THE APPA Newsletter

February 15, 2005

 

February is Black History Month http://www.infoplease.com/spot/bhm1.html

Bush Hosts African Americans at Black History Month Ceremony http://www.voanews.com/english/2005-02-08-voa76.cfm

 

ValentineÕs Day http://www.pictureframes.co.uk/pages/saint_valentine.htm

In Asia http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/1820169.stm

 

 

See This Weekend

 

MISSION STATEMENT:

Promote full utilization of the capabilities of the Enterprise's employees and champion the betterment of the company and community. Promote interest in Asian Pacific issues and culture and act as a bridge to all groups within our community.

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ed. by Douglas Ikemi

(dkikemi@pacbell.net)

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The internet site is at:

www.apa-pro.org    

Our own domain name, apa-pro.org, stands for Asian Pacific American Professionals. www.apa-pro.org/ gives you a menu of AP organization websites.

Back issues of the newsletter for all of 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, and 2004 are available on the website if you want to look up some past event.

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Please send in information on cultural events and news items. Thanks to those who have.

 

Long range calendar items:

 

Chinatown Farmers Market Every Thursday, 3:00pm to 7:00pm Chinatown Business Improvement District http://www.ChinatownLA.com/  For Information (213)_ 680-0243 

 

November 13, 2004 Ð April 3, 2005 John Kwok: Line and Color exhibit. Chinese American Museum, 425 N. Los Angeles Street, Los Angeles 90012 (In Olvera Street) 213-626-5240. http://www.camla.org/events/calendar.htm

 

Feb 2 Tony Award Winner PROOF at the East West Players, By David Auburn, Directed by Heidi Helen Davis

Opens February 2-27, 2005

ASL-interpreted performance February 12, 2005 at 2 p.m.

Cast (alphabetically): includes Kimiko Gelman, David J. Lee, Dom Magwili and Joanne Takahashi.

Catherine spent years caring for her brilliant but unstable father, a famous mathematician. Following his death, she must deal with her own volatile emotions; the arrival of her estranged sister; and the attentions of her fatherÕs former student. A burgeoning romance and the discovery of a mysterious notebook create the most difficult problem of all: How much of her fatherÕs madness - or genius - will Catherine inherit?

Single Ticket Prices

 Previews

 $20 General (all seats)

 $10 Student (all seats)

Opening Night

 $63 (all seats; includes a pre-show hosted bar and post-show reception with the production cast, creative team and crew; and East West Players Board of Directors and staff.)

General

 $38 Orchestra

 $33 Balcony

PROOF is supported in part by the California Community Foundation.

Charge by phone (213) 625-7000, x 20  (Monday through Saturday, 11 am - 5 pm) http://www.eastwestplayers.org/proof.htm

 

 

Feb 6-May 1 Japan after Perry: Views of Yokohama and Meiji Japan  The opening of Yokohama to trade with the United States and Europe in 1859 ended more than two centuries of Japanese isolation and transformed the rural fishing village into a thriving international port. Curated by Ann Yonemura, Senior Associate Curator of Japanese Art of the Freer Gallery of Art and the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, this exhibition documents this early history of JapanÕs gateway to the world, artists produced colorful woodblock prints of city scenes, urbane residents, and harbor views, capturing this tumultuous era of JapanÕs transformation into a modern industrial state and international power. Organized by the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery of the Smithsonian Institution, Japan After Perry: Views of Yokohama and Meiji Japan showcases 24 woodblock prints from the collection gift of Ambassador and Mrs. William and Florence Leonhart. The presentation at the Japanese American National Museum commemorates 150 years of U.S.-Japan relations. http://www.janm.org/events/2005/02/

 

Feb 18-Mar 4 Nine Classics of Japanese Cinema Presented by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Susan Sontag, the late critic, filmmaker and novelist, was one of America's best-known and most-admired intellectuals, a longtime, devoted enthusiast of Japanese cinema and a member of the Japan Society Film Advisory Committee. In 2003, the Japan Society Film Center presented "Critic's Choice: Susan Sontag on Japanese Film", a selection of eight of her favorite films. Because of the extraordinary public response to that program, the Japan Society requested that Ms. Sontag program a sequel to her series, which she completed prior to her death in January of this year. We are happy to bring nine of those rare classics films to LACMA.

