Once we re-located to the main sanctuary, we had room to welcome a larger crowd, more performers, and even some staging – e.g a wonderful backdrop designed by Laura Juitt, who also designed our logo and all of our visual elements.
Our second show allowed us to explore a key element of Lexington’s demographics – families that are “growing up” in two (or more) cultures: African-American, Asian-American, European-American, Immigrant-American. It also allowed us to welcome the voices of young storytellers and performers who were living “on the hyphen.”
Apologia: We are sorry to say that we do not have any videos of our first two shows. At the time of those shows we were not at all sure that we would have an audience, let alone the need for a videographer. Once the audience started coming, we started making videos but we regret that we didn’t have the forethought to begin at the beginning.
Mary Brinton
Speaker
Mary is a sociology professor at Harvard University and chair of the Sociology Department. Her research focuses on gender inequality in the labor market, family patterns in East Asia and Europe, and contemporary Japanese society. Before coming to Harvard in 2003, she taught at the University of Chicago and Cornell University. Mary makes frequent trips to Japan for her research, and has lived in Tokyo and Kyoto for extended periods of time over the years
Larry Prusak
Storyteller
Larry is a researcher and consultant who studies knowledge development and learning. He has consulted to over 400 organizations, written and edited 13 books and innumerable articles, and given speeches all over the world. He was born and raised in the rich ethnic stew of Brooklyn until he left for New England at age 26. He still feels like a native New Yorker and often ponders how it has influenced his life.
Shawna Yen
Storyteller
Shawna immigrated from Taiwan to the United States at the age of 4. Her family became naturalized U.S. citizens and they have lived in the U.S. for the last 46 years. She grew up on Long Island, NY and in Dayton, Ohio. After attending Harvard College and Columbia Law School, Shawna worked as an attorney and a federal prosecutor in New Jersey and California. She is currently an in-house counsel for John Hancock.
Austin Fowlkes
Storyteller
At the time of this show, Austin was a senior at Lexington High School. As a METCO student, Austin made the commute from his home in Boston to Lexington each day. Austin loves lifting, music, writing and gaming. In the wild process of post-secondary destinations, Austin is now in college.
Marjan Kamali
Storyteller
Marjan Kamali’s debut novel Together Tea (Harper- Collins) was a Massachusetts Book Award Finalist, an NPR Good Read Pick and translated into Italian, German, Norwegian, Czech and Slovak. Born in Turkey to Iranian parents, Marjan has lived in seven countries. After U.C. Berkeley she got an MBA from Columbia University and an MFA from NYU. Together Tea explores the many ways a mother and daughter balance on the hyphen, and was recently adapted for the stage.
Mona Tavangar
Storyteller (Daughter of Marjan)
At the time of this show, Mona Tavangar was a junior at Lexington High School. Mona loved music and sang with a student-run a capella group and the LHS Madrigal Singers. She was also the lead in LHS’s spring musical, Rags/ She is on the Lexington Youth and Family Services Youth Advisory Board and is an active participant in “Sources of Strength,” a program combating teen suicide through positive community building.
Geoff Keith is a Lexington musician who, among other things, leads The Paint Mine Medicine Show (PMMS), a revolving band of Boston-area musicians and songwriters offering “sound remedies for a crazy world.” PMMS performs tonight’s music with Geoff on bass and vocals, Tom Keiser on guitar, Howie Tarnower picking various other instruments, and Doug McPherson on drums.