>
PRINTABLE VERSION HERE <
DAN KWONG
is a veteran performance artist, writer, teacher and visual
artist who has been presenting his solo performances since 1989.
Hailed by critics as “a master storyteller”, Kwong
draws upon his own life experiences to explore the personal,
the historical, the social and the unspeakable. With keen insight
and a generous sense of humor, he intertwines storytelling,
multimedia, dynamic physical movement, poetry, martial arts
and music.
MAJOR
WORKS INCLUDE:
“SECRETS
OF THE SAMURAI CENTERFIELDER”
”TALES FROM THE FRACTURED TAO”
“MONKHOOD IN 3 EASY LESSONS”
“CORRESPONDENCE OF A DANGEROUS ENEMY ALIEN"
“THE DODO VACCINE”
“THE NIGHT THE MOON LANDED ON 39th STREET”
These
works explore subjects such as cultural confusion and discovery
in a mixed heritage family; allergic reactions to “Model
Minority Syndrome”; dysfunctional family “Asian American-style”;
Asian male identity; Japanese American internment during WWII;
the impact of HIV/AIDS on Asian Americans; and Kwong’s
lifelong goal to become the First Performance Artist in Space.
Touring
extensively, Kwong has performed all across the United States
and in England, Hong Kong, Canada, Thailand, Indonesia, Cambodia,
Mexico and China. He is recipient of numerous fellowships recognizing
his excellence in performance art from the National Endowment
for the Arts, the Rockefeller Foundation, Asian Cultural Council,
Art Matters Inc., Brody Arts Fund, Franklin Furnace, Los Angeles
Cultural Affairs Department, and has been nominated twice for
the Alpert Award in the Arts.
In July 2004 he received a major fellowship for Mid-Career Artists
from the California Community Foundation and was honored by
the Japanese American Historical Society for outstanding contributions
to Japanese American history and culture.
Essays
and performances have been published in The Journal of American
Drama and Theatre, Getting Your Solo Act Together,
High Performance magazine, and various anthologies including
On A Bed of Rice - A Feast of Asian American Erotica;
Yellow Light - The Flowering of Asian American Art and
Living in America - A Pop Culture Reader. His visual
artwork is included in Let’s Get It On - The Politics
of Black Performance published by the Institute of Contemporary
Art in London. In July 2004 he released his first book, a collection
of his performance texts entitled, FROM INNER WORLDS TO OUTER
SPACE - The Multimedia Performances of Dan Kwong, published
by the University of Michigan Press.
As
a teacher Kwong has led numerous workshops in autobiographical
writing and performing throughout the U.S. and in Hong Kong,
England, Indonesia, Thailand and Canada.
He
is founder and curator of "Treasure in the House",
L.A.’s first Asian Pacific American performance and
visual art festival, presented at Highways Performance Space
in Santa Monica since 1991.
In
July 2006 a reading of his first stageplay, "Show Me Some
Stuff",
was presented at the John Anson Ford Amphitheatre in Hollywood.
The play, about a 13-year old Asian American girl who is visited
by the ghost of Bruce Lee, is still in development with possibilities
of a Los Angeles production in Spring of 07.
Dan
was also part of “The Art of Rice”, an international
collaborative performance project which incorporated music,
dance, theater and puppetry with APPEX artists from China, Burma,
Japan, Vietnam, India, Taiwan, Indonesia, Dominican Republic
and U.S. The project was developed in Bali under the direction
of Judy Mitoma and toured Hawaii and Southern California in
fall of 2003, exploring the many roles of rice in various cultures
of the world.
Kwong
is a graduate of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago
and a Resident Artist at the 18th Street Arts Center in Santa
Monica. He also serves as Chairman of the Board for Highways
Performance Space.
