American Theatre Wing - Downstage Center

Go in-depth with the leading artists and professionals working on stage today when you go "Downstage Center." Downstage Center, a collaboration of the American Theatre Wing and XM Satellite Radio, is a weekly theatrical interview program that spotlights the creative talents on Broadway, Off-Broadway, across the country and around the world, with in-depth conversations that simply can"t be found anywhere else.
Read More

Now in its fourth year, Downstage Center has been featured by the Associated Press and Slate.com as the place to go for theatrical talk.

Downstage Center is heard weekly on XM Satellite Radio's Channel 28, On Broadway, with new programs debuting Fridays at 6 pm, followed by encores on Saturday at 12 noon, Sunday at 7 and Wednesday at midnight (all times eastern).

Following their initial run on XM, you can listen to the programs here in Real Media streaming audio format, download the mp3 files or you can subscribe to our podcast feed. Please note that due to copyright restrictions, any pre-recorded music that was used in the interview has been deleted from all audio files.

B.D. Wong

From Herringbone.
Original air date - September 26, 2008
Running Time - 59:12.

Bio of B.D. Wong

Tony-winner B.D. Wong talks about his ongoing fascination with the 11-character, one-actor musical Herringbone, from seeing the original production in 1981 through appearing in it for the third time, currently at New Jersey's McCarter Theater Center. He also recalls his earliest appearances on stage in high school musicals in San Francisco; his brief matriculation in college and how he forged a career without standard academic credentials; the personal and professional impact of landing the role of Song Liling in David Henry Hwang's M. Butterfly -- including how that famous story of identity led him to drop his own first name in favor of his initials and the problems it created when he sought subsequent roles; the travails of being brought in to play a role based on himself in Hwang's troubled Face Value -- and how he felt about being portrayed in the more recent Yellowface; the joy of being part of the ensemble of You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown; and his youthful connection to Pacific Overtures, and how it came full circle when he appeared in the Broadway revival.

If you enjoyed this episode of Downstage Center you may want to:

Subscribe to our podcasts

Send this page to a friend

Download
Real Player

Download
Windows Media Player

Download
QuickTime Player

Download
Acrobat Reader