UNiVERSALself - May 8th, 2014 - VPAC

UNiVERSALself - Electronic Press Kit - 2014 from Kilusan Bautista on Vimeo.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
CONTACT: Christine Chai | chaichristine@fhda.edu |  408.864.5560
Tom Izu | Project Director, IMPACT AAPI | izutom@fhda.edu | 408.864.8986

IMPACT AAPI & De Anza College presents:

UNiVERSALself

May 8th, 2014 | 1:30-3:30PM

FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

Cupertino, CA - Kilusan Bautista's one-man show ‘UNiVERSALself’ explores race in multicultural America with subjects ranging from the history of Filipino people to Hip Hop culture in the 1980's/90's to his intimate relationships with family, friends and spirituality.  On Thursday - May 8th, 2014 from 1:30PM – 3:30PM, there will be a special performance of ‘UNiVERSALself’ at The Visual & Performance Arts Center (21250 Stevens Creek Blvd. ▪ Cupertino, CA 95014).  This event is part of DeAnza College’s Asian American Speaker Program and is sponsored by IMPACT AAPI, APAX, and the Visting Speaker Series with support from DASB.

UNiVERSALself is a coming of age story based on Kilusan Bautista’s real life experiences in urban America. Caught in the melting pot of 1980’s/90’s San Francisco, UNiVERSALself delivers prayers to father's addicted to crack cocaine, while street kids are adopted by Hip Hop break beats in the twilight zone of broken immigrant dreams governed by juvenile delinquency and where masculinity is expressed in the depths of Malcolm X's voice, cloaked in Peter Pan tights that find discipline in the ancient Martial Arts. UNiVERSALself is an action packed experience that leaves audiences with a deeper understanding of our shared humanity!

During his youth, Kilusan is haunted by a ‘spirit of hate’ that seeks to destroy his self-esteem by influencing him into a helpless, violent and psychologically troubled state of existence. Guardian angels also exist, both real & spiritual, to guide Kilusan in defining his true self worth and racial identity. It is now up to Kilusan to make the right choices as a youth in urban, working class America. Shall he fall victim to the statistics of growing up in a “high risk” environment, polluted with drugs, violence and crime? Or shall Kilusan find his destiny and live a life that possesses knowledge of self?

This show features over 15 different characters all acted out by Kilusan Bautista, a Brooklyn based performance artist, originally from San Francisco, CA, who weaves together theater, spoken word poetry, Hip Hop, dance, martial arts, music and animation.  Artistic Direction/Choreography by Lia McPherson; Music Production by Chuck Mays; Multimedia Design by Tony Santa Ana; Animation Design by Ace & Sons Moving Pictures LLC; Lighting Design by Laeticia Emmanuel.

IMPACT AAPI is a five-year program funded by an Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions (AANAPISI) grant from the U.S. Department of Education. The name is an acronym for Initiatives to Maximize Positive academic Achievement and Cultural Thriving focusing on Asian American and Pacific Islander students at De Anza College.  Our goal is to close the gaps in academic achievement and transfer among Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) students at De Anza by focusing on Asian Pacific Islander subgroups that are historically underrepresented in higher education. Our integrated curricular pathways are designed to provide educational experiences that support and challenge our students.

More information can be found at:  http://www.deanza.edu/impact-aapi/index.html.

For more information please visit: https://www.deanza.edu/impact-aapi/

I am the TRAIN WRITER - Poem

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Yes, Yes, Yes

Without a question or doubt,

I am The TRAIN WRITER!

I write while riding the trains of New York City

Find me writing on the 7-train to Queens,

writing on the G-train to Brooklyn,

writing on the 4-train to Harlem,

or writing on the 6-train to the Bronx.

Sometimes I'm rocking an I-pod in my ears

but I always have a notebook in my left hand

while a magical pen in my right hand

transports me to the past, present and future....

I write about my life, what I think about

or how I feel about anything

I write about whats important to me

because I'm tired of reading negative,

narrow minded media depictions of the world today!

I write to excite my train riding experience.

I'm sorry yall but many times

people look so miserable on the trains.

I understand, for over 2 years

I use to ride as a former NYC educator.

I was tired, beat up and straight up, I just wanted to go home!

Now, I am blessed to write freely about my life

while riding the MTA...

That's why I'm known as the great TRAIN WRITER!

I love it when people stare at me while I'm writing,

keep looking, it adds to my inspiration.

I hope to inspire millions of other Train Writers world wide!

I am the TRAIN Writer who writes

in the veins of New York City!

I am the Train Writer

November 2010 - Update

November was a blessed month! Growth, travel and visions are the main themes for this month.

Mr. Hyphen, Brava Theater, San Francisco, CA-

On Nov 6th, 2010 I traveled back to California to participate in Mr. Hyphen 2010. I was chosen to be one of five finalists who would compete to win the crown of Mr. Hyphen 2010. This is an annual contest organized by Hyphen Magazine to highlight Asian Pacific American men who are devoted to community empowerment. The contest includes several exciting aspects: fashion, performance and Question/Answer. The winner would be crowned Mr. Hyphen 2010 but more importantly, a non-profit organization that serves the Asian Pacific American community would receive a $1,000 donation.

I had an amazing time building with the finalist and meeting the Hyphen Magazine community. The organization that I represented was the United Playaz, a violence prevention non profit organization based in San Francisco, CA. I was placed with 1st runner up. I gave it my all by performing an excerpt from my new solo theater production "Universal Filipino". I was dressed to impress by wearing a 3-piece suit and rocking custom made shoes designed by Jerry Macalino. Overall, it was great to see hundreds of folks come out to celebrate the positive contributions of Asian Pacific American men.

Latin American Law Students Association (LALSA)@ CUNY Law School, Queens, NY-

On Nov 18, 2010, I was the featured artist at the annual "Cafe Con Leche" event organized by LALSA at CUNY Law School in Queens, NY. This year's theme connected the importance of artist within movements for social justice. DJ Soulcrates and I shared a 30-minute excerpt of "Universal Filipino"Despite health issues this month, we were able to receive a standing ovation from the audience.

This event truely represented what it means to stand in solidarity with other communities. Here we have a Latin American student organization reaching out to a Filipino American artist. The principles of a universal struggle brought home the fact that we are in this movement for liberation together and we have so much to share/ learn from each other. In the end, we see the humanity and necessity to stand as a united force! Shout out to LALSA and everyone I met at this great event!

Fela! with the Brooklyn Public Library - Young Adult Pre-GED program, NYC-
On Nov 24, 2010, I was able to watch the hottest Broadway show in town, Fela! with my students from Sunset Park, Brooklyn. I feel very blessed because the theme of our class revolved around "Freedom Fighters" throughout the world and Fela! represented just that, an artist turned activist for Nigeria. My students were impressed by the dynamic presentation. Most of my students had never been to a Broadway production despite growing up in New York City. I am very grateful to be able to end the Fall season on this note. There is so much color, energy, creativity and dedication still alive in the movement to bring about true change, justice and freedom in this world.

It's funny because for the past 2.5 years I have watched several Broadway productions from "In The Heights", "Westside Story" and now "Fela!".....all of which I have never had to pay. God has allowed me to watch these amazing productions so that they inspire the fire within.....I am blessed! It is a dream of mine, that I am working on as we speak, to write, act and perform in the first Filipino American production on Broadway. With God and my ancestors blessings.....watch me!