Come to PAPA: Philadelphia Asian Performing Artists celebrates local Pan-Asian Art with a 10-day virtual festival

Philadelphia Asian Performing Artists (PAPA) announces Philadelphia as a growing hub for Pan-Asian performance with Come to PAPA, a virtual festival taking place this June 10-20, 2021. All tickets are pay-what-you-can.

With 34 events, 105 artists, and 21 cities, Come to PAPA features performances from PAPA’s long-standing mini-residency and Playwrights’ Project cohorts, but workshops, community meals, guided meditations, dance parties, and even signature cocktails aimed at celebrating the ingenuity and necessity of Philadelphia’s Pan-Asian performing arts community.

“Being an artist is so much more than the finished product you see on stage,” says creative director Cat Ramriez, “We wanted to create a festival that not only highlights those amazing performances, but offers opportunities for artists to develop their skills and audiences to learn more about our community.”

As a membership-based community and arts organization, Philadelphia Asian Performing Artists has spent the past seven years creating work by and for artists of Pan-Asian descent. During the pandemic, PAPA shifted this work entirely online, welcoming a new cohort of writers into the Playwright’s Project, hosting monthly community events like pumpkin carving and craft nights, and presenting works-in-progress showcases.

“I’m looking forward to hearing the work of my fellow playwriting cohort be read aloud by local working actors!” says associate producer and Playwright’s Project member Crys Clemente. “All the pieces are so different and unique to each playwright and I feel like the directors and actors that were brought in are going to make some awesome stuff out of it.”

For the 10-day run of Come to PAPA, Philadelphia Asian Performing Artists is working with a variety of local and national arts organizations to make this festival a reality. Collaborators on one or more Come to PAPA events include Asian Arts Initiative, InterAct Theatre Company, Asian American Theatre Artists of Boston, Asian Pasifika Arts Collective, and Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival.

“In some ways, I feel like this is our thesis statement,” says Ramirez, “We want to create a world where local artists of Pan-Asian descent are thriving. This festival is one of the ways we’re getting there.”

Check out the full program for Come to PAPA at phillyasianartists.com.

 

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