Conditions Governing Access
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
Restrictions on Use and Reproduction
Preferred Citation
Provenance/Source of Acquisition
Processing Information
UCLA Catalog Record ID
Biography
Scope and Content
Organization and Arrangement
Contributing Institution:
UCLA Library Special Collections
Title: East West Players, Inc. records
Creator:
East West Players (Los Angeles, Calif.)
Identifier/Call Number: PASC.0115
Physical Description:
60.9 Linear Feet
(113 boxes and 11 flat boxes)
Date (inclusive): 1965-1992
Abstract: As the first Asian American theater
founded in 1965, East West Players and its history provide valuable account of Asian Pacific
American experience. The collection spans 1965 to 1992 and includes administrative files,
financial records, and production related files consisting of scripts, photographic
material, programs, publicity, sound recordings and videos.
Physical Location: Stored off-site. All requests to access
special collections material must be made in advance using the request button located on
this page.
Language of Material: Materials are in
English.
Conditions Governing Access
Open for research. All requests to access special collections materials must be made in
advance using the request button located on this page.
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
CONTAINS AUDIOVISUAL MATERIALS: This collection contains both processed and unprocessed
audiovisual materials. Audiovisual materials are not currently available for access, unless
otherwise noted in a Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements note at the series
and file levels. All requests to access processed digital materials must be made in advance
using the request button located on this page.
Restrictions on Use and Reproduction
Property rights to the physical objects belong to UCLA Library Special Collections. All
other rights, including copyright, are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the
responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright and pursue the
copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not
hold the copyright.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], East West Players, Inc. records (Collection Number PASC 115).
UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, UCLA.
Provenance/Source of Acquisition
Gift of East West Players, 1992.
Processing Information
Collections are processed to a variety of levels depending on the work necessary to make
them usable, their perceived user interest and research value, availability of staff and
resources, and competing priorities. Library Special Collections provides a standard level
of preservation and access for all collections and, when time and resources permit, conducts
more intensive processing. These materials have been arranged and described according to
national and local standards and best practices.
UCLA Catalog Record ID
Biography
The East West Players theater company (EWP), located in Los Angeles, CA, was founded in
1965. EWP provides Asian Pacific actors, writers, directors, and producers a forum for
presenting their unique works from an Asian-Pacific-American perspective, with productions
ranging from traditional Asian theater forms to the Asian American experience to mainstream
drama and musical theater. The founders of EWP include artistic directors Mako, Rae Creevey,
James Hong, June K. Lu, Guy Lee, Pat Li, Yet Lock, Soon-Tek Oh, and Beulah Quo. EWP's second
artistic director, Nobu McCarthy, who served from 1989 to 1993, encourged the participation
and inclusion of non-Asian actors in the theater group. The third and current artistic
director, Tim Dang, started his appointment in 1993.
As the first Asian American theater company in the United States, the foundation of EWP was
a response to the lack of roles, especially authentic ones, for Asian American actors. Its
original purpose statement indicated that "The East West Players departed somewhat from all
the traditional Hollywood formulas, for the company shaped new and compelling images of its
own and addressed a variety of problems connected with the Asian/Pacific American community
and the art of theater."
Rashomon, the first production of EWP premiered on April 3, 1965 at the University of
Southern California. During it's early years, the company staged Asian and European
classics, and rehearsed and held workshops at Bethany Presbyterian Church while searching
for potential Asian American playwrights. In 1972, EWP moved to 4424 Santa Monica Boulevard,
where it began its children's theatre tours and provided a base to stage original works by
artistic talents such as Wakako Yamauchi, Momoko Iko, Dom Magwili, Jon Shirota, and Perry
Miyake Jr.
EWP expanded its outreach to immigrant communities with bilingual tours and musical theatre
following the success of the production Pacific Overtures. EWP relocated in 1998 to the
former site of Union Church in the Los Angeles neighborhood known as Little Tokyo where it
still resides.
Scope and Content
The collection consists of production material, administrative files, and business and
financial records, related to the East West Players theater company (EWP). The production
material includes scripts, photographs, reviews, publicity material, sound recordings,
videos, and a small amount of correspondence, financial records, and box office reports
pertaining to EWP productions. The administrative records contains administrative files,
board of director minutes, and newsletters. The business and financial records include files
documenting grant applications with multiple foundations and/or organizations as well as
general information about season budgets, donations, insurance, and ledgers.
Organization and Arrangement
Arranged in the following series:
- Series 1. Administrative Records
- Series 2. Business and Financial Records
- Series 3. Correspondence and Research Materials
- Series 4. Publicity, Development and Special Events
- Series 5. Productions
- Series 6. Tours
- Series 7. (Summer) Workshops
- Series 8. Script Submissions
- Series 9. Photographs, Slides, Video Tapes
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Theatrical companies -- California -- Los Angeles --
Archives.
Theatrical producers and directors -- Archives.
Audiotapes.
Photographs.
Business records.
Videotapes.
East West Players (Los Angeles, Calif.)--Archives