Sean Tarjoto								Asian American Theatre 
Feb. 4, 2003								Prof. Dan Bacalzo

	Enrolling an Asian/Pacific/American Studies Program in a private university carries several assumptions for me about the nature of my college education: American studies is something that occupies a position separate from Asian/Pacific studies, in the similar fashion in which studying cinema is done differently than understanding theatre. Each have different histories and methods of looking at the art of narrative.  This “same difference” also illustrates the desire for higher education to build itself through disciplines. Similarly, looking at a public issue from a sociological instead of a political point of view affects the way an individual shapes their argument regarding an issue and how that argument shapes itself in public policies and credentials. 
	Asian American studies appeared through years of struggle and hard work during a period of public exposure and outrage to the conflict in Vietnam, the civil rights movements throughout the American South, and a growing counterculture which facilitated democratic ideals of freedom and equality. This outrage manifested itself in volatile situations where determined individuals sought personal glory or committed personal sacrifice. The political turmoil during the Kennedy, Johnson and Nixon administrations paved the way for feminism and civil rights to become institutionally recognized. This same road was traveled by second and third generation Asian Americans searching for their identity and significance in twentieth century America.

	I am superstitious like my grandmother, whom I share the same birthday in March -- she went to Dutch schools in the Netherlands. She married early with my late grandfather who spent most of his life in major cities in China and Indonesia and the metropolis-nation of Singapore.
	When his youngest daughter, my aunt, graduated from the University of Oregon in 1987, he brought my grandmother, my mother, and his five sons to America together. He decided to retire here. Six months later he suffered from coronary heart failure. As a child I underwent speech therapy, piano lessons, and went to Catholic junior and high schools. I speak only English.
	My own perspective as Asian male, specifically a Chinese heterosexual male with a western education, and my involvement in the visual and dramatic arts makes my interest not solely academic but professional and personal. My education began in a private British school in Hong Kong and since arriving in America I grew up in a middle class white neighborhoods in Oregon. 
	In high school, I learned to act. Acting was an integral part of asserting my identity, it was unexpected and fortunate twist in my development and served as an emotional outlet. It helped me maintain a high G.P.A. and helped me forge many close friendships. Yet, though I was a regular cast member of a closely knit student repertory, and I managed to typecast myself as a sort of all-purpose scene-stealer. Whether I was villain, an old man with no right hand, a prop-eating fool, a Grinch, a dancing amnesiac nun/ventriloquist and somber, angry drunken choir director and clergyman (the most serious but also implausible, since we performed in a Catholic school) by my third scene in my first role it became more than just my intention, it became an expectation by the audience that needed to be fulfilled in order to maintain disbelief and momentum. The only character I felt I played most convincingly was the lead of Neil Simon’s Private Lives, which came at the time one of my best friends left the production and the lead actress suggested I play the role. This character was a duplicitous and violent alcoholic. He maintained a British accent, cheap suits and lots of cigarettes. And apparently, he didn’t know how to kiss a girl. The show didn’t get lots of seats filled but was still very fulfilling.
	By far, the production that was most well-received came after the director and drama instructor left the school on a temporary medical leave which developed into an issue that forced the school to a dismissal. This was also my last show before graduation, and my first musical -- although I never sang a single line. I played an amnesiac who, after discovering a nunnery discovers her real identity. 
	After coming to New York I thought about pursuing theatre but became discouraged after losing my acceptance to Tisch. I finished in the General Studies Program and entered the Gallatin School. I have spent most of my time looking for something besides acting to help me understand my own interest and direction in art. I had thought that the possibility of a fulfilling career in the theatre or film seemed to be imaginary and sought to recapture my ideals about myself in politics and art. Acting did not seem to be possible for me, at the time, outside of high school, and I had not seen any Asian faces on or off-Broadway, until enrolling in this course and within this semester. . 
	In my senior year, I am returning to the dramatic arts -- I am studying film, directing, and critical theories on visual and performance art. I hope that looking at the history of Asians in American theatre and analyzing the stereotypes, attitudes and behaviors that surround Asian identity, while looking back at the roles I played in high school will help me see some of my own best possibilities.