For Immediate Release

Contact:

Seena Hodges

612.225.6142

seenah@guthrietheater.org

PRESENTATION OF

HOW TO BE A KOREAN WOMAN

BEGINS PERFORMANCES IN THE DOWLING STUDIO SEPTEMBER 19

A hilarious, heartfelt and personal telling of Korean-American adoptee Sun Mee Chomet's search for her birth family in Seoul, South Korea.

Named one of the Top 10 shows of 2012 by Star Tribune and Best Solo Performance of the Year by Lavender magazine.

Performances begin September 19; Playing through September 22

in the Dowling Studio at the Guthrie Theater, Minneapolis

(Minneapolis/St. Paul) On the heels of two sold-out Twin Cities engagements and recent performances in Seoul, South Korea, the Guthrie welcomes Sun Mee Chomet and her groundbreaking production, How to Be a Korean Woman, to the Dowling Studio. How to Be a Korean Woman is Chomets hilarious, heartfelt and personal telling of her life as a Korean-American adoptee and her search for her birth family in Seoul. Zaraawar Mistry directs and serves as dramaturg for this one-woman show that begins on September 19 for four performances only.

In How to Be a Korean Woman, Chometa Playwrights Center 2013-14 McKnight Theater Artist Fellowship recipient known to Guthrie audiences from her performances in The Burial at Thebes, Macbeth, The Intelligent Homosexual, The Two Gentlemen of Veronauses text, music and movement to explore themes of family, love, adulthood and the universal longing to know one's past.

How to Be a Korean Woman was first developed as part of the Pillsbury House Theatres nationally renowned Late Nite Series in November 2011. Since then, the show has enjoyed two sold-out runs in the Twin Cities. Of the piece, the Star Tribune offers, The show is noteworthy for its honesty about Chomet's desire to unearth her roots and discover her genetic heritage -- a quest with which many Americans, brought to these shores in hopes and tears, can identify. Playwright and theater critic John Olive writes, A talented (and successful actor), Chomet bristles with power, both physical and emotional. How to Be a Korean Woman mesmerizes.

Sun Mee Chomet is a St. Paul-based actor, dancer and playwright. As an actor, Sun Mee has worked with the Guthrie Theater (The Burial at Thebes, Macbeth, Tony Kushners world premiere: The Intelligent Homosexuals Guide to Capitalism and Socialism with a Key to the Scriptures, The Two Gentlemen of Verona, Naomi Iizukas world premiere: After 100 Years); Mu Performing Arts (WTF, Cowboy vs. Samurai, Asiamnesia, Circle Around the Island, Mask Dance); History Theatre (100 Mens Wife); Penumbra Theatre (for colored girls...) and many other theaters locally and nationally. As a playwright, Sun Mees first play, Asiamnesia, was voted Best New Script of 2008 by Minneapolis Star Tribune. Her most recent one-woman show, How to Be a Korean Woman, will begin touring in 2013-2014. Sun Mee received her M.F.A. in Acting from New York Universitys Tisch School of the Arts and her B.A. in Sociology and Anthropology from Earlham College.

The artistic team includes Kao Lee Thao (Set Designer), Mike Wangen (Lighting Designer), Forest Godfrey (Sound Designer), Cana Potter (Costume Design), Grant Cutler (Composer), Laurie Carlos (Movement), Audrey Park (Voice and Dialect) and Sam Mistry (Stage Manager).

How to Be a Korean Woman begins performances on September 19 and continues through September 22 in the Dowling Studio at the Guthrie Theater. Single tickets start at $22 and are now on sale through the Guthrie Box Office at 612.377.2224, toll-free 877.44.STAGE, 612.225.6244 (Group Sales) and online at www.guthrietheater.org.

The GUTHRIE THEATER (Joe Dowling, Director) was founded by Sir Tyrone Guthrie in 1963 and is an American center for theater performance, production, education and professional training. The Tony Award-winning Guthrie Theater is dedicated to producing the great works of dramatic literature, developing the work of contemporary playwrights and cultivating the next generation of theater artists. With annual attendance of nearly 500,000 people, the Guthrie Theater presents a mix of classic plays and contemporary work on its three stages. Under the artistic leadership of Joe Dowling since 1995, the Guthrie continues to set a national standard for excellence in theatrical production and performance. In 2006, the Guthrie opened its new home on the banks of the Mississippi River in Minneapolis. Designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Jean Nouvel, the Guthrie Theater houses three state-of-the-art stages, production facilities, classrooms and dramatic public lobbies. www.guthrietheater.org

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