Word for Word presents Amy Tan's "Immortal Heart"

Word for Word is bringing Bay Area favorite Amy Tan’s words to life through a production of her short story “Immortal Heart” to kick off its 11th season. “Immortal Heart”—the short story that evolved into Tan’s award-winning The Bonesetter’s Daughter—reveals a hidden world, one circumscribed by the powers of family and destiny, and the strict tenets of women's roles in rural China in the 1900's.

IMMORTAL HEART opens with a press night on Friday, July 16, at 8:30 PM at the Magic Theatre, Southside (previews July 13,14,15). Amy Tan, award winning novelist of The Joy Luck Club, The Kitchen God’s Wife, and The Bonesetter’s Daughter, is distinguished for her compelling generational stories of mothers and daughters, and her deeply etched characters and riveting dramatic plots.

Directed by WORD FOR WORD Charter Member Delia MacDougall with assistant director Michael Cheng, IMMORTAL HEART features actors Mitzie Abe, Michael Cheng, Julia Cho, Tina Huang, Lisa Kang, Kerry Lee, Melissa Wong Renati, Brian Rivera, and Dennis Yen. The production is designed by Mikiko Uesugi, with lighting by Jim Cave, costumes by Keiko Shimosato, and sound by Randall Wong.

IMMORTAL HEART continues its run Wednesdays-Sundays, July 17-August 8 at the Magic Theatre, Southside, Building D, Fort Mason Center (previews July 13,14,15). Performances are 8:30 PM Wed.-Sat., with 3 PM matinees on Sundays. Tickets $27, $2 discounts to students and seniors. All Wed. and previews are pay-what-you-can. Word for Word is at http://www.zspace.org For information and reservations, call (415) 437-6775.

Word for Word is a performing arts company that blends literature and theater into one art form, bringing short stories to life on stage without omitting a single word of the original text. Author Amy Tan describes Word for Word as “a marvel. While respecting the author's every word, the company also manage to create something completely new, going well beyond the page into an art that has no words. I was completely bowled over by the acting, the stage, the costumes, the choreography -- the sheer power of the experience of watching words come to life.”

Founded in 1993 by Susan Harloe and JoAnne Winter, the company is entering its 11th season. WORD FOR WORD performs short stories in their entirety, preserving the author’s language and honoring his or her literary intent. WORD FOR WORD has staged works throughout the Bay Area, as well as in France (through support from the Florence Gould Foundation in New York). In addition, WORD FOR WORD presents its popular School and Library Tour twice yearly throughout Northern California. The company has presented ten annual home seasons at San Francisco’s Fort Mason Center. In 1997, WORD FOR WORD received a special Bay Area Critics Circle Award for its unique concept and in 1998, the BACC Award for Best Ensemble for their production of John Sayles’ “The Halfway Diner.” In 2002, they received six BACC Awards, including Best Production, Ensemble, Director, and Sound for Winesburg, Ohio, and Best Set and Sound for Oil! In 2003, they received yet another BACC award for Best Ensemble for their 2002 production of “Stories by Tobias Wolff.”