The Wong Street Journal
WHO
Kristina Wong
WHEN
10/01/2016 – 10/09/2016
WHERE
Oregon Shakespeare Festival
Ashland
Written and performed by Kristina Wong
Directed by Emily Mendelsohn
Original music produced by Nerio Badman (Gulu, Uganda)
Lighting Design by Caitlin Rucker
Sound Design by Jessica Paz
Part plushy TED lecture, part amateur hip-hop extravaganza, and part travelogue, The Wong Street Journal breaks down the complexities of global poverty, privilege and economic theory using uneasy-to-read charts, live hashtag wars, and riveting slideshows from post-conflict Northern Uganda. In this new solo theater work, Kristina Wong tells the story of how she – a not-so-white savior – became a hip hop star in Northern Uganda. Wong combines self-skewering personal narrative with a hilarious interrogation of America’s impact on the rest of the world, set against a hand-sewn, felt background of the New York Stock Exchange.
About Kristina Wong
Kristina Wong is a performance artist, comedian and writer who has created five solo shows and one ensemble play that have toured throughout the United States and UK. Her most notable touring show, Wong Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, examined the high rates of depression and suicide among Asian American women. The show has toured to over 40 venues and is now a feature film distributed by Cinema Libre Studios. Wong has been a commentator for American Public Media’s Marketplace, PBS, Jezebel, xoJane, Playgirl Magazine, Huffington Post and a guest on Comedy Central’s The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore, FXX’s Totally Biased with W. Kamau Bell, Al Jazeera’s The Stream, and AM Tonight on Fusion TV. She has received grants for her work from Creative Capital, The Map Fund, Center for Cultural Innovation, the Durfee Foundation, National Performance Network, Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, and the MacDowell Colony. Wong has twice given the commencement speech at UCLA, her alma mater, and in fall 2015 she was a guest professor in the MFA Creative Writing Program at CalArts.