Press
The University of Michigan Press is part of the University of Michigan Library and serves as a primary publishing unit of the University of Michigan, with special responsibility for the creation and promotion of scholarly, educational, and regional books and other materials in digital and print...
in 2004.
Teaching / Curating
As a teacher Kwong has led numerous workshops in autobiographical writing and performing throughout the U.S. and in Hong Kong, Indonesia, Thailand, Canada and Japan. In 1991 he founded “Treasure In The House,” L.A.’s first Asian Pacific American performanceAsian American theatre
Asian American theater is theater written, directed or acted by Asian Americans.- Background :Asian American theater emerged in the 1960s and the 1970s with the foundation of four theatre companies: East West Players in Los Angeles, Asian American Theatre Workshop in San Francisco, Theatrical...
and visual art festival, presented at Highways Performance Space in Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica is a beachfront city in western Los Angeles County, California, US. Situated on Santa Monica Bay, it is surrounded on three sides by the city of Los Angeles — Pacific Palisades on the northwest, Brentwood on the north, West Los Angeles on the northeast, Mar Vista on the east, and...
and served as its curator through the 90s. Beginning in 1994, his ground-breaking performance workshops ("Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Asian Men...") ultimately led to the spawning of similar groups in New York, New Haven, Philadelphia and beyond, playing a key role in the development of the national Asian American performance community. Since 2005 he has served as Project Director of "Collaboratory", Great Leap's mentorship program designed to develop the next generation of artist-leaders in Los Angeles.
Fellowships / Awards
Kwong is recipient of numerous fellowships, including awards from the National Endowment for the ArtsNational Endowment for the Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created by an act of the U.S. Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government. Its current...
, the Rockefeller Foundation
Rockefeller Foundation
The Rockefeller Foundation is a prominent philanthropic organization and private foundation based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The preeminent institution established by the six-generation Rockefeller family, it was founded by John D. Rockefeller , along with his son John D. Rockefeller, Jr...
, Asian Cultural Council
Asian Cultural Council
The Asian Cultural Council is an American non-profit organization dedicated to providing support to Asian-American cultural exchange in the areas of visual and performing arts.- History :...
, Art Matters Inc., Brody Arts Fund, Franklin Furnace, N.Y., Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department
City of Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department
The City of Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department is the official Los Angeles, California, USA arts council.The agency approves the design of structures built on or over City property and accepts works of art to be acquired by the City...
, California Community Foundation
California Community Foundation
The California Community Foundation is a leading philanthropic organization in the United States, managing approximately $1 billion in assets and granting nearly $100 million to nonprofit organizations in Los Angeles County and causes around the world....
, Durfee Foundation, and has been nominated twice for the Alpert Award in the Arts. In 2004 he was honored for "Outstanding Contributions to Japanese American Culture" by the Japanese American Historical Society, as well as with "Outstanding Mid-Career Artist" awards from the C.C.F. and LA Cultural Affairs Dept.