AAPI Heroes is an evening of dynamic contemporary dance honoring Asian American icons who have significantly shaped American history and culture. This show follows a young explorer, Kai, on a journey across time. Along the way, they encounter legendary figures including Bruce Lee, a master of martial arts and philosophy; Hollywood trailblazer Anna May Wong, brought to life through her celebrated archival film footage; NASA astronaut Sunita Williams, who walked in space for more than 62 hours; classical music visionary Yo-Yo Ma, honored through a live cello performance; and the global K-POP phenomenon. Featuring the Bessie-nominated piece NuWa, the program reaches thousands of students and audiences annually at schools, theaters, and cultural venues and will tour nationally in 2026.

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DIRECTOR AND CHOREOGRAPHER

Jessica Chen (she/her) is an American dancer, choreographer and founder of J CHEN PROJECT. Her work has graced prestigious platforms like New York Fashion Week at MoMA, Lincoln Center, and MACY's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Chen has choreographed for productions Rodger and Hammerstein's Cinderella at Geva Theater and Jersey Boys at Weathervane Theater, and Spring Awakening for Montclair State University, where she is currently an adjunct professor teaching Jazz. Chen's recent role as Assistant Director for the World Premiere of The Messenger by Jenny Connel Davis underscored her versatility, focusing on stories of marginalized yet resilient women. Internationally, she has been featured at the World Expo-USA Pavilion in Shanghai and in a special showcase by Google Arts & Culture. Chen's accolades include being a 2021 GALLIM Moving Women Artist-in-Residence, a 2021 Dance Lab New York Choreographer, and a 2023 Bessie Award nominee for Outstanding Choreographer/Creator. Her current projects include choreographing Cabaret at CenterREP, and Beautiful: The Carole King Musical at Weathervane.

DANCERS

Carl Ponce Cubero (they/siya) is a Filipinx American movement artist/creative based in New York City. They graduated from University of California, Irvine with a BFA in Dance Performance and performed under the direction of the late Donald McKayle. They have performed with Ailey II and as a guest artist with Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. They have also danced works by Aszure Barton, Lar Lubovitch, Andrea Miller, Jessica Lang, Rena Butler, and David Parsons. Carl has danced with J CHEN PROJECT since 2021, and became Dance Captain in 2025.

Hayoung Roh started dancing when she was 4 years old in the styles of ballet, jazz, and tap. She continued her training with Civic Dance Center in Bakersfield, CA, graduated from Orange County High School of the Arts (OCSA) in southern California, and received her BFA in Dance from NYU Tisch School of the Arts. After graduating, Hayoung was in the original cast of the resident MGM show, ‘Destiny’ in Macau, China. Upon moving back to the US, Hayoung joined Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company and J Chen Project. She was an NBA dancer for the New York Knicks and Brooklyn Nets, and ultimately captain of the Brooklynettes. Most recently, she was in the Ensemble for the Christmas Spectacular with the Radio City Rockettes. She has performed with artists such as Tinashe, Iggy Azalea, Kylie Minogue, Rick Ross, Lil’ Mama, Laufey, The Blue Man Group, and more. Hayoung has had multiple TV appearances such as America’s Got Talent with the Broadway cast of &Juliet, Pix11 Morning News, and CNN’s New Year’s Eve Special. Hayoung is signed with Bloc Talent Agency. Hayoung joined the cast of AAPI Heroes in 2025.

Ria Yamdagni is a South Asian performer from Bangkok, Thailand, now based in New York City. She holds a Conservatory Certificate in Musical Theatre from AMDA and a BFA in Musical Theatre from The New School. Ria joined J CHEN PROJECT in June 2024 and is thrilled to be part of the AAPI Heroes national tour. She looks forward to continuing to grow and evolve in the style of contemporary dance.

Grace Blackmar (she/her) is a Chinese American artist from Portland, Oregon. She attended the Ailey/Fordham BFA program in Dance, performing works by Peiju Chien-Pott, Annie Rigney, Katarzyna Skarpetowska, Brice Mousset, and Meagan King. Grace was Asian American Arts Alliance’s inaugural Anjeli Jana Memorial Intern, where she worked in arts programming, advocating for AAPI artists and cultural workers. She is thrilled to be part of Jessica Chen’s AAPI Heroes!

GUEST ARTISTS / CELLIST

Audrey Chen, praised for her “lyricism of dramatic intensity” (San Francisco Classical Voice) and “longevity of phrasing” (Boston Musical Intelligencer), Washington state native and cellist Audrey Chen has performed in venues across the globe including Carnegie Hall, Sumitomolife Izumi Hall, Melbourne Recital Center, Royal Albert Hall, and Wigmore Hall. Audrey performs most actively as the cellist of the international prize-winning Terra String Quartet, the current Fellowship Quartet-in-Residence at the Yale School of Music. Outside of the quartet, she has soloed with the Seattle Symphony and the Harvard-Radcliffe Orchestra and performs frequently as a guest artist with the Jupiter Chamber Players.

