George Takei On ‘Allegiance’

George Takei on 'Allegiance'

Aired 9/17/12

GUEST

George Takei, Actor, "Allegiance"

Transcript

"Allegiance" is a musical making its world premiere this week at the Old Globe Theater. It focuses on the Japanese American internment and has Broadway aspirations. George Takei, probably best known to people as Sulu in the original "Star Trek" TV series, describes the play as his "legacy project."

At 75, George Takei has become a social media superstar with nearly 3 million FaceBook followers. He started his FaceBook page last March as a means to create awareness about the musical "Allegiance," and social media celebrity soon followed. (His "Star Trek" following and appearances on Howard Stern helped speed his rise to social media fame.) It's not uncommon for his posts to have tens of thousands of comments and/or shares, and Takei uses his popularity to help promote causes he believes in. The two most prominent ones are raising awareness about the Japanese American internment and gay rights -- two issues that he sees as more closely tied than you might think.

"Allegiance – A New American Musical" is the story of the Kimura family set against the Japanese American internment during World War II. Sixty years after the attack on Pearl Harbor, a chance meeting forces WWII veteran Sam Kimura (George Takei in one of his two roles) to remember his family's relocation from their California farm to the Heart Mountain internment camp.

It is directed by Stafford Arima, with music and lyrics by Jay Kuo and book by Marc Acito, Kuo and Lorenzo Thione. The production features choreography by Andrew Palermo and music supervision, arrangements and orchestrations by Lynne Shankel. Here is the Golbe's video introduction to the creative team.

"Allegiance – A New American Musical" will run on the Donald and Darlene Shiley Stage in the Old Globe Theatre, part of the Globe’s Conrad Prebys Theatre Center, now through Oct. 21, 2012. Opening night is Sept. 19.

You can find more information about the Japanese American internment at the Globe website and the "Allegiance" website.

And by the way, Takei only mentions "Star Trek" once. Sorry but there were just so many other things to talk about.