February 18, 2005 (Fri)

The Story of the Last Chrysanthemums

(1939 / 143 min / Dir: Kenji Mizoguchi)

February 19, 2005 (Sat)

 When a Woman Ascends the Stairs

(1960 / 86 min / Dir: Mikio Naruse)

High and Low

(1963 / 144 min / Dir: Akira Kurosawa)

February 25, 2005 (Fri)

 The Love of Sumako the Actress

(1947 / 96 min / Dir: Kenji Mizoguchi)

Repast

(1951 / 97 min / Dir: Mikio Naruse)

February 26, 2005 (Sat)

 Fires on the Plain

(1959 / 105 min / Dir: Kon Ichikawa)

Pigs and Battleships

(1961 / 108 min / Dir: Shohei Imamura)

March 4, 2005 (Fri)

 Drunken Angel

(1948 / 98 min / Dir: Akira Kurosawa)

Himatsuri

(1985 / 120 min / Dir: Mitsuo Yanagimachi) Time: 7:30 PM - 9:30 PM

Bing Theater, LACMA, Los Angeles, CA 5905 Wilshire Blvd. Cost: $5

 

Feb 26 Mingei (Japanese Folk Crafts) Lecture at the JACCC by David Coates, presented by Community Travel Service of Albany. 1PM, in the Cultural Room on the 5th floor, JACCC building in Little Tokyo. Call 510-528-0600, info@comtravel.net. CANCELLED

 

Feb 25 "Good Luck Life: The Essential Guide to Chinese American Celebrations and Culture" At Pacific Asia Museum. Planning a Traditional Chinese Wedding? A New Baby Celebration? Curious about the Origin of Red Envelopes and other Rituals and Customs that Surround the Chinese New Year and Other Chinese Special Occasions?  Rosemary Gong and Wise Auntie Lao Explain it All to You in the New Book Good Luck Life

In celebration of the Chinese New Year, author Rosemary Gong will discuss her new book, "Good Luck Life: The Essential Guide to Chinese American Celebrations and Culture" This delightful new book is packed with practical information on authentic Chinese traditions and ceremonies.  Written with wit and warmth, and beautifully designed as an accessible cultural reference guide, the book includes historical facts, legends, foods, old village recipes and quick planning tools including timelines, for celebrating Chinese festivals, traditions and special milestones in a contemporary and easy way.Books will be available for purchase and signing.  This program is free and includes free museum admission 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM

Pacific Asia Museum

46 N. Los Robles Ave.

Pasadena, CA 91101

Tel: (626) 449-2742, ext. 20, www.pacificasiamuseum.org

 

Feb 27 The Japanese Traditional Performing Arts Organization presents SHIKI NO KAI in the James Armstrong Theatre, 3330 Civic Center Drive. 3PM

Tickets are $25.  Call the Theatre Box Office at (310) 781 - 7171.

This special concert will feature ten guest artists from Japan performing Kabuki dance to traditional music.

 

March 5 Toshiko Akiyoshi Concert for Sumatra Tsunami Victims at Zenshuji Soto Mission, 123 Hewitt Street, LA 90012. 8PM, suggested donation $40. Call Rev. Shumyo Kojima at 213-624-8658.

 

March 5,6 Hana No Kai  25th Anniversary, 12:30PM, Aratani/ Japan America  Theatre. Hana No Kai is celebrating its 25th anniversary  with this Japanese traditional dance recital and introducing newly certified Natoris.  Guest artists from Japan include Masayasu Wakayagi, Masahiko Wakayagi, Keika Wakayagi, Tadasuke Wakayagi, and Sanjyuro Wakayagi. Visit the Website: www.hisamiwakayagi.net. $50 (VIP/reserved) $35 (GA) JACCC members $47/$32. Public Contact Info: (323) 257-5412; (310) 572-1315; (310) 372-2028. More info on tickets: call the Box Office at 213.680.3700

 

March 11 Tsugaru-shamisen artist Agatsuma and David Benoi trio perform at the Harlyne J. Norris Pavilion, 501 Indian Peak Rd., in Rolling Hills Estates, $35-50, 8PM, call 310-544-0403x10.

 

March 12 The Japanese  American Family Gathering :The Camp Dance: The Music and the Memories, Aratani/ Japan America  Theatre. Gather the entire family together and experience the Grateful Crane Ensemble's hit musical revue that will take you on a sentimental  journey  back to the floor of the internment camp dance. Along with the show, the  Ensemble and Japanese American families will also pay special  tribute to our Issei and Nisei generations for all they've done so the younger generations could live a better life in America. Tickets:

 $25 General Admission Orchestra, $20 Balcony

 $20 JACCC & JANM Members, Groups of 10 or more

 $15 Seniors and Students

More info on tickets: call the Box Office  at 213.680.3700

 

March 12-27 Beikoku Shodo Kenkyu Kai

40th Anniversary Calligraphy

Location: Doizaki Gallery, JACCC, LA  Little Tokyo

The expressive and varied strokes of Shodo, the Way of the Brush,

 reflect the union of artist and brush. Rev. Kanshu Ikuta and Hiroko Ikuta,

 pioneering Los Angeles calligraphers of the Bekoku Shodo Kenkyu  Kai

 have inspired generations of practitioners. The 40th Anniversary

 Calligraphy exhibition features over 200 works from these master

 calligraphers and their students.

