Theater Mu, (Formerly Mu Performing Arts), located in

Saint Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (abbreviated St. Paul) is the capital of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County. Situated on high bluffs overlooking a bend in the Mississippi River, Saint Paul is a regional business hub and the center ...

, is an Asian American arts organization in the Midwest, the second largest in the country. According to Mu's website, the company name "Mu" is "the Korean pronunciation of the Chinese character Mu for the shaman-artist-warrior who connects the heavens and the earth through the tree of life." Theater Mu was founded in 1992 by playwright, director, and

taiko are a broad range of Japanese percussion instruments. In Japanese, the term refers to any kind of drum, but outside Japan, it is used specifically to refer to any of the various Japanese drums called and to the form of ensemble drumming ...

artist

Rick Shiomi Rick Shiomi (born May 25, 1947)Biography and Genealogy Master Index. Farmington Hills, Mich.: Gale, Cengage Learning. 1980- 2009. is an internationally recognized, award-winning Japanese Canadian playwright, stage director, artistic director an ...

, along with Dong-il Lee, Diane Espaldon, and Martha Johnson. Six years later, the organization changed its name to Mu Performing Arts after starting a taiko drumming program known as Mu Daiko. Shiomi served as Artistic Director for 21 years, stepping down in 2013. Randy Reyes took over as Artistic Director, and stepped down in 2018. Organizational changes occurred in 2017 as Mu Daiko transitioned to become a separate

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 ...

arts organization, TaikoArts Midwest, and Mu reverted to its original name of Theater Mu. Reyes stepped down as Artistic Director in 2018. The position was assumed by Lily Tung Crystal in 2019. Since its inception in 1993, Theater Mu's New Eyes Festival has been an annual tradition featuring staged readings of new works, and continues to the theater's longest running program. Mu's productions have included world premieres of new works by Leah Nanako Winkler and local playwright May Lee-Yang, re-imagined productions of

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

and Sondheim musicals, and collaborations with other theaters such as

Mixed Blood Theatre Company The Mixed Blood Theatre Company is a professional multiracial theatre company in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It was founded in 1976 by artistic director Jack Reuler, to explore race via the use of theater. History Jack Reuler founded Mixed Blood in 19 ...

, Jungle Theater,

Penumbra Theatre Company The Penumbra Theatre Company, an African-American theatre company in Saint Paul, Minnesota, was founded by Lou Bellamy in 1976. The theater has been recognized for its artistic quality and its role in launching the careers of playwrights includ ...

, Park Square Theatre and Guthrie Theater to bring plays by award-winning playwrights such as

David Henry Hwang David Henry Hwang (born August 11, 1957) is an American playwright, librettist, screenwriter, and theater professor at Columbia University in New York City. He has won three Obie Awards for his plays '' FOB'', '' Golden Child'', and '' Yell ...

Carla Ching Carla Ching is an American playwright, television writer, and teacher. Ching has written for multiple television shows including, USA’s series, Graceland (TV series)'','' AMC’s Fear the Walking Dead, Amazon’s I Love Dick (TV series), Hulu’s ...

, and Lauren Yee. Theater Mu is a founding member of the Consortium of Asian American Theaters & Artists and is a member of the Minnesota Theater Alliance,

Americans for the Arts Americans for the Arts is a nonprofit organization whose primary focus is advancing the arts in the United States. With offices in Washington, D.C., and New York City, with more than 50 years of service. Americans for the Arts is dedicated to repr ...

, and

Theatre Communications Group Theatre Communications Group (TCG) is a non-profit service organization headquartered in New York City that promotes professional non-profit theatre in the United States. The organization also publishes ''American Theatre'' magazine and ''ARTSEA ...

. Mu is also a member of the Twin Cities Theatres of Color Coalition standing alongside New Native Theatre, Pangea World Theater, Penumbra Theatre, and Teatro Del Pueblo.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Theater Mu Asian-American theatre Theatre companies in Saint Paul, Minnesota Asian-American art 1992 establishments in Minnesota