Theatre has the potential to be transformative, allowing the viewer to learn more easily about themselves and the world around them without even realizing it.
Thatβs exactly what Peerada Meemalayath (writer/director) and team hope to do with Trafficked 2.0, their inventive and important new piece premiering at this year’s Hollywood Fringe Festival. Trafficked 2.0 tells the story of Janelle (also played by Meemalayath), a young Thai girl who is suddenly thrown into the world of sex trafficking. Itβs a sobering reflection and a timely parable. I had the privilege of sitting down with Meemalayath and her cast at their North Hollywood rehearsal space to discuss the merits of the show and why good theatre is needed now more than ever.
βI think theatre allows us to explore more.β Meemalayath starts. βThe more you become aware, the more you can change thingsβ
Vernice Zuniga, who pulls double duty as both Janelleβs mother and another girl she meets while trafficked, puts it eloquently, βWhen youβre sitting in the space of a theatre β I always like to call it βsoft powerβ β itβs powerful in a soft way because itβs entertainment. Youβre watching a story unfold and when you come out of it something has shifted. Not because it told you to, but because you felt it. Youβre experiencing empathy without realizing itβwhich I think is the art and the power of theatre and how it can influence the way we take action.β
Another huge point for the creative team is being sure that diverse stories are heard, something they were very cognizant of when deciding to tell this story from the vantage points of two women of color.
βIt came personally from a place of wanting to tell the stories of Asian Americans, because there arenβt a lotβor stories that represent us in a way thatβs not stereotypical. I wanted to tell a story that represented [people that were like] me. Even though it’s being told by me, itβs something that [everyone] can connect to. Itβs all the same emotions and thereβs not a lot of stories being made to show that,β Meemalayath explains.
Well, if empathy and a sense of responsibility for our fellow man is the problem, maybe shows like these are part of the solution.
βThe way weβve learned to treat other people is terrible. I hope that when watching the show, people learn to empathize a little more. [Weβre all people] feeling pain and going through something.β
And, while sex trafficking does disproportionally effect women, donβt let the cast members hear you say their show is just for girls.
βTo me this show is about connection. Itβs this human thing. We all feel it. Overall itβs a survival story [and] a lot of survival stories show the essence of what it is to human, β Zuniga explains. βWe talked about empathy and just wanting to create characters that people connect to,β Meemalayath adds.
Daniel Spero, who plays one of the bidders in the fictitious trafficking ring, chimes in. βIts not a girls’ show by any stretch of the imagination. [First, Trafficking] still happens to guys. It happens. [Also,] even though it happens a lot to women, you should still know it so you can prevent it.β
βAlso, the guys’ roles are a mirror to men. This is the strength you can have and these are the [potential pitfalls]. This is what it can become,β says Austin Jiang, half of the shows choreographing duo.
βI feel like trying to say itβs a girl showβ[affirms the stereotype] that men lack empathy, which I donβt think is the case. Men will be interested in this. This is a real thing that happens to real people all over the world. Itβs mesmerizing to watch our show,β Spero adds.
Meemalayath inserts, βIn the sex industry, yes, more females tend to be the ones trafficked but if you look at trafficking over all, itβs mostly young boys working [physical labor].β
Which is true. Human trafficking affects millions across the world, including our own back yard, thereβs a reason itβs been dubbed βmodern day slavery.β Itβs a blight of humanity that seems rarely at the forefront of the global conscious, let alone the American one; something Meemalayath and Co. hope to change. βItβs everywhere. Itβs all around [us]. Itβs not just sex but also labor trafficking. [We need] to be more aware and pay attention,β Assistant Director Sarai Ford cautions. Something Jiang definitely agrees with. βI donβt want [people] to think Americaβs safeβthat it doesnβt happen here. In reality, in the last five years they [even] found a sex trafficking ring 15 miles from here, in San Diego. So, itβs right next to us.β
Trafficked 2.0 is the kind of show that utilizes physical theatre, dance, and heightened, poetic language to change the way we see narratives, open our eyes to the would around us, and add diversity to an overwhelmingly homogenous storytelling landscape. While I donβt want to spoil anything, this show is indeed a unique piece of theatre that needs to be seen to be understood. Lucky for you, tickets are on sale now.
Trafficked 2.0 officially opens June 7th and runs through Β June 23rd at Studio/Stage. For more information and tickets visit www.hollywoodfringe.com
