AURORA | A cacophony of cultures is storming onto a petite stage in the Aurora Cultural Arts District this month.
Argentinian dances, three generations of Chinese women and the unmistakable notes of 18th century European virtuosos are just some of the basic ingredients found in “Fermata,” the first-ever theater production to debut at the ACAD gallery on 1400 Dallas St. in Aurora.
“We’ve worked in several spaces over the past two years, and having a permanent space has got to be every theater company’s ultimate goal, along with building an audience of course, so we’re thrilled,” said Tria Xiong, one of the co-founders of Theatre Esprit Asia, the Mountain West’s first and only theater company centered on Asian-American show runners and theatergoers.
Already sold out, the show’s opening night on May 8 will be the culmination of several years of effort by Xiong and her TEA co-founder, Maria Cheng, to find the fledging company an elusive home base.
“Fermata,” which is a musical term that signifies the placement of emphasis on a particular note, will be the first TEA show held in the company’s newly permanent headquarters and performance space in the ACAD gallery in North Aurora. Following the receipt of a Colfax Economic Enrichment Program grant from the city of Aurora in January, the hanging of several new, professional-quality stage lights, and the help of several community leaders, TEA has morphed into the first and only theater company based in the shared artist space that the city has owned since Dec. 2013.
Since forming TEA in 2012, Cheng and Xiong have guided the company to receiving nearly a dozen awards, staging over six performances and successfully wooing ACAD lever-pullers into providing them with their sleek, new theatrical outpost. Both women said that the company’s recent successes would not have been possible without the help of Tracy Weil, executive director of the ACAD, and Andrea Amonick, manager of the city’s Development Services Division.
“They really wanted us to be in here, and with both of their help we made it happen,” Xiong said. TEA is renting their space on Dallas Street from ACAD for $240 per month, in line with the district’s rate of charging tenants $1 per square foot.
“We’re really excited, because they’re a great group and Maria is super energetic and passionate, which is exactly what we need,” Weil said. “We thought that a performance space was a cool idea, because we’ve done similar things with poetry slams and small musical performances, but we’re excited to take it up a notch.”
Amonick added that outfitting the ACAD with yet another theater space will bolster the destination arts experience the city has long been trying to create within the district.
“It gives us more options,” she said. “The whole goal of the district is to encourage destination.”
“Fermata”
runs through May 31
7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday or 2:30 p.m. Sunday
ACAD Gallery Theatre, 1400 Dallas St.
Tickets start at $26.
Call 303-333-1540 for more informationMothers get in free with the purchase of two or more tickets on the May 10 performance in honor of Mother’s Day.
Charles Packard, executive director and scenic design guru of the nearby Aurora Fox Cultural Arts Center, also lent the TEA team a neighborly hand in getting “Fermata” off the ground by helping to design and build the show’s set nearly free of charge. Instead of accepting any payment himself, Packard instructed TEA to give what would have been his compensation to members of his permanent technical design team at The Fox.
“He basically looked at our minuscule budget, kind of chuckled and said, ‘tell you what I’ll do; if you give what you’ve budgeted as my fee to my builders, I’ll design your set,’” Cheng said.
Penned by Cheng over the course of three years, “Fermata” is a music centered-dramedy set in Italy that wrestles with a slurry of historical and familial themes.
“The main theme of the show is what price we pay if we follow or don’t follow our authentic self,” Cheng said. “It’s not deep, heavy drama. Although I’m trying to say some serious things, there’s a lot of humor in it, particularly musicians humor.”