Julia Riew is a Korean-American musical theater composer-lyricist, librettist, and songwriter. A senior at Harvard University, she has composed over 15 original songs for her Korean Disney musical, which she campaigns for through the popular platform, Tiktok, which has garnered much attention in the short span of one month.
In this episode, Riew discusses the making of musicals and the significance of adaptation of old stories that allows her to bring her own personal experience to it. She also discusses her experiences as a 2.5 generation Asian-America, how they've shaped her stories and songs. She also discusses the importance of having Asian protagonists, not just secondary characters, as well as the conflicting sense of unbelonging that many POC communities face.
Julia’s recent works include Alice’s Wonderland, an original musical a collaboration with J Quinton Johnson (Hamilton on Broadway, In the Heights at the Kennedy Center) that was workshopped in a 29-hour developmental reading in New York City at AMAS Musical Theater and will be premiering in Kansas City at the Coterie Theater this summer. Her other works include the TYA show Jack and the Beanstalk: A Musical Adventure was commissioned for the American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.)’s 2020 Family Musical, Thumbelina: A Little Musical (The A.R.T. 2019 Family Musical), and The East Side: A New Musical, which is currently being developed under a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) at Nora Theater Company in Central Square.
At Harvard, Riew co-founded the Harvard College Asian Student Arts Project (ASAP), a club created to provide the resources and community for Asian student artists, and was the recipient of the 2020 Radcliffe Doris Cohen Levi Musical Theater Prize, as well as a John Harvard Scholar. She is currently a nominee for the 2022 Louis Sudler (Music Composition) Prize for the Arts.
The American Secret War in Laos │ 2x13
Cultivating Personal Growth and Legacy │ 2x12
Immigrant Excellence in the Design Industry │ 2x11
Curating an Experience in Opera │ 2x10
Playing Yourself for a Living with Kristina Wong │ 2x9
The Business of Representation with Alexa Khan │ 2x8
Exploring Identity, Community, and Refugitude through Theatre │ 2x7
Sowing Compassion, Community, and Education from Tragedy │ 2x6
Diversity from Behind the Scenes with Miranda Kwok │ 2x5
Cultivating Sense of Self through Science & Art │ 2x4
Covid-19 Vaccines and Variants Part III with Dr. Paul Song │ 2x3
Advocating for Asian American Communities through Poetry │ 2x2
Laur Allen: Advocating Positive Social Justice & Humanitarian Impact through Law & Media │1x42
Archie Kao - A Chinese American Actor‘s Journey Along the Pacific Rim │1x41
Quyền Nguyen Le: A Queer Filmmaker and Writer Creating Pathways to Understanding through Film │1x40
Raising Awareness for Social Justice Reform, Youth Education, and Women’s Rights through Music│1x39
Tasty Asian Inspired Halloween Recipes and Horror Films with Korean Chef Cathlyn Choi │1x38
Parents are Human │1x37
Empowering Next Generation of Asian Youth Voices in Film Media Arts and Pop Culture │1x36
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
The Modern West
Just Dumb Enough Podcast
Voices of Misery Podcast
House of Whimsical Terror
Stuff You Should Know
Timcast IRL