Desipina & Co. : Barriers West Coast

Seven.11: Franchised|Barriers West Coast

BARRIERS: A Young, South Asian Woman Responds to 9/11 with Theatre.
Desipina & Co. Presents the West Coast Premiere in San Francisco and Los Angeles.

(August 1, 2003) Barriers, a stageplay by Rehana Mirza, makes its West Coast premiere at the Noh Theatre in San Francisco, from September 4th - 14th, 2003 in commemoration of and in response to the World Trade Center tragedy. The play then travels to Los Angeles for one weekend only at Stages Theater Center in Hollywood from September 25th - 28th, 2003.

Presented in San Francisco as a co-production by Asian American Theater Company and Desipina & Co., this pan-Asian, Muslim family drama is unique in its South Asian perspective of the backlash that had escalated post 9/11. Focusing on the fact that many South Asian Americans were faced with the dilemma of having to deal with both the impact of the disaster as well as with the suspicion and racism of the surrounding communities, the play unfolds in a touching fashion, with a gentle hand at comedy.

Ravi Kapoor, renowned for his acting appearances on Crossing Jordan and Gideon's Crossing, directs. Previous directing engagements include Oh Sweet Sita, (Kapoor's London and Toronto performed play in which Gurinder Chadha first took note of actor Parminder Nagra for Bend it Like Beckham), as well as more recently, a collaborative piece House for the Artwallah festival in Los Angeles. (full press release)


	BIOS: Tyler Pierce / Wajid / Cindy Fulchino / Rodney Jao / Meera Simhan / Ravi Kapoor / Diana Tanaka / Sunkrish Bala

Tyler Pierce (Roger):
Tyler is originally from Columbus Ohio (Go Bucs!). He has studied acting at the University of Colorado, the British American Dramatic Academy, NYU and recently graduated from the Professional Acting Conservatory at The Atlantic Theatre Acting Company. In addition to many theatre and independent film credits, Tyler is proud to make Barriers his California stage debut. He has been seen on stages both stateside and abroad including Oxford, Dublin, and New York stages including HERE, Century Theatre, Atlantic Theatre, Shakespeare in the Park(ing Lot), NY Fringe festival, Lark Theatre, and many others. He would like to thank Rehana, Rohi, Ravi and his fellow cast and crew for this opportunity. He would also like to thank his friends and family for their continued support.

Wajid (Khalil):
Wajid is originally from Pakistan, raised and educated in London, England, Wajid has appeared in a number of National commercials including Nike, Taco Bell, Verizon, Progressive Insurance, Discovercard & Dodge. On the movie screen, Wajid has just recently completed a role in THE SEAT FILLER which will be released in Spring of 2004 as well as lead roles in two USC short films, AMERICAN BOMBAY and CORPORATE JUDO under the Head of Directing at USC Jeremy Kagan. Wajid can also be seen in an upcoming movie, NEVER DIE ALONE, starring rapper DMX and David Arquette, being released in fall of 2003. TV Credits include THE PROUD FAMILY, THE DISTRICT, LINCS, THIRD ROCK FROM THE SUN, PRESS YOUR LUCK, with guest star and recurring roles on RISE AND SHINE, SHASTA MCNASTY and THE PARKERS. Wajid also has extensive experience in voice-over, appearing on credits for THE AGENCY, YOU ASKED FOR IT, VERTICAL LIMITS and JUNGLE BOOK 2. He lives in Burbank, CA with his wonderful wife, Margy and two crazy and adorable kids, Danielle & Jasmine.

Cindy Fulchino (PSM):
Cindy just finished a run of MUD by Maria Irene Fornes, coupled with DOWN THE ROAD by Lee Blessing, both at the Open Fist Theater. She recently spent an amazing week stage managing THE MAN WHO OUTGREW HIS PRISON CELL by Joe Loya and directed by Robert Egan at the Ojai Playwright's Conference. Other SM credits include THE TRESTLE AT POPE LICK CREEK with the Syzygy Theatre Company and AS I LAY DYING at the Open Fist. She will be starring in the newest Bollywood movie, TEARING OFF THE BARRIERS, complete in white sari and lip-locking joy. She wishes to thank everyone involved with BARRIERS for keeping it fun.

