Politics is personal in a new production opening at Cygnet Theatre this week.
"The Great Leap" was written by UC San Diego graduate Lauren Yee. It was inspired by her father's experience traveling to China to play basketball against teams in that country.
"Every family, no matter how well you know your parents, there's always something you haven't learned ... generally for the reason of protecting the next generation. That there's this sense of security and comfort that you want to give the next generation when all they really want to know was what were you like when you were that age," Yee said. "In a way, 'The Great Leap' is my musing about what was my father like when he was a teenager."
RELATED: ‘Cambodian Rock Band’ Revisits A Country’s Music And Political Past
The play is set back in 1989, during an exhibition basketball game between the U.S. and China. During the play, the tensions of the Tienanmen Square protests mirror the tensions on the basketball court.
"I think the play leans into this idea of ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances. It ... starts in a situation where the characters are like 'I want to play this game,' 'I want to play this game' and they find themselves in the midst of huge, huge political events just swirling around them," Yee said.
It opens at Cygnet Wednesday and runs through Feb. 16.
Yee is currently one of the two most-produced playwrights in the nation. "The Great Leap" and "Cambodian Rock Band," which was recently at the La Jolla Playhouse, are both in American Theatre’s Top 10 Most-Produced Plays list.
Yee joined Midday Edition on Wednesday to discuss "The Great Leap" and why her plays appeal to audiences.