 Gallery Hours:

 Open Tuesday ­ Friday 12 noon to 5pm

 Saturday and Sunday 11 am to 4pm

 Admission Free

 For more information contact the Visual Arts Department at

 (213) 628-2725, ext. 127. http://www.jaccc.org/

 

March 17-June 19 The Art of the Japanese Sword: The Yoshihara Tradition exhibit at the Pacific Asia Museum

 

March 19, 20 Ikebana International Los Angeles Chapter 4 opens ÒKaten, the Art of Japanese Flower Arrangement ShowÓ in Ayres Hall at the Los Angeles Arboretum, 301 N. Baldwin Ave., Aracadia, 91007, 626-821-3222

 

March 19 Katen - Ikebana International Date(s) Saturday March 19  Location: Ayres Hall & Gate  ; also 3/20,  at the Los Angeles Arboretum, Arcadia http://www.arboretum.org/

 

April 2-3 Pasadena Cherry Blossom Festival, 10AM - 6PM, at the Rose  Bowl.  http://www.pasadenacherryblossom.org/

 

April 10 Hanamatsuri Festival at the JACCC Plaza, George J.  Doizaki Gallery, Garden Room A. Hanamatsuri, the celebration of Buddha's birth, is a joyous and widely celebrated occasion in Buddhist temples throughout the world. A  lecture on Buddhism and a ceremony will commemorate the event.

11am- 4pm (George J. Doizaki Gallery) An exhibition of Children poster and haiku poems

11am ­ 12 noon (Garden Room A) Lecture on Buddhism by Dr. Duncan Williams "War/Peace/Buddha's  wish"

1 ­4pm (JACCC Plaza) Hanamatsuri Ceremony and Gagaku and Bugaku performance

For more information contact the Visual Arts Department at 213-628-2725, ext. 127 or email: kosaka@jaccc.org

 

July 16 to Oct 16 From the Fire: Contemporary Korean Ceramics exhibit at the Pacific Asia Museum

 

Nov 18 to Feb 12, 2006 Place/Displace, Three Generations Taiwanese Art exhibit at the Pacific Asia Museum

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This Weekend (and earlier)

 

February 17, 2005 Cold Tofu Salutes the Oscars 7:30PM at the Japanese American National Museum. The hilarious improvisational troupe Cold Tofu returns to the National Museum and they're ready for their close-up. Join us for an evening that's all about Hollywood. Cold Tofu is dedicated to promoting diverse images of Asian Pacific Americans through comedy and to developing multiethnic talent through education and performance. Visit Cold Tofu online at www.coldtofu.com.

 

Feb. 17-20 Violinist Midori plays Beethoven at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in downtown LA. Tickets start at $36, for info call 323-850-2000. 8PM Thu, Fri, 2PM on Sun.

 

February 19, 2005 Little Tokyo Walking Tour from the Japanese American National Museum. 10:15AM The Little Tokyo community in Los Angeles was once a thriving residential, business, and cultural center of the largest Japanese American community in the US until World War II. Relive history and learn about present day Little Tokyo with National Museum volunteers on this historical walking tour. Fees are $5 for National Museum members and $11 for non-members, includes museum admission. Reservations and comfortable shoes and clothes are recommended. http://www.janm.org/events/2005/02/

 

February 19, 2005 Day of Remembrance 2PM at the Japanese American National Museum. "Patriotism" and "loyalty" were volatile issues in America's concentration camps during World War II and continue to be controversial topics today. The program will examine the response of Japanese Americans to the US government's test of loyalty (Questions 27 and 28) -- including responses from resistors -- and our responsibility to defend those whose constitutional rights are currently being denied. The Day of Remembrance commemorates the signing of Executive Order 9066 on February 19, 1942, which led to the incarceration of nearly 120,000 Japanese Americans. Day of Remembrance is co-sponsored by Nikkei for Civil Rights and Redress, Japanese American Citizens League/Pacific Southwest District, Japanese American Cultural and Community Center, and the Japanese American National Museum http://www.janm.org/events/2005/02/

 

February 19 Lantern Festival 2005,12 noon at the Chinese American Museum / El Pueblo de Los Angeles Historical Monument. http://www.camla.org/events/calendar.htm

 

Feb 19 Chinese New Year Festival - "Year of the Rooster" At the Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens. Chinese New Year festivities take center stage from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 19, at The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens with a family festival marking the start of the Year of the Rooster.

