Harlem Canary/Tokyo Crow by Andrew Saito @ The Drake
Sun, Jul 13
|The Proscenium at The Drake
A satirical comedy about WWII’s “Negro Propaganda Operations,” in which captured African American POWs were forced to record radio plays contrasting Japan’s supposed racial freedoms with the brutal realities of racism in the U.S.
Time & Location
Jul 13, 2025, 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM EDT
The Proscenium at The Drake, 302 S Hicks St, Philadelphia, PA 19102, USA
About The Event
This reading is presenting as part of PlayPenn's 2025 New Play Development Conference July 5 -20
Harlem Canary/Tokyo Crow
by Andrew Saito
Directed by Cat Ramirez
Dramaturg: Autumn Storm Blalock
Resident Playwright Reading presented in Partnership with Theatre in the X
A satirical comedy about WWII’s “Negro Propaganda Operations,” in which captured African American POWs were forced to record radio plays contrasting Japan’s supposed racial freedoms with the brutal realities of racism in the U.S.
Andrew Saito was Mellon Resident Playwright at Cutting Ball Theater, has had multiple productions, and is commissioned by Asian Arts Initiative and Montalvo Arts Center to write and develop Harlem Canary/Tokyo Crow, with support from NPN, MAP Fund, the NEA, Playwrights Foundation, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, and PlayPenn. He has developed plays with Crowded Fire, the Playwrights Center, East West Players, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, etc. He graduated from the Paramount Writers Mentoring Program, and staffed on The Lost Symbol. He received his MFA from The Iowa Playwrights Workshop.
About the 2025 New Play Development Conference
PlayPenn, a national new play development center based in Philadelphia, proudly announces the 2025 New Play Development Conference, taking place from July 5th to July 20th, 2025. For nearly two decades, PlayPenn has been a cornerstone of new play development, providing a vital platform for playwrights to create, collaborate and connect.
This year, the conference extends its reach beyond a single location to bring new plays into communities across four Philadelphia County districts, thanks to a groundbreaking collaboration with InterAct Theatre Company, Philadelphia Theatre Company, Philadelphia Young Playwrights, Power Street Theatre, Theatre in the X, and the Wilma Theater. The collaboration aims to foster greater sustainability in the arts by sharing resources and expanding audiences.