Library to Host Play About Filipino Writer, Activist

Carlos Bulosan’s name doesn’t jump to the forefront of many minds when the subject of Filipino history comes up. It’s a field dominated by names such as Marcos (Imelda and Ferdinand), and perhaps even Manny Pacquiao years and years down the road.

But the East West Players’ Youth Theatre program hopes to shed more light on Bulosan, the Filipino poet, author and activist when they present Allos: The Story of Carlos Bulosan at the on Thursday evening at 7 p.m. The performance is free.

The play focuses on Bulosan’s emergence from life as a poor immigrant to eventually becoming an activist for the rights of migrant workers and the author of the 1946 book America Is In The Heart. He was also commissioned by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt to write an essay about freedom.

“His story is an immigrant’s story,” said Giovanni Ortega, who wrote the play. “Therefore, it’s an American story.”

It’s a story not many people know about, which added a twist to researching Bulosan’s life. Ortega, who is also a prolific actor, is no stranger to the Filipino historical experience – he portrayed Filipino President Ferdinand Marcos in the East West Players’ production of Imelda: A New Musical, which focused on the famed shoe-gathering first lady of the Philippines.  Ortega said there were intricate similarities and differences in comparing the two men.

“You can Google someone and find the things they did, that’s the easy part,” Ortega said. “The hard part is going down into the roots of his upbringing and humanizing him.  Marcos … truly believed he was put on this Earth to be almost a kind of king.  For Carlos, every ordeal he went through, he saw light to it. That’s what I focused on – the glimpses of light he saw, no matter what was happening to him.”

In addition to encountering racism and grinding through low-wage, hard-labor jobs upon his arrival in the United States, Bulosan spent large chunks of his life in poor health. He spent two years in what was known long ago as the Los Angeles County Sanitarium (USC Medical Center) to be treated for tuberculosis. But it was during that stint where Bulosan honed his appreciation for the written word, reading a book for every day he was there.

“When I was writing this piece, I’d have to stop sometimes, and I cried,” Ortega said. “I’d be like, ‘Man, how is he dealing with this?’ But here he is, reading while he’s in this sanatarium … It’s inspirational.”Not only inspirational, but also educational, which is one of the things that led Marilyn Tokuda, the Players’ arts education director, to commission Ortega to write the play.

Tokuda said of all the samples submitted from writers who wanted to tell Bulosan’s story, it was Ortega who managed to “capture the voice” of the author.

“There was just an innate quality. He understood who Carlos was,” she said.  “And seeing it all come together is very exciting. All of the artistic elements came together perfectly … that’s rare.”

The play features a mural as well as actor Josef Malonzo, who will be playing Carlos Bulosan along with many other people in his life, ranging from Bulosan's brothers to even his attackers.

Tokuda hopes the play helps young people realize that role models of all kinds existed in every era, especially in Asian-American history.

"We performed in Hemet, which is about two hours from L.A. Someone, a Filipino, drove to Hemet just to see the play," she said. "The Filipinos who have seen it are very grateful. He's a very huge hero with very little exposure."

Doors for the performance open at 6:30 p.m. No tickets or reservations are necessary. Refreshments will be served.