Rodney Jao (Sherhy):
Rodney received his B.A. in theater and drama from Indiana University. Some stage productions include 1940'S RADIO HOUR, SCROOGE, DEADLINE at the Jewel Box Theater Center, toured with the National Theater for Children and was in Frank Chin's THE YEAR OF THE DRAGON at East West Players directed by Mako. He also worked on recurring TV roles in Nickelodeon's ALL THAT and THE AMANDA SHOW starring Amanda Bynes. Rodney has currently worked with the Filipino Arts Council in Los Angeles to help promote Filipino author's get their voice heard and is a member of SLOW Children at Play an improvisational group based in Los Angeles.

Meera Simhan (Sunima):
Meera was born in England and raised in the United States and India. She trained at The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts in London and has worked professionally as an actor in the U.K. and America for the past ten years. Her theatre credits in England include Romeo and Juliet, A Midsummer Night's Dream and the British premieres of two plays by South Asian writers- NAGA MANDALA and DANCE LIKE A MAN. Her work in Los Angeles includes NYPD Blue, ER, STRONG MEDICINE, MD's, GIDEON'S CROSSING, THE PRACTICE, THE DISTRICT, TURBANS-a short film for PBS, RICE BOY--at the Taper Too and QUEEN OF THE REMOTE CONTROL at East West Players. She has written solo theatre pieces which she has performed in Los Angeles and New York at venues such as ArtWallah and Diasporadics-both South Asian arts festivals, The Los Angeles Women's Theatre Festival and most recently at the Taper Too where she performed a commisioned piece for LAsians.

Ravi Kapoor (Director):
Ravi was born and raised in England. He trained at the East 15 School of Acting in London and then worked in theater, film and television for eight years there before coming to America. His directing credits include OH SWEET SITA, a play he also wrote, which was performed in both London and Toronto, HOUSE, a multidisciplinary piece commissioned by and for the ARTWALLAH festival in LA, and various other readings and workshops. His English acting credits include the BBC dramas PEACOCK SPRING, BLOOD AND PEACHES, FLIGHT, IN A LAND OF PLENTY and the movie WILD WEST. His theater in England includes work for Chester Gateway, Stratford East, the National Theater Studio, Tara Arts and Tamasha, performing in both modern and classical works. His acting work in America includes regular roles on GIDEON¹S CROSSING (ABC) and currently on CROSSING JORDAN (NBC). He recently finished working on THE GREAT COMMISSION a Showtime short. Theater includes work for Will & Co, an educational theater company and RICE BOY, a Taper Too production. He is also a member of the South Asian Artist Collective (SAART) which co-produced the annual ARTWALLAH festival for the last four years and which produces other platforms to showcase the work of the South Asian diaspora. Ravi is looking to produce his new play PRINCE OF DELHI PALACE in the summer of 2004.

Diana Tanaka (Naima):
Diana began her acting career at San Francisco's Asian American Theater Company performing in the satire Intake/Outake I & II, Phillip Gotanda's Dream of Kitamura, and David Henry Hwang's The Sound of a Voice. Since then she has appeared in theatres across the country including Old Globe, Syracuse Stage, Berkeley Rep, Indiana Rep, A Contemporary Theatre, East West Players, and the Ahmanson Theatre under the direction of Sir Peter Hall. She has recently signed on to become the new Artistic Director of We Tell Stories, a 22 year old interactive, multi-cultural story telling troupe; and writes, directs, and acts for Waters Edge Theatre which tours a poetry show to elementary schools throughout Southern California. TV credits include Everybody Loves Raymond, Seventh Heaven, & The Simpsons.

Sunkrish Bala (Nabil):
Sunkrish is relatively new to the theater world. He began performing in 2001 as a founding member of Ashore Productions, a BayArea-based South Asian theater company. Sunkrish is currently enrolled as an undergraduate actor at the UCLA School of Theater, Film, & Television—where he has acted in several student productions. He is honored to have been given the opportunity to work with such an accomplished and talented group of people on Barriers. Additional thanks goes to his family and friends for their love and support.