Birds and the Curiosity - Playwright, Director, Producer

June 2023, Los Angeles, U.S.

“Birds and the Curiosity is creative, imaginative, and beautiful – inside and out.”

Project Description: Birds and the Curiosity

Not your regular coming-of-age story, Birds and the Curiosity creates a magical meet-up between two selves at different points in time: 10-year-old Zhigeng and adult Zhigeng. By depicting an adult’s re-tackling of formative memories from her early childhood, the story reflects on a child’s experience of joy, heartache, friendship, humiliation, loss, creative agency, family and a talking hamster.

Written by Gefei Liu and Olivia Xing,

Premiered at Mainstage, Hudson Theatres in June 2023

Honors:

Honorable Mention by Hollywood Fringe Festival Scholarship

The Loud Karma Emerging Women and Nonbinary Playwright’s Award - Third Place

HFF23 Community Awards - International Nominee

Reviews:

Review from Los Angeles Female Playwrights Initiative

Gia on the Move

The writing was insightful, ingenious, heartfelt, and often hilarious.

The direction was imaginative, seamlessly melding styles from all over the world, including a shadow puppet moment that was spellbinding.

- Roger Holzberg, co-founder and creative director for Reimagine Well, founder of the organization My Bridge 4 Life, professor at CalArts.

If you feel you have seen enough one-person shows where actors play themselves, then this charming piece of genuine World Theatre might be a breath of fresh fringe air.

It is a nice ninety-minute reminder that shows can come in all shapes, shades and sizes.

- Guy Picot, British playwright/director/performer