Secret Warriors, a new play commissioned by the History Theatre (running through April 19), does what the History Theatre does best: focuses in on a particular element of history with a Minnesota connection. This World War II-set play, written by R.A. Shiomi and directed by Lily Tung Crystal, brings to light the stories of the Japanese Americans who were recruited to serve as translators and interpreters in service to the American military.
This play is set during a particularly shameful chapter of American history when, in February 1942, President Franklin Roosevelt cited military necessity as the basis for incarcerating over 120,000 Japanese Americans during World War II, regardless of birth or citizenship status. While their families have lost their businesses and livelihoods and are living in camps, these men have come to Minnesota to attend the Military Intelligence Service Language School (MISLS) and serve the country that has incarcerated their families.
"They are the warriors you don’t know. Inspired by the stories of the Japanese Americans who served as translators and interrogators for the U.S. Armed Forces, Secret Warriors features two men, Koji Kimura and Tamio Takahashi, who took extraordinary risks to save their fellow soldiers in the Pacific Theater during World War II. As the eyes and ears of General MacArthur, they saved countless Allied lives and shortened the war by two years. Discover their compelling personal journeys and heartfelt love stories set against the backdrop of the war and the incarceration of their families." (History Theatre)
In the first act, we meet a group of recruits as they attend the language school at Camp Savage in Minnesota. Koji Kimura (Clay Man Soo), Tamio Takahashi (Erik Ohno Dagoberg), Masa Matsui (Song Kim), and Isamu Oikawa (Josh Kwon) are studying hard and constantly monitored by Lt. Jeff Nelson (Paul LaNave), who demands they keep up with latrine cleaning and KP duty when they're not studying. Though the four come from very different worlds, they band together to help one another pass. A welcome respite for Koji and Tamio comes when they spend an evening at the Minneapolis USO and meet Natsuko Nishi (Stephanie Anne Bertumen) and Denise Murphy (Kendall Kent). Their wartime romances make it even more difficult to leave when they receive their overseas placements.
The second act follows the soldiers through the war and beyond. From being unable to go up on deck (and threatened) on their ship overseas to going into incredibly dangerous situations, the stories of these brave heroes are even more poignant considering that everything they did remained a secret until many years later. Not only that, but their efforts did not provide any relief or comfort to their incarcerated families.
Hey, by the way! Did you know that the antiquated law that enabled President Franklin D. Roosevelt to authorize the Japanese internment camps was
The Alien Enemies Act of 1798? Sound familiar? It should, because the current federal administration is using it to deport legal and illegal immigrants without due process. Speaking of shameful chapters in American History . . .
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(L-R) Erik Ohno Dagoberg, Josh Kwon, Clay Man Soo,
Song Kim. Photo by Rick Spaulding. |
The cast of
Secret Warriors is universally excellent. Erik Ohno Dagoberg is a engaging hero as Tamio, whose streetwise spark contrasts with Clay Man Soo's initially innocent farmer boy. The two also have marvelous chemistry with their respective loves, Kendall Kent and Stephanie Anne Bertumen. Rich Remedios, with his rich voice and bearing, is another standout in distinctly different roles as their teacher John Aiso, and as a Japanese military leader who is questioned by Koji.
We stayed for the "Afterthoughts" talk back and learned quite a bit about the creation of the play. We would have not known to shout out Rio Saito, their Japanese Language Consultant, but we definitely do after hearing the work they put into teaching non-Japanese speakers to speak so authentically in Japanese. I loved how naturally they flowed from Japanese to English and how captions were not used. Why should we as English speakers always have language spoon fed to us? It was also fascinating to hear of the organizations that are holding and sharing this history in the Twin Cities who assisted with this play.
As Lily Tung Crystal says in her director's note: "These soldiers faced an extraordinary contradiction. They were asked to prove their loyalty to a nation that has turned its back on them. They fought on two fronts--one against an enemy abroad, the other against racism at home. Their contributions were critical to the war effort, yet for decades, their service has remained largely unrecognized."
Thanks to the History Theatre and the cast and creators of Secret Warriors for shining a light on the stories of these heroic soldiers as well as the stories of incarcerated Japanese Americans.
If you'd like to learn more about the incarceration of Japanese Americans in World War II, a great source is
Densho, an organization that is dedicated to "preserving Japanese American stories of the past for the generations of tomorrow."
And if you'd like even more reasons why preserving and telling these stories is so important, see the article "
The Rise and Threats of Digital Erasure in Public Memory" on Densho's website, which gives an example of how the current federal administration is attempting to remove race from American history.
