Lily Tung Crystal

As I wrap things up at @theatermu and head out west to @eastwestplayers , I was wowed and touched by this letter I received from the Office of the Governor (and hopefully next Vice President!) congratulating me and thanking me for my contributions to Minnesota. I didn’t even think they knew who I was! Thanks for supporting Mu during my time here! I love MN because it takes cares of its artists. ❤️

This. Today. Wow. I’m always astounded and forever grateful that I get to live my life in the theater. Thank you to the staffs, boards, artists, and supporters at @theatermu and @eastwestplayers for welcoming me and supporting me in both my homes. Thanks to writer Ashley Lee for the great conversation and your generosity and words. I grew up in a family of news addicts, and the @latimes was a fixture on our kitchen table. To now see this is mind-boggling. If only my mom were still with us. She would’ve been proud. ❤️ /entertainment-arts/story/2024-05-15/east-west-players-artistic-director-lily-tung-crystal#

Mother’s Day was such a happy day with food, boba, and Lulu the Piggy, with @theericcrystal and @tong.anjian , the love of my life who I’m so grateful for, who made me a mother. And as I watched Flower Drum Song, I was inspired by all the mothers and daughters who came together and chose to spend that special day with us. I wept, thinking of my mother’s journey to this country and all the sacrifices she made to be here and make my life as an artist possible. Here she is in the lobby of @potrerostage with me and Cole after the third show I ever directed, @leahnanako ’s Two Mile Hollow, and my first as an artistic director. Here she also is teaching Cole how to dance. She used to come to all my shows. Oh how I wish she could have seen Flower Drum Song. She loved musicals, and I can picture her reveling over this one in that big house on that big stage. It’s one of my biggest sadnesses that she left us right before I came to @eastwestplayers and couldn’t experience our life here. I miss her so much. Happy Mother’s Day, Mom! And thank you, Cole, for making every Mother’s Day so special. I love you both with all my heart always and forever!

Happy Mother’s Day to @lilytungcrystal and my late 婆婆 💜 I could never ask for a better mother, nor do I think it would be possible for anyone else to be a better mother than you. You have always encouraged me to be myself and do what I want, and I would not be the artist and person I am today without you. You are so spontaneous and I will always cherish the memories we’ve shared when you have randomly decided we’re doing something fun. I love you ∞ To 婆婆, I’ll always remember how we would wait for my parents to leave, and then you’d sneakily pull out a big box of chocolates for me. I hope you are proud of the beautiful and talented daughter you created, and the family you helped create. I will always love you and miss you.

Happy Closing from the company of @thedavidhenryhwang ’s FLOWER DRUM SONG at @eastwestplayers to the company of @katie_ka_vang ’s HMONG FUTURES at @theatermu ! Here’s to AAPI theater across the country. Happy Asian & Pacific Heritage Month!

LA theater goers are buzzing about @thedavidhenryhwang 2026 revisal of @rodgersandhammerstein FLOWER DRUM SONG, directed by our Artistic Director @lilytungcrystal ✨🪭 Have you seen the show yet? There’s still plenty of time to see what everyone’s talking about… grab those tickets while you can! RODGERS AND HAMMERSTEIN’S FLOWER DRUM SONG Presented at The Aratani Theatre at the Japanese American Cultural & Community Center @jaccc_la in Little Tokyo, Los Angeles | 244 San Pedro St, Los Angeles, CA 90012 SHOW RUN: APRIL 18th-MAY 31st, 2026 GET TICKETS NOW 🎟️: /flower

The dedicated company of FLOWER DRUM SONG receives their first flowers from LA theater critics after a dazzling opening night this past Thursday. If you haven’t made your way to this big musical in Little Tokyo, what are you waiting for? 📸: @mpalmaphoto #flowerdrumsong #lathtr

Special announcement! 📣 At this weekend’s performances of FLOWER DRUM SONG, EWP artistic director and show director @lilytungcrystal will step in as Madame Liang while the wonderful @emily.kuroda gets some vocal rest after the excitement of previews and our opening night performance. We will have Emily back next week after a well deserved break. If you’ve never seen Lily perform on stage before, now is your chance! She is a multi-hyphenate artist having started her journey to the stage as a singer and actor, and was last seen acting in STOP KISS at @theatermu in 2025. Not to mention her onstage singing duet with @niseiweek president @hhota at last summer’s @crazytalented_asians ! Come cheer her on as she joins our dazzling cast for the weekend at Club Chop Suey! #flowerdrumsong #eastwestplayers #jacccla #lathtr

Happy opening to "Seng's Hair Salon" at @interacttheatreco and "Flower Drum Song" at @eastwestplayers ! And of course, we're sending extra love to our @mellonfoundation playwright-in-residence @refugenius , who wrote "Seng's Hair Salon," and to former artistic director @lilytungcrystal , who is leading @eastwestplayers !

We think you're going to like it here... 🌸🥁🎶 Our cast & crew has been hard at work preparing to bring Club Chop Suey to life! Previews are just 1 week away, and we can't wait for you all to experience this new chapter to a classic story. Scroll through for some nostalgia, & get a little glimpse of the rehearsal process! RODGERS & HAMMERSTEIN'S FLOWER DRUM SONG ⭐ STARRING: #GraceYoo #MarcOka @scottytakeda @emily.kuroda @kristamarieyu @readygedde @coopleeb @itskenton ✨ ENSEMBLE: @paulwongactor @gemmapedersen @ethanymchan esther.lee13 @jkabobs @sallyhongittyyabba @tony.jin_ @sierra.goria @hillbills_ @toyosienne @liebsonbounds @livingarsenal @why_musical #EmmaPark RODGERS & HAMMERSTEIN'S FLOWER DRUM SONG is a co-production of #EastWestPlayers & The Japanese American Cultural and Community Center @jaccc_la The show will run April 18th - May 31st, 2026 at the Aratani Theatre in Little Tokyo, Los Angeles 🎟️ GET YOUR TICKETS NOW /flower

Congratulations to playwright @mslaurenyee and director @chayyew ; our fabulous cast, creative team, and crew; and the staff, board, and production team at @eastwestplayers , on @cambodianrockband receiving the award for Best Production in 2025 by the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle. The Los Angeles cast included Kelsey Angel Baehrens, Abraham Kim, Timothy Liu, Jane Lui, Joseph Ngo, and Daisuke Tsuji. The creative team was Jane Lui and Matt MacNelly (Music Directors), Ashphord Jacoway (Additional Costume Design, original costume design by Linda Cho), Derek Jones (Lighting Design), Megumi Katayama and Mikhail Fiksel (Sound Designers), Mina Kinukawa (Scenic Design, original scenic design by Takeshi Kata), Jason H. Thompson (Projections Design), Yoko Haitz (Hair & Make-Up Design), Glenn Michael Baker (Properties Coordinator), Cesar Cipriano (Fight Director), Edward Khris Fernandez (Stage Manager), and Jenny Park (ASM). Understudies included Zandi De Jesus, Alex Hsu, and Kevin Vann.

Venerable American playwright @thedavidhenryhwang has done a fresh rewrite of Rodgers & Hammerstein's musical "Flower Drum Song" to mark the finale of @eastwestplayers 60th season! The link to my long-awaited interview with him is found in my bio. #musical #flowerdrumsong #theater #assimilation #aanhpi #aapi #asianamerican