Audrey has been featured at chamber music festivals including Yellowbarn, Olympic Music Festival, Music@Menlo, Ravinia Steans Music Institute, Four Seasons Chamber Music, Perlman Music Program, Tanglewood Music Center, Taos Music School, and Sarasota Music Festival. She received her B.A. in Molecular Biology from Harvard University and a Master of Music degree from the New England Conservatory, where her teachers included Laurence Lesser and Lluis Claret. She received her Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the CUNY Graduate Center under Marcy Rosen while teaching chamber music at CUNY Hunter College. On account of her graduate studies, she was named a 2022 recipient of the prestigious Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans. Outside of music, Audrey enjoys watching films and doing jigsaw puzzles.

PRODUCTION STAGE MANAGER

Tobi Lee, Barnard College graduate with a B.A. in Dance and East Asian Studies, is committed to fostering healing and communal arts spaces through organizing, teaching and contemplative practice. Trained at Ballet Tech under Elliot Feld and Professional Performing Arts High School, she has worked with artists including Michael McGowan, Caili Quan, Bo Park, Vive Khamingsavath, Yusha-Marie Sorzano, and Michael Trusnovec. Her experience spans ethnographic research, stage management, choreography, visual arts and project management at various nonprofits such as JCHEN Project, Arts on Site, SOON Movement Global, and Samaw Dance. She primarily serves as a Project Associate at City Seminary of New York.

COMPOSER & SOUND DESIGNER

Tony Yang, 楊伯翊 (Yáng•bó•yì), also known as PaprTape, is a composer, sound designer, and musician who blends traditional and modern techniques across multiple genres. He began his career in Asia, winning first place in the International Floral Expo Remix Competition and producing the top-charting girl group Six.S. Since then, he has worked with brands and cultural institutions such as Burberry, the Guggenheim Museum in New York. PaprTape studied violin and piano under Khuillip Jeung at The Juilliard School and apprenticed with Michael Riesman, music director of the Philip Glass Ensemble, contributing to scores and recordings with Philip Glass. His work reflects a thoughtful integration of classical training and contemporary practices, creating a diverse and adaptable approach to sound design and composition.

Salvador “Suavecito” Zamora is a sound designer, composer, producer, and dancer born and raised in southern California. He recently graduated from UCSD with both his MFA in Sound Design and BA in Interdisciplinary Computing and the Arts Major. He’s passionate about his border town communities, Latinx culture, and the connection between sound and movement. Select designer credits: The Surgeon and Her Daughters (Colt Coeur), Here There Are Blueberries (Detroit Public Theatre), Indian Princesses (La Jolla Playhouse), How to Put On a Sock (LJP WOW Festival), Bunny Bunny (Invisible Dog), Primary Trust (Barrington Stage Co.), Carrie: The Musical (Loyola Marymount University), The Grown Ups (Baby Teeth LA), The Fires (Soho Rep), Tick, Tick…Boom! (Cygnet Theatre). Select associate credits: Here There are Blueberries (National Tour), Sumo (The Public). www.suavecito.design @suavecito_sounddesign

COSTUME DESIGNER

Lui Konno is a costume designer/technician from Yokohama City in Japan. She received her BFA in Oil Painting from Tama Art University in Tokyo and BA in Theater and Film from Hunter College. Currently she is a first hand at Parsons-Meares, Ltd., and makes costumes for Broadway musicals, such as Lion King, Phantom of the Opera, Moulin Rouge, Hamilton, Frozen and & Juliet.

PRODUCER

Fran Kirmser is a Tony Award winning producer in both musical and play categories and recently produced Bob Fosse’s DANCIN’ on Broadway. Fran served as a Tony Voter from 2014 to 2020. She is deeply committed to facilitating the work of emerging artists to stage via fundraising, development and promotion. She is the author of A Life In Dance which is required reading in universities across the United States. www.frankirmser.com

SPEACIAL THANKS

A special thanks to the following individuals who shared their thoughts and support during the creation of AAPI HEROES. A special shoutout to Kaleolani Samson, Jasmine Gibbs, Samantha Cheng, our 2024 production intern Ria Yamdagni, and all our former performers Chieh Hsiung, Sumire Ishige, Maya Lam, Fang-Ting Yeh, Tsubasa Nishioka, Cameron Surh, Fiona Tsang, Joy Chen, Malachi Brown, Ari Evan, Hao Jiang, and SuperKnova. Thank you all for being a part of this journey!

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Thank You to our JCP Sponsors!

*J CHEN PROJECT Programs are made possible by the New York State Council for the Arts (NYSCA) with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature, NYC Department of Cultural Affairs (DCLA), Dance/NYC, and Coalition for Asian American Children and Families (CACF) through the NYS AAPI Community Fund. Without their continued backing, we would not be able to bring our passion for dance and storytelling to life.