CRITICAL PRAISE:
⭐⭐⭐⭐ […] made the entire experience truly delightful.
- Let's Play Theatrical ReviewsToken Theatre’s Zac Efron marks them as a company to watch.
- Chicago Reader‘Zac Efron’ […] is a very funny debut for Token Theatre.
- Chicago TribuneFilled with laughter and heart, don’t miss ZAC EFRON.
- Splash Magazine[…] this absolutely hilarious, often deeply moving original 90-minute comic/drama provides a profound, empathetic look at what it means to be a minority in America.
- Chicago Theatre Review
I laughed my face half off.
- Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune[…] gorgeously directed by Alan Muraoka.
- Around the Town ChicagoZac Efron […] shows how well you can succeed when the talented and committed come together to fulfill a much needed mission.
- City PleasuresDavid Rhee and Wai Yim have written a very modern story.
- PlaylistHQHopefully this play will be a trendsetter for Chicago theatre, and we will begin to see more stories filled with queer Asian joy, love, and self-acceptance.
- Stage and Cinema
ZAC EFROn
by David Rhee and Wai Yim
at A RED ORCHID THEATRE
1531 N Wells St, Chicago, IL 60610
Previews: June 20-22
Opening: June 23
Run dates: June 27-July 21, 2024
Performance schedule:
Thursdays through Saturdays at 7PM;
Saturdays and Sundays at 3PM
Special performances include:
LGBTQ+ night: Wednesday, June 26 at 7PM
Industry Night: Monday, July 1 at 7PM
Talkbacks: Thursday, June 27 & Monday, July 1 at 7PM
No performances on:
Sunday, June 30
Thursday, July 4
poster designed by Wai Yim
ZAC EFRON glimpses into a world that is rarely seen on the American stage: two gay Asian Americans looking for love and the complexities that come with their adventures. It is a poignant opportunity for radical self-acceptance through YouTube, Tarot readings, and of course,
one of America's favorite sweethearts, Zac Efron.
Hold on to your harness and clutch your pearls, it’s gonna be a wild ride!
Digital Program:
Director: Alan Muraoka
Featuring: Hansel Tan*, Wai Yim*, and Gordon Chow
Special Appearances: Cheryl Hamada* and Wai Ching Ho*
Stage Manager: Lexie Wiley
Assistant Stage Manager: Christian Whitt
Understudy: Dwight Sora
*denotes member of Actors’ Equity Association
Scenic Designer: Wai Yim
Light Designer: Daniel Friedman
Sound Designer: Issac Mandel
Projection Designer: Eme Ospina-López
Prop Designers: Lexie Wiley, Wai Yim
Costume Designers: Mara Blumenfeld (Queen of Swords), Wai Yim
Head Electrician: Hannah Bolstad
Technical Director: Tom Daniel
COMPANY BIOS:
DAVID RHEE (Playwright) appeared on Broadway in the Tony Award-winning THOROUGHLY MODERN MILLIE, worked at numerous theatres across America, including Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theatre, Goodman Theatre, Lookingglass Theatre, and Silk Road Rising, among others, and starred on television’s LAW & ORDER. David earned his MFA in Dramatic Writing at Tisch School of the Arts at New York University, where he worked with Oskar Eustis at the Public Theater, Pulitzer Prize-winner Suzan-Lori Parks, Tony-nominee Lucas Hnath, and Eduardo Machado and Kristoffer Diaz. David is the recipient of the 2021 3Arts/Reva & David Logan Foundation Award, the Tisch School of the Arts Departmental Fellowship, and the Rackham Merit Fellowship Award. His plays have been seen in New York and Chicago at Victory Gardens, Silk Road Rising, and TimeLine Theatre where he was a member of their Playwrights Collective class of 2022. In addition to acting and writing, David is also the Artistic Director of Token Theatre, Chicago (tokentheatre.net) and was a guest lecturer at Northwestern University, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and DePaul University. He is on faculty at Phillips Exeter Academy.
