FROM CHORUS LINE TO SPOTLIGHT

In the wake of yet another Miss Saigon controversy, this evening showcases performances of songs from superlative East & Southeast Asian musical theatre talent plus continues the thought-provoking and energising discussion on diversity and the place of Asian creatives in musical theatre in the beautiful and atmospheric surroundings of Finsbury Town Hall, home to Urdang @ City.

Hilmi Jaidin

Hilmi Jaidin is originally from Southeast Asia. His songs have been performed in the West End. He provided additional lyrics for the RSC’s My Neighbour Totoro at the Barbican and he was a Stiles and Drewe Best New Song Prize Finalist in 2021. Hilmi is in the Book, Music & Lyrics Advanced Group and he has had two shows produced by ALP musicals - Shift+Alt+Right and Cruel, Inhuman & Degrading.

Maryhee Yoon

Maryhee Yoon (she/her) is a 25-year-old queer Korean American writer and actor. Her work focuses on telling stories that honor and celebrate her communities and the communities of those underrepresented in theatre. She is most known for co-writing the book and lyrics of Tokyo Rose, which was the recipient of the Untapped Award 2019, Les Enfants Terribles Stepladder Award 2019, and developed into a two-act musical for a UK tour in 2021 where it was nominated for the Visionary Honours Award - Best New Play/Musical 2022. Other credits include *A GREAT BIG SIGH* at The Hope Theatre and Hen & Chickens Theatre 2019 and Fogged at The Shoe String Theatre 2022, developed in association with Croydon Youth Theatre Organisation.

Nemo 杉本 Martin

Nemo 杉本 Martin is a London-based writer. Their recent projects include Trice Forgotten (Rusty Quill), In Good Time (Unlimited Theatre), [The Cobbled Streets of Geneva] (Ellandar), and ASIAN PIRATE MUSICAL (Papergang Theatre). They have developed new writing with National Theatre Studios, Royal Court and New Earth Theatres, and recently completed a PhD researching race in nineteenth-century French literature.

DANIEL YORK LOH

Daniel York Loh is a mixed-race British-Singaporean writer, actor, filmmaker and musician. His first full-length play, The Fu Manchu Complex, ran at Ovalhouse (“a devilishly ironic spin on Sax Rohmer’s classic novel that will leave you in hysterics… wildly satirical and steeped in sexual innuendo…the atmosphere created on stage is alluring ” The Upcoming). His second full-length play, Forgotten 遗忘 , based on the experiences of the World War One Chinese Labour Corps, played to sold-out audiences at the Arcola in London and Plymouth Theatre Royal ( “… an ornately layered epic which manages to carry itself delicately despite the righteous fury which rumbles beneath the surface” The Stage). He also wrote a spoken word/dance piece Invisible Harmony 无形的和谐 as part of the Chinese Arts Now Festival at Southbank Centre and wrote for Freedom Hi 自由閪, a multi-media piece for Papergang Theatre, at the Vault Festival. In 2021 he wrote No Time For Tears, a spoken-word/dance film for Moongate’s online digital compilation response to anti-Asian racism, We R Not Virus, which he co-curated for Moongate Productions (Guardian Hottest Front Room Seats).

Amy Hsu

Musical Director

Amy’s MD credits include the recent editions of RepresentAsian at the Phoenix Arts Club, The Phase (Vaults Festival), RuneSical (Edinburgh Fringe), Come Dine With Me: The Musical (MTFest). AMD credits includes Assassins (Chichester Festival Theatre) and My Neighbour Totoro (Barbican).

Amy was also a researcher and panel speaker for The Butterfly Project (Undone Theatre) in which she discussed musical exoticism in Puccini’s Madama Butterfly.

Rosie Singha

Rosie Singha is going into her third year of training at the Urdang Academy. Credits include Chorus in Love Never Dies (Theatre Royal Drury Lane). Credits whilst training include Desiree Armfeldt in A Little Night Music. Rosie is also head of the Urdang Global Majority Collective and is very passionate about diversity and representation in musical theatre. Rosie is represented by Link Talent and is thrilled to be performing with Moongate!

