TeAda’s First National Community-Based Theater Project

REFUGEE NATION

Written and performed by Leilani Chan and Ova Saopeng

Based on the stories of Laotian Refugees and their descendents

A mother lives in the darkness of a South Los Angeles apartment. An Army General struggles to forget a lost war. A son battles in the streets of urban America. Refugee Nation is about a young generation struggling to understand their history and the silence of an elder generation still healing from the traumas of the U.S. waged Secret War in Laos during the Vietnam War era.

The Refugee Nation continues to grow.  With the certainty of new refugee arrivals coming from the Middle East, what can we learn from the wounds of a war 30 years ago that are still yet to be healed?

For the past three years Leilani Chan and Ova Saopeng have been collecting oral histories from family and community members across the country. Throughout 2007 and 2008, these artists will be developing the performance and conducting residencies with Laotian communities from New England to Alaska. Join the www.teada.org email list to stay up to date with the Refugee Nation!

Check out the Refugee Nation blog for up to date information: refugeenation.blogspot.com

Radio Interview:
KPFK 90.7 fm Los Angeles interview from May 24, 2007

YouTube video featuring Refugee Nation

REFUGEE NATION in Berkeley
April 25, 2008 at 8pm
April 26, 2008 at 3pm and 8pm
La Pena Cultural Center
3105 Shattuck Ave.
Berkeley, CA 94705
510-849-2568
$5-$20
www.lapena.org

Past REFUGEE NATION Touring Dates:

November 2007
REFUGEE NATION Residency & Performances
OUT NORTH, Anchorage Alaska
www.outnorth.org

REFUGEE NATION PROJECT LAUNCH
October 12 & 13, 2007
Cambridge Multicultural Arts Center
41 Second St
Cambridge, MA
617.577.1400
www.cmacusa.org

REFUGEE NATION in New York City
Preview performance as part of the
First Ever National Asian American Theater Festival
June 22-24, 2007
Abingdon Theater
312 W 36th St
New York, NY 10018
(212) 868-2055
www.naatf.org

Laotians of any age are encouraged to contact the artists at http://myspace.com/refugeenation or refugeenation@gmail.com

Refugee Nation is being developed in collaboration with Legacies of War, a national organization dedicated to raise awareness about the history of the Vietnam War-era bombing in Laos. For more information on how to support this education & advocacy effort go to www.legaciesofwar.org