Using dance, drag, drama, and documentary elements, A Beautiful Country chronicles 150 years of Asian-American immigration history. Miss Visa Denied, a drag queen and performer, is the narrator who guides the audience through the turbulent history of Chinese, Filipino, and Japanese people coming to America. Heartfelt testimonials and the dramatization of some highly vibrant and egregious pieces of propaganda showcase the provocative events that have shaped this history. Addressing issues of race, gender, and appropriation, this play examines the fundamental questions surrounding the immigrant experience, including what it means to be an American.

A Beautiful Country was first produced in 1998 by Cornerstone Theater Company, in association with the Mark Taper Forum’s Asian Theatre Workshop and East West Players, at Castelar School in Los Angeles’ Chinatown. Chay Yew is currently the artistic director for the Victory Gardens Theater in Chicago, and has won an Obie and DramaLogue Award for Direction. His productions have been listed as one of the “Ten Best Productions of the Year” by both the Los Angeles Times and New York Times, and Best Achievement in Theatre by the Seattle Times. While the topic is serious, Yew shows his theatrical flair by many outlandishly funny moments and outrageous situations.