I sincerely hope you haven’t grown tired of my stories about the Broadway-bound musical “Allegiance.” We have just begun our third week of rehearsal, and we are all mentally, emotionally and physically exhausted. All that said, our hearts are full, knowing only too well the importance of telling this rarely told chapter of American history.
Yes Sir, I am back in New York, my absolute most favorite city in the world. Despite the extreme winter weather that’s been visiting the place, its beauty still remains. Perhaps it’s more than just the novelty of watching the falling snow, but of being a part of the city’s heartbeat and its song. [...]
Sitting in my apartment with CNN giving us updates on Superstorm “Sandy,” I’m still in a haze over how incredible this “Allegiance” experience has been. Our company wasn’t just cast and crew, but a family, and I shall take all those memories wherever I go. A cast doesn’t always get along so nicely that a [...]
It’s hard to believe that nearly three months have passed since our arrival in San Diego and the start of the “Allegiance” rehearsal. It was the middle of summer, with the sun shining every single day in beautiful Balboa Park. We spent the daylight hours indoors, working on what has become quite the show, which [...]
George Takei, our fearless “Allegiance” lead actor, has made it his legacy project to take our musical to Broadway. In interviews, he has been quoted as “very determined” to make that happen. I don’t doubt his persistence one bit—after all, he was the inspiration for the creation of the show.
SAN DIEGO, California—The stage musical “Allegiance” is now officially open and is running until Oct. 21 which, by Philippine standards, is quite long. Each time I get onstage, I hear Menchu Lauchengco-Yulo’s voice inside my head saying, “Haaay, just when you’re ready to open, the run is over!” Well, Menchu, that isn’t the [...]
SAN DIEGO, California— Well, here we are … almost. It’s Sunday and the entire cast (of “Allegiance”) was called in for a clean-up rehearsal at the theater before the 7 p.m. performance. Our days have been spent this way for the last week and a half: rehearsals during the day, a show at night. [...]
SAN DIEGO, California—The weekend is over, and our precious day off has finally arrived. Suffice it to say that the cast, crew, creative and production teams of the musical play “Allegiance” are exhausted, able to exist with the help of many cups of freshly brewed strong coffee. On Sept. 7, “Allegiance” premiered with a [...]
On this sunny Labor Day, I am slumped on the couch, legs tired and brain turned to mush. The first week of technical rehearsals for “Allegiance” are over, and this new American musical premieres Friday at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego, California. Technical rehearsals have been referred to as “tech hell.” They [...]
It’s our first day of technical rehearsals tomorrow afternoon for “Allegiance”—and I can’t wait to get started! It’s the first time that we’ll come face to face with the real sets and put on our 1940s costumes, complete with vintage pieces of clothing truly dating back that far.
We are inching closer to the premiere of “Allegiance.” The collaborative process continues, with actors, authors and staff pushing to put this piece together. The places we’re led to, leading to, and finding ourselves in are all interesting, unnerving, and at times deathly fearsome and nerve-wracking. But this is also what’s invigorating and inspiring [...]
We have completed our second week of rehearsals for the play “Allegiance”—it’s about 70 pages of text and music that we’ve gone through, not to mention a fair amount of choreography. And yes, as I’ve said before, everything, every single thing, is in flux.
