‘How to Read by Moonlight' tells an immigrant story through the precocious eyes of a child

Boston Globe

15-05-2025

'Theater allows us to move in and out of dream and reality,' says Trinidad, 34. 'Creating this play has been an act of joy, letting myself remember moments of my childhood and my Filipino culture, but also using theatrical elements that have a visceral effect on the audience and are recognizable no matter where you come from.'
During a technical rehearsal at the Boston Center for the Arts' Plaza Theater – the first stop on 'Learning How to Read by Moonlight''s three-venue tour – music and magic are woven into the story of a young boy struggling to learn English and adapt to a new country.
Advertisement
While the action all takes place in Eddie and his mom's tiny apartment, his world expands to encompass shadow puppets, mythical dragons and turtles, original music — performed on ukuleles, a mandolin, a guitar, and a cajon box drum — news clips and other, more abstract video projections, as well as subtitled translations of the occasional Tagalog dialogue. All of these theatrical elements connect Eddie's vivid imaginary world with the reality of his precarious immigrant situation.
Advertisement
'Making this production feels like the essence of theater,' says Alison Yueming Qu, co-founder and artistic director of CHUANG Stage. 'It's an ensemble-based piece that blends music and magic, and because we are a fringe theater, we are all contributing our talents in multiple ways, helping each other and our community.'
Inside the Plaza Theater, the story of a lonely young boy and his overworked and underpaid mom play out in an open downstage area, while separate upstage spaces delineate the narrator's reading nook and the room where Eddie's father calls from the Philippines.
'Learning How to Read by Moonlight' plays with conventional expectations, says Qu. 'We started CHUANG Stage because we see our communities are thirsty for this work, stories that reflect our lived experiences as immigrants, and the emerging themes and aesthetic of the Asian American experience.'
Qu says she read the script for 'Learning How to Read by Moonlight' in her role as a member of Company One's season selection committee.
'When I read it, I immediately said, 'We have to do this together,'' she says.
The partnership allowed both companies to explore launching a tour of the production in the Boston Center for the Arts, where Company One has produced since their founding nearly three decades ago and where CHUANG is starting their second year as a resident company. After performances in the South End, the production will move to PAO Arts Center in Chinatown and then to the Umbrella Stage in Concord. The set is designed to be deconstructed and packed into a truck, with pieces that can easily adapt to different stage sizes.
Advertisement
'Boston's Asian American audiences' lives revolve around their neighborhoods,' says Qu, 'so by bringing the show to them, there are no barriers to participation.'
Participation is also important to Trinidad, who composed original songs for the play.
'Music has always been a part of my life,' says Trinidad, who grew up in New York and was a member of the professional children's chorus of the New York City Opera, 'and singing is a part of the Filipino culture. It's really about finding joy.'
The play includes a bit of call-and-response singing with the audience, and there is also the mention of a 'harana,' a longtime tradition in the provinces of the Philippines, where one person professes their love to another through song, with the emotions bridging the distance — literal or figurative — between them.
'One out of 10 kids in the Philippines has a parent working abroad that they may not have seen for a decade,' Trinidad says. 'So many people depend on remittances sent home, while others sacrifice so much to be able to send money home. I hope this story offers an opportunity to sit in community and feel that love.'
'CHUANG Stage,' says Qu, 'is working to break down stereotypes of Asian Americans with vibrant stories that celebrate our shared history and humanity, while also nurturing artists who are doing this work. There is so much joy in curating this work.'
'The theaters that will survive are the ones supported by their local community, the ones that help create a sense of home,' says Trinidad. 'I wrote this play in 2024, and I was hoping it wouldn't be relevant, but gathering together is an act of love and care, and a reminder of the need for compassion.'
Advertisement
Front Porch Arts Collective announces new artistic director
Front Porch's new season will include 'The Mountaintop,' by Katori Hall (Sept. 19-Oct. 12) at the Modern Theatre, directed by Parent and 'In Old Age,'
by
Mfoniso Udofia, which will be the eighth installment of the Ufot Family Cycle (March 19-April 4), and be staged at the Paramount Center, with direction by Simmons.
In addition to those two productions, Front Porch will also present readings of 'Cubamor' (Nov. 14-16), a musical reimagining of 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' blending Afro-Cuban Orisha traditions, dance, and hip-hop, as a co-production with Teatro Chelsea at Chelsea Theatre Works; 'The Wash,' by Kelundra Smith, which dramatizes the struggle of Atlanta's laundry workers in the 1930s (venue TBA); and the company's annual Holiday Feast 2025 (Dec. 13), where some of Boston's best actors read scripts from holiday episodes of Black sitcoms.
LEARNING HOW TO READ BY MOONLIGHT
Play by Gaven Trinidad, directed by Natsu Onoda Power, dramaturg and tour direction, Michelle M. Aguillon, music direction, Michael Song. Presented by CHUANG Stage and Company One, at the
Advertisement