ALAN MURAOKA (Director) is a 2 time Emmy Award winning actor/director/producer. For the past 26 years he has portrayed Alan, the proprietor of Hooper’s Store on the children’s television series Sesame Street. His stage credits include the Broadway productions of Disney’s Aladdin, Pacific Overtures, The King and I, My Favorite Year, Shogun, Mail, and Miss Saigon, where he played the lead role of the “Engineer.”. Muraoka’s numerous network television and film credits include: It Could Happen to You, City On The Hill, Curb Your Enthusiasm, 30 Rock, Brotherhood, The Tonight Show, As the World Turns, Guiding Light, One Life to Live, and Day of Independence. He has performed with the Boston Pops, Pink Martini at the Hollywood Bowl, and the New York Pops at Carnegie Hall. As a director, his 1998 production of Falsettoland for the National Asian American Theatre Company received high praise from The New York Times. He has directed episodes and segments for Sesame Street including co-directing See Us Coming Together, Sesame Street’s first Asian American special, The Power Of We (2021 Daytime Emmy Winner, 2021 NAACP Image Award Nominee: Best Director), and co-directing Family Day (2022 GLAAD Media Award- Outstanding Preschool Program) .Other regional directing credits include Dallas Theatre Center, Legacy Theatre , Utah Shakespeare Festival, Pioneer Theatre ,Olney Theatre, Lyric Theatre of Oklahoma, Casa Mañana, and the MUNY.
Upcoming productions: Kafka’s Metamorphosis: The Musical! (Edinburgh Fringe July/August 2024) & Disney’s Frozen (Olney Theatre October 2024) Visit his website at: www.alanmuraoka.tv and you can follow him on Instagram (@alanathoopers).
GORDON CHOW (Dad, Zac Efron, Doctor, Queen of Swords) Chicago credits include You For Me For You (Sideshow Theatre); American Hwangap (A-Squared/Halcyon Theatre); A Midsummer Night’s Dream (First Folio Theatre); and Fish Men (Goodman Theatre). Gordon has also worked with TimeLine Theatre, Silk Road Rising, Chicago Dramatists and Lifeline Theatre. Television credits include Chicago Med (NBC).
CHRISTIAN WHITT (ASM) is making a return to his theatrical roots and couldn’t be happier to be a part of this incredibly special production. While it’s been over a decade since he himself last performed on stage and graduated with a BFA from Marshall University School of Theatre, he has spent the last six years teaching K-8 Drama at Sandra Cisneros Elementary School here in Chicago. There he created the schools first active theater program and directed students in such spectacles as Disney’s Aladin Jr. and Willie Wonka Kids, as well as navigating the challenges and opportunities that were afforded by virtual learning throughout the pandemic (finger puppets should NEVER be underestimated). He recently took on a new role teaching Third Grade while earning his MAT in Elementary Education but hopes to further expand his involvement in Chicago Theatre.
HANNAH BOLSTAD (Production Electrician) (She/Her) I'm beyond stoked to work with such an incredible team of artists for my first show with Token Theatre! I can't express how much pride, joy, and compassion this team has for their work, and especially this show. I hope you, the audience, can appreciate and love this show as much as we do. Thanks to my friends and advisors for always pushing me to be more. Enjoy the show!
WAI YIM* (Playwright, Wai) Originally from Hong Kong, Wai is an actor, director, choreographer, and playwright. He is also the Managing Director for Token Theatre. Chicago credits: Mary Zimmerman’s The Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci and The White Snake, A Christmas Carol, The King of Hell’s Palace, Postnation, King of the Yees (Goodman Theatre); Chimerica (TimeLine Theatre); and Speaking of Then (Silk Road Rising). Regional credits: Mary Zimmerman’s The Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci (Shakespeare Theatre Company, The Old Globe), The White Snake (McCarter Theatre, The Old Globe, Wuzhen Theatre Festival in China); The Oldest Boy (Unicorn Theatre); Nomad Motel (Horizon Theatre Company). Film credits: North of the 10 and Fatal Influence: Like, Follow, Survive. TV credits: Work in Progress, The Chi, Power Book IV: Force, neXt, Chicago PD, and Patriot. His semi-autobiographical play, The Emperor and The Fool (Chronicles of the House of Yim) was workshopped at BLUEBARN Theatre in Omaha, Nebraska, and won the OEAA (Omaha Entertainment and Arts Awards) for Outstanding Premiere of a New Script. Wai also won the OEAA Outstanding Director for The Chinese Lady at BLUEBARN. Many thanks to Christian, LOML.