Aaron Parreno

Aaron Parreno is going into his second year of training at the Urdang Academy. He discovered his passion for musical theatre later in his life after playing Simon Zealotes in an amateur production of Jesus Christ Superstar. To get into Urdang, Aaron did a foundation course at Emil Dale Academy for his first professional training, playing Adam in Children Of Eden for their graduating musical. Being new in the industry, Aaron is passionate to learn how the industry works and the issues within it regarding diversity and representation. Aaron is grateful to have been given this opportunity to work with Moongate.

Carmen Law

Born and raised in Hong Kong, Carmen graduated from Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts MA in Performance (Musical Theatre) and is currently based in London. Aspiring to talk about her identity as a Hongkonger in the UK, Carmen staged her first self-written solo show Welcome To Nowhere in Maiden Speech Festival 2019.

Having performed Seashore Yuanfen in the BEAM Showcase (Oxford Playhouse) recently, she also performed in new musicals including Cruel, Inhuman and Degrading, Pearl and Dagger (The Other Palace), Freedom Hi (Vault Festival) and showcased new musical songs in SIGNAL concerts and in Book, Music and Lyrics workshops. Carmen was also featured in TV and film productions, including Bollywood TV series Never Kiss Your Best Friend; Voiceover for My Little Pony: The Movie (Cantonese version) and short films Juicy Gyoza and Trapped.

ASHLEY GO

Ashley previously trained at Savi Arts, New Earth Theatre, ArtsEd and Mountview.

Theatre: FURY & ELYSIUM(The Other Palace) The Phase(The Vaults), DORIAN: A New Musical(The Other Palace), HONEYPOT(the Other Palace), Red Riding Hood(Theatre Royal Stratford East), SHIFT ALT RIGHT(online)

Concerts: REPRESENTASIAN(Phoenix Arts Theatre), The Chamber Musical Sessions(Garrick Theatre), PRIDE at the Palace(Palace Theatre)

Audio drama: Trice Forgotten(Rusty Quill)

Social media: @ashleyinshades

Ben Armstrong

Ben is the founder of “RepresentAsian: An Evening of Asian Talent”, a series of concerts promoting Asian talent in the creative industry, highlighting authenticity, inclusion and celebrating diversity. He is a graduate of the Royal Academy of Music MA in Musical Theatre (2021).

Credits as a performer include: Rumi (London Coliseum), Broken Wings (Charing Cross), The Doncastrian Chalk Circle (National Theatre Public Acts), Mimma (Cadogan Hall), In Our Skin (Midlands Arts Centre)

Credits in casting include: RepresentAsian (Volumes 1 - 4), Recast 2, a Body Positive, Boundary Breaking Concert (Associate for Maya Kristal Tenenbaum)

Jennifer Lim

Jennifer Lim is an actor, filmmaker and co-founder as well as Artistic Director of Moongate Productions. Her acting work encompasses film, TV, theatre and radio in the UK and abroad. Films include ‘A Monster Calls’, 'Hostel', 'When Evil Calls', 'Piercing Brightness’, ‘Leviathan’ and ‘British People’ in the Uncertain Kingdom short film collection. She has worked at The Almeida, Young Vic, American Repertory Theatre, National Theatre, The Finborough and HOME. As a filmmaker, she produced ‘Dream of Emerald Hill’ (funded by SG50 and shot on location in Singapore) and ‘Night Lives’ (funded by Film London) which she also wrote, produced and co-directed; she was also an associate producer on ‘Mercutio’s Dreaming’ (commissioned by BBC Writersroom and B3 Media). Theatre producing includes ‘The Fu Manchu Complex’ (Ovalhouse), ‘Forgotten遗忘’ (Arcola and Theatre Royal Plymouth), and ‘WeRNotVirus’ (in co-production with Omnibus) listed on the Guardian Hottest Front Room Seats. She also curated ‘Theatre Memories: 20 Years of Singapore Theatre’ a 4-week exhibition run at the Arts House in Singapore, funded by SG50.