Courtney Reed, known for playing Jasmine in Broadway's Aladdin, and Joe Ngo will lead the cast of the upcoming Off-Broadway premiere of Cambodian Rock Band by Lauren Yee. Reed will star as Neary/Sothea, and Ngo, who starred in the play's La Jolla production, will once again portray Chum in the Signature Theatre production.
Directed by Chay Yew, Cambodian Rock Band is a play with music about family secrets set against a dark chapter of Cambodian history, featuring songs by rock group Dengue Fever. Performances will begin at the Signature February 4, 2020, ahead of a February 24 opening.
Rounding out the cast Off-Broadway are Francis Jue as Duch, Abraham Kim as Rom, Jane Lui as Pou, and Moses Villarama as Ted/Leng.
In Cambodian Rock Band, a Khmer Rouge survivor (Ngo) returns to Cambodia for the first time in 30 years, as his daughter (Reed) prepares to prosecute one of Cambodia's most infamous war criminals.
The creative team for Cambodian Rock Band includes scenic designer Takeshi Kata, costume designer Linda Cho, lighting designer David Weiner, sound designer Mikhail Fiksel, projection designer Luke Norby, and music supervisor Matt MacNelly. Fight direction is by Unkle Dave’s Fight-House, casting by Caparelliotis Casting, and Charles M. Turner III is the show's production stage manager.
Cambodian Rock Band has been staged throughout the country, including productions at La Jolla, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Victory Gardens in Chicago, and South Coast Rep.
The Signature production launches Steinberg Award–winning playwright Yee’s Residency 5 at the Off-Broadway theatre.
