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ANNIE YEE
During the start of the pandemic, my husband Stan Egi and I sheltered in place, taking care of our health and that of family and friends. We waited for the world to heal from COVID and much racial division. As an Asian American I feared daily for my safety with the continued anti-Asian violence. I also missed theatre—seeing and doing shows, collaborating with the director and creatives, creating choreography, working with actors and dancers in rehearsals—all of it so much. I’m the choreographer who loves tech and brings lots of snacks to share. To keep up my skills I continued my ballet classes every Sunday on Zoom, watched plays from around the country on Zoom, researched theatres, and read plays I wanted to choreograph and came up with ideas for them. I have my dance bag ready! After a year and a half, I was so excited when theatres began to open up again, and we were getting closer to a return. I was concerned because of COVID-19, yet I really wanted to get to work and be back in the theatre, where I love to be and feel most at home. Then it happened: I was blessed when I was asked to choreograph a show at the Fountain Theatre—a theatre that is dedicated to racial equity and moving onward with its Cultural Equity and Inclusion Statement— which was producing An Octoroon, directed by Judith Moreland, on a brand-new outdoor stage created for COVID-19 safety.
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SDC JOURNAL | SPRING 2022
Annie Yee dancing with her mother Nancy Yee in Lighten Up with Cornerstone Theatre at the Hsi Lai Buddhist Temple in Los Angeles PHOTO c/o Annie Yee
The entire company and staff followed AEA rules and were all fully vaccinated and tested weekly. The theatre’s safety protocols were also approved by SDC before I was to start work. I had the AGMA/SDC Return to Stage and Performing Arts Playbook, created by a panel of scientists, that I could refer to, and I attended the “COVID-19: A Collective Response” webinars about returning to work safely.
This feeling of getting an opportunity for any type of show is something many don’t always get to be a part of. I am optimistic these flashes of shimmering hope will continue. In the dance studio I wore two masks during rehearsals, with windows and doors open, air conditioning and air filters on. I felt safe and ready to start. A wonderful part of the production was that the creative team and cast reflected my hometown of Los Angeles in its diversity and heritages. This company made me feel included, invigorated, and proud. It felt great to be back. I am feeling more hopeful as more theatres commit to diversity, inclusion, and equity
plans, which will give me and others more opportunities for work on a variety of shows—shows that will be open to all. I had this hopeful feeling when I was asked to choreograph An Octoroon, a show I may not have been seen as a typical candidate for. I love my culture immensely and feel fortunate when I can continue to share this passion in productions such as M. Butterfly, King of the Yees, and The World of Extreme Happiness, all directed by Desdemona Chiang; The Golden Dragon, directed by Michael Michetti; and Made in Bangkok, directed by Robert Egan. Yet I feel I have been seen primarily as a Chinese/Asian choreographer who specializes in Chinese dance/movement and Chinese opera. My training and dance performance background are also in Western dance, with additional work in circus skills and puppetry. For An Octoroon, I got the chance—a dream chance—to use my knowledge of many different forms of dance and go even further with new ideas and styles. I got to create dance and movement for popular culture, the Indigenous Peoples Fancy Dance with coup sticks, vogue fem, hula, and tap. I loved it and was excited at each rehearsal to share each of these dance forms. This feeling of getting an opportunity for any type of show is something many don’t always get to be a part of. I am optimistic that these flashes of shimmering hope will continue, grow stronger, and be the “new normal.” A
