COCKTAILS AND THE CORNER OF MAPLE AND VINE
NOTED 1950?S EXPERTS TAKE US BACK IN TIME
AT CURIOUS THEATRE COMPANY

Have you ever felt overwhelmed by the 21st century? If you had the chance, would you live in a "simpler" time with less anxiety, fewer choices and more defined roles?

On Friday, February 15, 2013 at 6 p.m. – 7:30 p.m., join Curious Theatre Company in 1955 for an exclusive free panel discussion before the 8 p.m. performance of Maple and Vine. This one-night-only preshow discussion features leading historians on Colorado and the 1950?s. Through candid conversation and a deep well of historical
stories, the panelists will discuss the provocative issues central to the production and take questions from the audience.

The panel will be moderated by Artistic Company Member and Producer in Residence, Christy Montour-Larson. She will be joined Gil Asakawa, author of Bring Japanese American, B. Erin Cole, Senior Researcher of History Colorado and author of Denver Inside and Out and Sean Snow, tour director of History Colorado and author of Denver?s City Park and Whittier Neighborhoods. Complimentary cocktails and appetizers will be served; in addition, the Sanctuary Bar will be selling an
assortment of beverages. All audience members who attend the panel are encouraged to stay for the performance.

To reserve a free seat for the Cocktails & The Corner on February 15, 2013 at 6 p.m. panel or to purchase a ticket to the February 15th performance of Maple and Vine, please call the Curious Theatre Company Box Office at 303.623.0524 or email at boxoffice@curioustheatre.org. Upon RSVPING, a discount to the February 15 performance will be sent to you. Already have a ticket to the
February 15 performance? Not to worry, feel free to share the Curious experience and pass the special offer along to a friend!

Gil Asakawa is a journalist, editor, author and blogger who covers Asian American issues and culture in several blogs and social media. He is a nationally known speaker, panelist and expert on Asian American and Japanese American issues. He served the Editorial Board Chair for the Pacific Citizen, the newspaper of the Japanese American Citizens League, and a member of the national Board of Directors for the JACL. He is a past president of the Mile Hi Chapter of the JACL, and a past board member of the Japan America Society of Colorado. He is also a member of the operating committee and chair of the communications committee for the Colorado Dragon Boat Festival. He began his journalism career as
music editor for Denver?s alternative weekly, Westword in 1980, and was the entertainment editor for the Colorado Springs Gazette from 1992-?96. He has written freelance pieces for Rolling Stone and other publications and Web sites, and is the author of "Being Japanese American" and co-author of “The Toy Book” He has worked in online news media since 1996 and currently is Manager of Student Media for the University of Colorado?s School of Journalism. Since 2010, he has been writing for Huffington Post Denver, writing about the local Asian and Asian American community. Gil has a BFA in fine arts from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York.

B. Erin Cole is the Senior Researcher at History Colorado. She is a historian, specializing in the political, social and environmental history of post-World War II Denver and other western cities. Currently, she is working on a project about race, sexuality, urban planning, and neighborhoods in Denver from the 1950s through the late 1980s. She has an M.A. in the history of the American West from the University of New Mexico, and she is currently completing her Ph.D in the history of the American West and the United States since 1877, also at the University of New Mexico. Before attending graduate school, she worked at the Denver Post and as a technical editor in Colorado's oil-and-gas industry. Her latest article, "Inventing
Cherry Creek: 150 Years of an Urban Landscape," was published in the November/December 2012 issue of Colorado Heritage.

Shawn Snow is tour director and manages adult programming for History Colorado, the new name for the Colorado Historical Society. In 1999, Shawn graduated from CU-Denver with two Master?s Degrees: one in Public Administration and the other in Urban and Regional Planning. With a passion for local history and historic preservation, Shawn has undertaken numerous projects, including the publication of his first book—Denver?s City Park and Whittier Neighborhoods. He enjoys delving into Denver?s past to learn how its built environment has been affected over time. Shawn leads walking tours and bus tours of the city, state and region for Denver History Tours. He is continuing his research on the architecture and history of
Denver?s public school buildings as well as post-war suburban growth in southwest Denver.

MAPLE AND VINE by Jordan Harrison: Katha and Ryu, a modern-day couple stuck in a modern-day rut, discover a way out of the troubles they?ve been having—moving to a planned community perpetually located in 1955. Will going back to this not-so-simpler time be the answer to all their problems? Harrison?s audacious premise takes the audience into a parallel universe that is hilarious in its attention to detail, and
surprisingly seductive in its artifice. Have we made progress as a society? Is it possible to forego the values of the present for the mores of the past? Would we even want to? Garnering rave reviews from audiences and critics alike, MAPLE AND VINE was recently produced at Playwrights Horizons in New York City.