The Office of Multicultural
Student Development will present “Faces of America,” a
one-person show dealing with diversity in society, tonight at 7
p.m. in the Blue Ridge Ballroom of Plemmons Student Union.
The 65-minute play focuses on the lives of young adults representing
African, Asian, East Indian, European, Latino and Native American
backgrounds. It also centers on different genders and sexual orientations,
addressing stereotypes that accompany these groups.
“You take a conglomerate of several people from all different
walks of life and experiences and put it all together and the purpose
of it is to see a play based on those experiences that people have,”
said Anwar S. Cruter, assistant director of Multicultural Education.
Each character’s narrative brings a new example of multiculturalism
and diversity to the program. A Japanese-Hungarian woman tries to
understand her grandfather’s stories of immigration to the
United States and living in a Japanese-American internment camp.
An African-American man speaks on racism and class structure in
society.
A father’s bigotry conflicts with his young white son. A college
hate crime frightens an East Indian-American who wishes to forget
her old caste system.
A Filipino-American doctor learns the importance of faith and patience.
A multi-racial American shares his radical ideas about the world.
“All of those populations are all part of being an American,”
said Cruter.
The principle behind “Faces of America” is to spread awareness
through entertainment.
Created by Colin Cox and Fran de Leon, “Faces of America”
is a traveling theater production, written as a response to demands
for multicultural workshops. They interviewed over 60 people and
wrote the true-to-life characters from the stories they gathered.
The show premiered at the Los Angeles Theatre Center and is now
in its sixth season. It has been shown in nearly every state, and
several colleges have added the play to their curriculum.
Companies and the government also include the show in their diversity
programs. “Faces of America” was also performed for the
fifty-first and fifty-second annual United Nations Day ceremonies. |