 The centerpiece of the event will be a traditional Chinese flower market in The Huntington's entrance pavilion, with colorful stalls of cut flowers and blooming plants for sale.  A number of flowers have special New Year's significance in Chinese culture, including plum blossoms (symbolizing the beginning of spring), peonies (prosperity), narcissus (longevity), and other blooms such as orchids, forsythia, camellias, and golden mums.   Many of these will be offered at the event, subject to seasonal availability.

Other activities will include lion dancers and martial arts demonstrations (11 a.m. & 1 p.m.), folk dancers (11:30 a.m.), storytelling (12:30 p.m.), Chinese musicians (1:30 & 3:30 p.m.), Chinese painting demonstration (2:30 p.m.) and a public talk (2:30 p.m.) about the botanical and symbolic aspects of plants and flowers of the Chinese New Year.  Traditional Chinese crafts for children (dough doll making, paper cutting, knotting, and lantern making) and Chinese calligraphy workshops for youngsters and adults will be offered throughout the day.

The event is made possible by the Carrie Kolb Foundation, East West Bank, and Panda Restaurant Group. Time: 10:30 AM - 4:30 PM

The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens

1151 Oxford Road, San Marino, CA 91108

Cost: All activities are included with general admission

For more information please contact Blackburn Lisa Tel: (626) 405-2140

lblackburn@huntington.org , www.huntington.org

 

Feb 19 Concert Ð Shashank, South Indian Flute Virtuouso, and Troupe

Presented by The Music Circle at Occidental College

Shashank, flute

P. Satish Kumar, mridangam

B. U. Ganesh Prasad, violin

Parupalli S Phalgur, khanjira

Sukanya Ramgopal, ghatam

A child prodigy, Shashank, now 27, has enthralled audiences the world over. His unique contributions to the evolution of the South Indian flute and its musical tradition are legendary.  He has expanded the tonal range of the flute to add lower sounds and correspondingly developed new techniques to utilize it to its fullest. His performances feature an extraordinary range of musical expression, from the deepest meditations to youthful playfulness and astonishing virtuosity. All of the other young artists on the program are known for accompanying leading South Indian musicians and have toured widely or recorded with Shashank or other esteemed artists. Time: 8:00 PM - 10:00 PM

Thorne Hall

Occidental College

Campus Road and Westdale Avenue

Los Angeles, CA 90041

Cost: General admission $25 / Members $15 / Students with ID $5

 Tel: (626) 449-6987, MusicCircle@aol.com, www.MusicCircle.org

 

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Last Weekend: After food poisoning twice in two weeks, I got out this past weekend and finally made it to the Golden Dragon Parade in the LA Chinatown. Sunday I returned to stumble through the Firecracker 10K.

 

 

 

 

Links to selected articles from the LA Times. To actually access the articles, you may have to sign up for a free account.

 

Feb 13 OBITUARIES

Patrick Okura, 93; Internment Stirred Passion for Activism

By Elaine Woo, Times Staff Writer

http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/california/la-me-okura13feb13,1,6616009.story?ctrack=1&cset=true

 

Feb 12 Friends of Prisoner in China Ask U.S. for Help

By Evelyn Iritani, Times Staff Writer

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-prisoner12feb12,1,873866.story?ctrack=2&cset=true

 

Feb 11 CALIFORNIA

Reaching Out to Asian Patients

Monterey Park hospital tries to bridge the divide between Eastern and Western cultures with traditional Chinese food, mah-jongg games.

By David Pierson, Times Staff Writer

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-hospital11feb11,1,171387.story?ctrack=3&cset=true

 

Feb 9 Testing Their Luck as Tet Begins

The Year of the Rooster dawns today, and many Asians believe that games of chance can reveal their coming fortune.

By Mai Tran, Times Staff Writer

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-gamble9feb09,1,4881839.story

 

Feb 10 OBITUARIES

David Graham Du Bois, 79; Professor, Journalist

and Stepson of Famed Scholar

By Elaine Woo, Times Staff Writer

http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/california/la-me-dubois10feb10,1,6469993.story

 

Feb 9 A Convergence of 2 Major Observances

By Nicholas Shields, Times Staff Writer

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-newyear9feb09,1,5310775.story

 

Feb 13 GENDER STUDIES

Feminist Fatale

Where are the great women thinkers? Thinking so much about women has shrunk their minds.

By Charlotte Allen, Charlotte Allen, author of "The Human Christ: The Search for the Historical Jesus," co-edits the InkWell blog for the Independent Women's Forum

http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/opinion/la-op-femintellectuals13feb13,1,7795657.story

 

Feb 12 Refugee Begins Trip Home

Wong Racom, 48, who was stranded at LAX for weeks on his way back to Vietnam last fall, bids his friends farewell and resumes his journey.

By Bob Pool, Times Staff Writer

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-terminal12feb12,1,4108142.story