Over the last 30 years, The National Asian American Theatre Company has established itself as a leading Off-Broadway theatre of classics, new plays, and adaptations鈥攁ll featuring Asian American casts. But artistic producing director Mia Katigbak, who co-founded NAATCO with Richard Eng in 1990, says she started the organization 鈥渒icking and screaming.鈥� After struggling to book jobs in the classic repertory work they鈥檇 been trained to perform, Katigbak and Eng took matters into their own hands. Producing had never been her goal, but inevitably became her path. A forward-thinker to the core, Katigbak is a pioneer of Asian American representation in theatre.
After over a decade of successfully producing European and American classics, and securing a summer slate at Off-Broadway鈥檚 Vineyard Theatre (then on 26th Street), Katigbak began to ask: 鈥淲hat next?鈥� Wanting to remain in conversation with her original mission, she expanded NAATCO鈥檚 programming to include adaptations of the classical canon. The first adaptation, in 2005, was a re-imaging of Cyrano titled Cowboy vs. Samurai by Michael Golamco, a budding playwright who would later go on to co-write the Netflix hit, Always Be My Maybe.
Supporting early-career writers has since been embedded into NAATCO鈥檚 DNA. In 2007, the company presented Jorge Ignacio Corti帽as鈥� blind mouth singing, a production which marked the launch of NAATCO鈥檚 third programming mission: to premiere new plays written by non-Asian Americans (and not specifically for or about Asian Americans), but still featuring entirely Asian American casts. Other productions under this objective include the New York premieres of MJ Kaufman鈥檚 Sagittarius Ponderosa and Jordan Harrison鈥檚 Futura.
Alongside her championing of writers, new and established, Katigbak鈥檚 spirit of activism propels NAATCO's evolution. While producing the company鈥檚 first-ever production, a trio of Chekhov one-acts at the Henry Street Settlement in 1990, Katigbak was busy curating the Asian American community鈥檚 protest against the casting of Jonathan Pryce (in yellow face) in the Broadway-bound Miss Saigon. In 2003, NAATCO produced Archibald Macleish鈥檚 Air Raid, a radio play about the perils of fascism in protest against the U.S. war in Iraq. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 consider myself an actively political person, but there have been times where I react because of anger,鈥� says Katigbak. 鈥淭here have been responses to what鈥檚 happening in the zeitgeist. It鈥檚 always there, even if not consciously so.鈥�
Katigbak鈥檚 career has been a balance between her initial ambition (acting) and this new passion (producing). She has continued to act, both in NAATCO shows and other productions. Currently, she can be seen in the world premiere of Christopher Chen鈥檚 The Headlands (through March 22). A contemporary noir set in San Francisco, the play follows amateur sleuth and true crime aficionado Henry as he sets out to solve his biggest mystery yet. 鈥淚 loved it,鈥� says Katigbak, of first reading The Headlands. 鈥淭he fact that it鈥檚 an Asian American family is incidental, not critical. It doesn鈥檛 revolve around the Asian American-ness; although we see George as a Chinese immigrant, the story really is about a kid who鈥檚 trying to solve his father鈥檚 murder.鈥�
Katigbak plays Pat and older Leena, Henry鈥檚 mother, whose own memories of the events only seem to add to the labyrinth of secrets and deceptions. (NAATCO is also represented in the design of The Headlands; its stunning film projections, by Ruey Horng Sun, are integrated into a scenic design by NAATCO alum Kimie Nishikawa.)
Looking ahead, Katigbak is sowing the seeds for what she hopes will be impactful, long-lasting relationships with theatres around the country as part of her newest initiative: NAATCO's National Partnership Project. Part of that will include a commitment to form-pushing work. 鈥淎s much as I want to work for Asian American representation, I also want to contribute to the form of theatre itself,鈥� she says. 鈥淭o innovate it, or challenge it. I want to be a good citizen.鈥�
