The La Jolla Playhouse on Monday announced its 2016 Performance Outreach Program (POP) Tour production will be “Alice Chan.”
The play, which was co-written by Robert Lee and Tony Award-winning actor BD Wong, will tour schools throughout San Diego County from Feb. 1 to April 1. The play tells the story of a girl named Alice Chan, an unpopular student who is given the lead in the school play.
“The lighthearted spirit and wit of the new POP Tour play, “Alice Chan,” conveys a compelling and relatable message about what you can accomplish and, just as importantly, what you can discover about yourself when you dare to take a step beyond the familiar and safe,” said Playhouse Artistic Director Christopher Ashley. “The Playhouse has worked extensively with BD Wong over the years, and to have an artist of his caliber co-writing and directing our annual production for students speaks to the vital importance of the POP Tour program.”
La Jolla Playhouse is one of the few theatres in the country that annually commissions world-class artists to create a new play for young audiences annually. Playwrights create an innovative, 45-minute piece that addresses issues in the students’ lives. Last year’s POP Tour, The Astronaut Farmworker, completed 80 performances seen by 18,600 young people, teachers and families.
“The POP Tour has been a vital and dynamic part of the Playhouse’s programming and mission for nearly 30 years. It’s exciting and energizing to know that, as each season passes, this commitment to new theatre continues to extend to thousands of students, many of whom have never seen a play before. That it does so each year guided by the experience, passion and talent of dedicated theatre artists makes the POP Tour’s history that much more impressive,” said Playhouse Director of Education and Outreach Steve McCormick.
“Alice Chan” will have four public performances on March 5 and 6 in the Playhouse’s Rao and Padma Makineni Play Development Center. For more information, go to LaJollaPlayhouse.org.
