Los Angeles’ East West Players and the Japanese American Cultural & Community Center have announced complete casting for the L.A. premiere of the Broadway musical Allegiance at JACCC’s Aratani Theatre.
Joining the previously announced George Takei, who will reprise the roles of Sam Kimura and Ojii-Chan, will be fellow former Broadway cast members Elena Wang, Greg Watanabe, Scott Watanabe, and Janelle Dote.
Wang, who played Nan Goto and was a member of the ensemble on Broadway, will take on the lead role of Kei Kimura (played by Lea Salonga on Broadway) in the West Coast staging. Greg Watanabe will reprise the role of Mike Masaoka, former ensemble member Scott Watanabe will play Tatsuo Kimura, and Janelle Dote will play Hanako.
They will be joined by Ethan Le Phong as Sammy Kimura, Eymard Cabling as Frankie Suzuki, and Natalie Holt MacDonald as Hannah Campbell.
Allegiance is set to begin performances in L.A. February 21, 2018, ahead of a February 28 opening night. The engagement is scheduled through April 1 with direction by EWP Producing Artistic Director Snehal Desai.
Marc Macalintal is music director, and Rumi Oyama choreographs.
Inspired by Takei’s life, Allegiance is a tale of love, war, and heroism set during the Japanese American internment of World War II. The musical follows the story of the Kimura family in the weeks and years after the attack on Pearl Harbor, as they are relocated from their farm in Salinas, California, to the Heart Mountain internment camp in the rural plains of Wyoming.
The ensemble for the L.A. production includes Cesar Cipriano, Jordan Goodsell, Sharline Liu, Miyuki Miyagi, Glenn Shiroma, Chad Takeda, and Grace Yoo.
The show is co-produced by EWP and JACCC by special arrangement with Sing Out, Louise! Productions and ATA.
Allegiance features music and lyrics by Jay Kuo and a book by Marc Acito, Kuo, and Lorenzo Thione. The musical debuted on Broadway at the Longacre Theatre in fall 2015, where it ran for 111 performances, closing on February 14, 2016.
Flip through photos from the show below:
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The L.A. staging will take place at JACCC’s Aratani Theatre, located at 244 S. San Pedro Street, Los Angeles. For more information visit AllegianceMusical.com/LA.
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