To Mama Yim: 我愛你 (I love you)!
Social medias: @whyyim
Web: www.whyyim.com
HANSEL TAN* (David) is an actor and educator hailing from the sunny isle of Singapore, and has appeared extensively on stage and screen in NYC, regionally, and internationally. Most recently, he completed his MFA in Performance Pedagogy at the University of Pittsburgh working at the intersection of kinesthetic techniques, embodied cognition, and neuroscience. Previous credits - NYC: The Public, Lincoln Center, Tectonic, Prospect, The Flea, The Cell, Pan-Asian Rep, Ma-Yi, Red Fern, NAAP, NAMT, NYMF. Regional: Princeton Symphony, Quantum, Pittsburgh City Theatre, Theatre Raleigh, Geva, Pioneer, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, O’Neill Theatre Center, North Shore, Flat Rock, Harbor Lights. TV/Film: “Madam Secretary” (CBS), “The Blacklist: Redemption” (NBC), “Complete Unknown” (Amazon), “In Game” (Webseries), “After the Frost” & “The Service” (Indie). As an educator, he has taught at Pitt, CMU School of Drama, Summer Performing Arts with Julliard, Yale-NUS, Sightlines Actor's Space, and the Haque Centre of Acting and Creativity. Designated Meisner Teacher (The Meisner Institute), Chekhov instructor-in-training (MICHA), proud member of AEA & SAG-AFTRA. Thank you to Alan, David, Wai, Jim, and my very own Zac Efron, Javi!
ALEXIS “LEXIE” WILEY " (Stage Manager) (they/she) is a professional, Chicago-based stage manager. She works at Roosevelt University CCPA as their Production Stage Manager and Props Designer (Spring Awakening, Pride & Prejudice, Spunk, 42nd Street). More recently she has stage managed at Lookingglass Theatre (Lucy and Charlie's Honeymoon), Theo Ubique (Baked! the Musical), and Capital City Theatre (Shining in Misery). Other credits include her work at Bristol Riverside Theatre (Cabaret, A Few Good Men, Murder for Two, I and You, Skeleton Crew), Pioneer Playhouse (Not Now Darling, Sherlock Holmes and the Ice Palace Murders), and McLeod Summer Playhouse (Into the Woods, Sister Act). All her love to her supportive family and friends who came to see the show - laugh it up!
TOM DANIEL (Technical Director) is thrilled to be working with Token Theatre! Tom has been building sets for over 35 years and enjoys creating environments that other artists perform on. Special thanks to Wai, David, Alan, Lexie, and Josh!
EME OSPINA-LÓPEZ (Projection Designer) (They/Them) is an artivist, videographer, and projection designer born and raised in Bogotá, Colombia. Back in 2015, Eme found themselves with La Compañía Estable, entranced in the making of operas, music, and dance shows. After a journey, and four years of creative and production experience at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, they received their MFA in Media Design and Technology for Live Performance. Now in Chicago, bringing deep passion for new work development, they have collaborated with the Chicago Latino Theatre Alliance, PrideArts, Collaboraction, Refracted Theatre Company, Pegasus Theatre Chicago, and Paramount Theatre. They won best projection design at the 2024 Non-Equity Jeff Awards for Tambo & Bones.
CHERYL HAMADA* (Mrs. Rhee) is a proud member of SAG-AFTRA and AEA. Stage work includes roles at Goodman (A Christmas Carol), TimeLine (Chimerica), Lookingglass (Race), Silk Road Rising, (Yohen, Golden Child), Organic (E/R: Emergency Room), Pegasus (Blood Wedding), A-Squared (American Hwangap), and Rasaka (Washer/Dryer) theaters. She also appeared in Innocent Thoughts, Harmless Intentions at Next Theatre for which she received a Joseph Jefferson Citation. TV/film work includes: About Schmidt, The Dilemma. Nothing Like the Holidays, Chain Reaction, Losing Isaiah, Above the Law, Chicago Med, Boss, Chicago Code, Chicago Story, Early Edition, Unsolved Mysteries, and indie film RELATIVE now available on Amazon Prime. She also hosted the TV series Your Chicago Kitchen (WTTW) and 4 seasons of Extreme Homes on HGTV but is probably most recognized for her on-camera work with the WTTW and national PBS pledge drives.
