Cold Tofu, also known as Cold Tofu Improv, is a
non-profit organization
A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...
and
Asian American
Asian Americans are Americans with ancestry from the continent of Asia (including naturalized Americans who are immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of those immigrants).
Although this term had historically been used fo ...
improvisation
Improvisation, often shortened to improv, is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. The origin of the word itself is in the Latin "improvisus", which literally means un-foreseen. Improvis ...
and comedy group based in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
. Founded in 1981, it is the first and longest running Asian American improvisation and comedy troupe in the United States.
[ Sharon Yamato, ‘’In the beginning there was Cold Tofu’’, April 17 2024, Discovernikkei.org]
History
Cold Tofu was founded in 1981 by Denice Kumagai, Marilyn Tokuda
, Irma Escamilla, and Judy Momii. The four friends were sitting in Kumagai’s living room laughing at one another’s stories, and Tokuda suggested forming a comedy group.
[ For its 35th anniversary, Cold Tofu was featured in ''American Theatre'' magazine's list of "theatrical milestones". Though reputedly an Asian American comedy group, Cold Tofu's roots are multi-cultural. Early members included Amy Hill, Phil LaMarr, Jim MacNerland, Jerry Tondo, Geoff Rivas, Joey Miyashima, Glen Chin and Robert Covarrubias.
In its early years, the group trained with Stephen Book (founder of Improvisational Acting Technique and a co-worker of ]Viola Spolin
Viola Spolin (November 7, 1906 — November 22, 1994) was an American theatre academic, educator and acting coach. She is considered an important innovator in 20th century American theater for creating directorial techniques to help actors to be ...
), Gary Austin
Gary Austin (born Gary Moore; October 18, 1941 – April 1, 2017) was an American improvisational theatre teacher, writer, and director who founded The Groundlings theatre company in 1974.
Early life
Austin grew up in the Nazarene Church and in ...
(creator of ''The Groundlings
The Groundlings is an American improvisational and sketch comedy troupe and school based in Los Angeles, California. The troupe was formed by Gary Austin in 1974 and uses an improv format influenced by Viola Spolin, whose improv techniques we ...
'') and Andy Goldberg (director of ''Off The Wall'' at The Improv
The Improv is a comedy club franchise. It was founded as a single venue in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of New York City in 1963, and expanded into a chain of venues in the late 1970s.
History
Originally, it was a 50-seat single venue (whic ...
). Pat Morita
Noriyuki "Pat" Morita (June 28, 1932 – November 24, 2005) was an American actor and comedian. He began his career as a stand-up comedian, before becoming known to television audiences for his recurring role as diner owner Matsuo "Arnold" Takah ...
was one of Cold Tofu's first sponsors. During the 1980s, Cold Tofu produced comedy shows that tackled issues of race, diversity and inclusion. Cold Tofu expanded its efforts in the late 1990s to service the community by providing improv workshops where actors and non-actors explored improv techniques to enhance performance and interpersonal skills.
Marilyn Tokuda and Denice Kumagai led Cold Tofu and shared the role of artistic director. In 1993, Robert Covarrubias and Helen Ota took over as co-artistic directors and served the organization until 2000, when Ota continued as the sole artistic director. In 2013, Jully Lee was appointed to the position.
Operations
Cold Tofu's performing cast performs improv shows regularly in Little Tokyo and throughout Los Angeles. Cold Tofu also continues to provides student workshops through its Training Center for actors and non-actors.
Awards
* "Heritage Award" - Aquarium of the Pacific
The Aquarium of the Pacific (formerly the Long Beach Aquarium of the Pacific) is a public aquarium on a site on Rainbow Harbor in Long Beach, California, United States. It is situated across the water from the Long Beach Convention Center, Sho ...
(2014)
* "Excellence in Community Service Award" - Asian Professional Exchange (APEX) (2014)
* "Visionary Award" - East West Players
East West Players is an Asian American theatre organization in Los Angeles, founded in 1965. As the nation's first professional Asian American theatre organization, East West Players continues to produce works and educational programs that give ...
(2013)
* "Parade Marshal of Grand Parade" - Nisei Week Festival (2013)[
]
References
{{authority control
American comedy troupes