Lodestone Theatre Ensemble was a

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

Asian American theatre organization in Los Angeles, founded in 1999. It was a membership-driven organization. The ensemble disbanded in 2009.

History

In 1995, following the

1992 Los Angeles riots The 1992 Los Angeles riots, sometimes called the 1992 Los Angeles uprising and the Los Angeles Race Riots, were a series of riots and civil disturbances that occurred in Los Angeles County, California, in April and May 1992. Unrest began in So ...

, veteran actor Soon-Tek Oh created the Society of Heritage Performers (SHP), a

Korean American Korean Americans are Americans of Korean ancestry (mostly from South Korea). In 2015, the Korean-American community constituted about 0.56% of the United States population, or about 1.82 million people, and was the fifth-largest Asian American ...

theatre ensemble. SHP evolved into Lodestone Theatre Ensemble in 1999, organized by original founders: actors

Alexandra Bokyun Chun Alexandra () is the feminine form of the given name Alexander (, ). Etymologically, the name is a compound of the Greek verb (; meaning 'to defend') and (; GEN , ; meaning 'man'). Thus it may be roughly translated as "defender of man" or "pro ...

, Tim Lounibos and Chil Kong, and writer Philip W. Chung. Their new focus was embracing a broader Asian Pacific American identity. Chung and Kong remain as present co- artistic directors. In 2009, Kong appeared on the GSN game show, Catch 21, starring Alfonso Ribeiro and Mikki Padilla, finishing in second place.

Programs

Lodestone Theatre Ensemble has presented over 75 mainstage productions, special events, and readings/workshops of both new and established works. New works are presented in the "Yellow Box" reading series. Theatre for Teens and Youth Outreach programs aid disadvantaged youth in partnership with Asian Pacific Health Care Venture, Korean Youth Cultural Center and Asian Youth Center. Mainstage productions are done in residence at the GTC ( Grove Theatre Center) in Burbank, California.

Productions

1999

* ''Texas'' by Judy Soo Hoo * ''Laughter, Joy & Loneliness & Sex & Sex & Sex & Sex'' by Philip W. Chung

2000

* ''American Monsters'' by Philip W. Chung, Matt Pelfrey, Judy Soo Hoo

2001

* ''A Dirty Secret Between the Toes'' by Annette Lee * ''Terminus Americana'' by Matt Pelfrey

2002

* ''Freak Storm'' by Matt Pelfrey * ''Refrigerators'' by Judy Soo Hoo * ''When Tigers Smoked Long Pipes'' by

Angela Kang Angela Kang (born March 23, 1976) is an American television writer known for serving as showrunner on the AMC horror drama series '' The Walking Dead'' for the final three seasons. Early life Kang was born and raised in Irvine, California, the ...

2004

* ''Claim to Fame'' by Isaac Ho

2005

* ''Solve For X'' by Judy Soo Hoo * ''American Monsters 2'' by Corinne Chooey, Isaac Ho,

, Oanh Ly, Judy Soo Hoo

2006

* ''The Golden Hour'' by Philip W. Chung * ''One Nation, Under God'' by Philip W. Chung

2007

* ''Telemongol'' (with sketch comedy troupes, OPM and 18 Mighty Mountain Warriors, and improv group Cold Tofu) * ''The Mikado Project'' by Doris Baizley & Ken Narasaki * ''

The Trojan Women ''The Trojan Women'' ( grc, Τρῳάδες, translit=Trōiades), also translated as ''The Women of Troy'', and also known by its transliterated Greek title ''Troades'', is a tragedy by the Greek playwright Euripides. Produced in 415 BC duri ...

'' by

Euripides Euripides (; grc, Εὐριπίδης, Eurīpídēs, ; ) was a tragedian of classical Athens. Along with Aeschylus and Sophocles, he is one of the three ancient Greek tragedians for whom any plays have survived in full. Some ancient scholars a ...

, translated by Kenneth Cavender

2008

* ''Trapezoid'' by

Nic Cha Kim Nic Cha Kim (born September 19, 1974) is a Korean-American television reporter, documentary filmmaker, playwright, and cultural activist, also known as the Founder of Gallery Row in Downtown Los Angeles. Kim is a reporter for the weekly news seri ...

* '' Suddenly, Last Summer'' by

Tennessee Williams Thomas Lanier Williams III (March 26, 1911 – February 25, 1983), known by his pen name Tennessee Williams, was an American playwright and screenwriter. Along with contemporaries Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller, he is considered among the thr ...

2009

* ''Ten to Life'' by

, Annette Lee, Tim Lounibos, and Judy Soo Hoo

References

External links

*{{official, https://web.archive.org/web/20060414050428/http://lodestonetheatre.org/ (archived)
Lodestone Theatre Ensemble profiled
on

AsianWeek ''AsianWeek'' was America's first and largest English language print and on-line publication serving Asian Americans. The news organization played an important role nationally and in the San Francisco Bay Area as the “Voice of Asian America”. ...

.com (2002) Asian-American organizations Asian-American theatre 1999 establishments in California Non-profit organizations based in California Theatre companies in Los Angeles