WAI CHING HO* (Mrs. Yim) was born and raised in Hong Kong and speaks fluent Cantonese and Mandarin. She resides in New York City. A veteran of the stage, her select NY credits include SNOW IN MIDSUMMER (Classic Stage Company); ENDLINGS (New York Theatre Workshop); Henry VI (NAATCO); NO FOREIGNERS BEYOND THIS POINT (MaYi) and JOY LUCK CLUB (Pan Asian Rep). Regionally she had worked extensively with prestigious theatre companies such as the American Repertory Theatre, Steppenwolf, Long Wharf, Denver Centre of Performing Arts, The Goodman Theatre, Palo Alto Theatre Works, and the Lookingglass Theatre. Her film credits include HUSTLERS, in which she played opposite Jennifer Lopez, and SORCERER’S APPRENTICE, starring Nick Cage. In 2003 she won Best Actress award for her performance in ROBOT STORIES in the Si-Fi Film Festivals in Madrid, St Louis, and Puchon, S. Korea. She voiced the character of Grandma in TURNING RED, a 2023 Oscar-nominated animated film. Her television credits include ONLY MURDERS IN THE BUILDING, NEW AMSTERDAM, AWKWAFINA IS NORA FROM QUEENS and all four series of LAW&ORDER. She appeared in numerous episodes as Madame Gao in Marvel’s DAREDEVIL, IRON FIST, and THE DEFENDERS.
DWIGHT SORA (Understudy Wai) is happy to be supporting Token Theatre and their production of ZAC EFRON. Past performances include At the Vanishing Point (The Gift Theatre), Cymbeline (Strawdog Theatre), The Three Musketeers (Lifeline Theatre), and 12 Angry Men (Raven Theatre). He was also a virtual performer in Hummingbird, an interactive VR collaboration between Goodman Theatre and University of Illinois at Chicago, understudied the Chicago premieres of After the Quake (Steppenwolf Theatre) and Durango (Silk Road Theatre), and was a past ensemble member of educational troupes Imagination Theater and Erasing the Distance. Dwight is also a 3rd-degree black belt in the Japanese martial art of aikido, and provided culturally specific fight choreography for Pacific Overtures (Porchlight Music Theatre) and Company (Mercury Theater Chicago), and was an onstage combatant in Romeo et Juliet (Lyric Opera Chicago). He is a native of River Forest and a graduate of University of Chicago, and also works as a Japanese-English translator.
DANIEL FRIEDMAN (Lighting Designer) A Chicago-based lighting designer; Daniel is thrilled to be working with Token Theatre. He has designed lighting with Haymarket Opera Company, Drury Lane Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Matter Dance Company, Momentary Theatre, The Gift Theatre, Oil Lamp Theatre, Interrobang Theatre Project, Redtwist Theatre, First Floor Theatre, Red Tape Theatre, Emerald City Theatre, and Haven Theatre among many others across Chicago. Daniel has served as an associate and assistant lighting designer on productions at Steppenwolf Theatre Company, San Francisco Opera, Palm Beach Opera, Lookingglass Theatre Company, Writers Theatre, Hartford Stage, Goodman Theatre, Court Theatre, Folks Operetta, Timeline Theatre and Victory Gardens Theatre.
Visit danielafriedman.com.
ISAAC MANDEL (Sound Designer) is a Chicago-based sound designer and engineer. He graduated from Illinois State University & attended Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. Some of his past productions include Somewhere Over The Border (Teatro Vista), Passing Strange (Theo Ubique), Merrily We Roll Along (O'Malley Theatre). Some upcoming shows are Never Better (Theo Ubique), as well as the upcoming season at Roosevelt University.
Production Photos:
by Daniel Eggert
