The Old Globe is pleased to present the West Coast premiere of Dishwasher Dreams, written and performed by Alaudin Ullah (filmmaker of the award-winning documentary In Search of Bengali Harlem; featured comedy acts on HBO, Comedy Central, PBS, and more; the hit film American Desi) and directed by Chay Yew (Cambodian Rock Band – Craig Noel Award; Durango – Obie Award), with music by acclaimed tabla percussionist Avirodh Sharma. Performances begin September 16 and play through October 15, 2023, with the opening on Thursday, September 21 in the Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre, part of the Globe’s Conrad Prebys Theatre Center in San Diego’s Balboa Park. Tickets are on sale now at www.TheOldGlobe.org.
What exactly is the American Dream? For Alaudin Ullah’s Bangladesh-born parents, it means opportunity and a stable job. But to comedian Alaudin, America is the home of the New York Yankees and George Carlin. In an autobiographical solo show that the Hartford Courant calls “memorable and meaningful,” Ullah and musician Avirodh Sharma take audiences on a journey of vivid remembrances and discoveries from 1930s Bangladesh to 1970s Spanish Harlem to present-day Hollywood. Through comedy and music, this remarkable play recounts the immigrant experience, how this country gets made, and the dreams of those who make it.
Dishwasher Dreams is the companion piece of Ullah’s award-winning documentary film In Search of Bengali Harlem, which will be streaming on PBS this fall. Plans for a theatrical release of the film and distribution on other streaming platforms are slated for later this year.
“The Old Globe is thrilled to be presenting the West Coast premiere of Alaudin Ullah’s exuberantly funny Dishwasher Dreams,” said Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director Barry Edelstein. “And we couldn’t be more honored to have the esteemed Chay Yew, one of the country’s leading theatre directors, at the Globe. Alaudin and Chay’s artful collaboration vibrantly tells the stories of the complexities and struggles of achieving the American Dream, enhanced further by the extraordinary live music by tabla percussionist Avirodh Sharma. I’m certain our audiences will have an exciting evening of laughter and joy.”
In addition to playwright Alaudin Ullah, director Chay Yew, and musician Avirodh Sharma, the creative team includes Yu Shibagaki (Scenic Design), Izumi Inaba (Costume Design), Anshuman Bhatia (Lighting Design), and Darlene Miyakawa (Production Stage Manager).
Dishwasher Dreams was originally developed under the name Indio through the Joseph Papp Public Theater’s Emerging Writers Group Program. Playwright Alaudin Ullah was part of the program’s inaugural 2010–2011 cohort of writers. In 2018, Castillo Theatre in New York presented the world premiere of Ullah’s play, which was directed by Gabriel Vega Weissman. In 2022, the play was directed by Chay Yew at Writers Theatre in Glencoe, Illinois, and Hartford Stage in Connecticut.
