NATURALLY TAN BY TANYA THOMAS OPENS AT HOLLYWOOD FRINGE FESTIVAL 2021

Naturally Tan

Publicists: Sandra Kuker-Franco: [email protected] 310.652.7222
or Anita Lee: [email protected] 818-416-1628

NATURALLY TAN
Written and performed by Tanya Thomas
Developed with and directed by Jessica Lynn Johnson

FOLLOW TANYA THOMAS’ SEARCH FOR ACCEPTANCE IN AMERICA THROUGH THE EYES OF A DRAG QUEEN FROM SINGAPORE.

A CAPTIVATING THEATRICAL EXPLORATION OF COLORISM, DAMAGING BEAUTY STANDARDS, AND IDENTITY REPRESENTATION. THE SHOW ADDS A DISTINCT VOICE TO THE FULL RANGE AND DIVERSITY OF ASIAN AMERICAN STORIES.

Los Angeles, CA (July 21, 2021) – Told through the bold perspective of a vivacious drag queen named Tanvi, Naturally Tan follows Tanya Thomas’ desperation to fit in as a minority in Singapore and her search for acceptance in America. Fueled by assimilation pains, Tanya delves into the heart of colorism that plagues the Asian diaspora, the complexities of racial identity, and the consequences of damaging beauty standards. Will Tanya hide behind her insecurities forever or will she embody her worth as a woman of color, mother, and artist?

Naturally Tan, written and performed by Tanya Thomas and developed with and directed by Jessica Lynn Johnson was an Official Selection & Best of Fest in The Whitefire Theatre’s SoloFest 2021 last winter. Naturally Tan opens on Saturday, August 7 at 3:00 p.m. with performances on Saturday, August 14 at 1:30 p.m. and Saturday, August 21 at 11:00 a.m. It will be performed for live audiences at The Broadwater Black Box Theatre (6322 Santa Monica Blvd. Hollywood, CA 90038) with each performance live streamed, offering audiences in Los Angeles and all over the world an option on how to experience this show. The show program PDF includes a printable Singlish flash card cheat sheet and a recipe of a Singaporean dish mentioned in the show.

Ticket holders will need to wear a mask and present proof of vaccination against COVID-19 or a negative COVID-19 test (within 72 hours) along with a government-issued photo ID in order to attend any in-person Hollywood Fringe event. Tickets are priced at $20 USD for in person performances and $15 for live streamed performances. Available online at https://tanyathomas.com/fringe.

Tanya Thomas (Playwright and Performer)
Tanya Thomas is an award winning solo artist, playwright, producer, actress and voiceover artist who started off her career hosting Top 40 radio shows in Singapore, jazz shows on KJAZZ 88.1FM in Long Beach, CA, and hosting 3 podcasts for Apple (iTunes Jazz Discovery, American Idol on iTunes and iTunes Weekly Rewind). Her one woman play, Naturally Tan, debuted as an official selection of Solofest 2021 at Whitefire Theatre in Los Angeles, where it also won a Best of Fest Award. As an actress, her theatre credits include Nickel and Dimed (Santa Paula Theater), Cheyenne Blood (Elite Theatre Company) and Please Have A Seat (Ojai Art Center Theater). Film Credits include False Colors, Blame, Collide, Status Change and People Are Strange. As a voice actor, Tanya has voiced numerous projects for companies like Apple, Target, Amazon, Food Network, GoDaddy, Google, AM Resorts etc. tanyathomas.com.

Jessica Lynn Johnson (Director and Developer)
Jessica Lynn Johnson is a published playwright, recipient of Best National Solo Artist Award, Advisory Board Member of the LA Women’s Theatre Festival, Director for Whitefire Theatre, and Founder & CEO of Soaring Solo LLC. Jessica has aided in the development of over 100 solo shows. As a performer, Jessica has “edu-tained” international audiences touring her own one person shows ZE and Oblivious to Everyone for over 15 years. Jessica’s projects have taken home awards such as Top Of Fringe, HFF Encore Producer Awards, Tvolution Best Solo Performance, Larry Cornwall Award For Musical Excellence & several other accolades. Jessica was also nominated for the Female Director of Distinction in Theatre by Girl Trip LLC at the 2018 Hollywood Fringe Festival. soaringsolostudios.com

CALENDAR LISTING
NATURALLY TAN
Written and performed by Tanya Thomas
Developed with and directed by Jessica Lynn Johnson

WHAT
Told through the bold perspective of a vivacious drag queen named Tanvi, Naturally Tan follows Tanya Thomas’ desperation to fit in as a minority in Singapore and her search for acceptance in America. Fueled by assimilation pains, Tanya delves into the heart of colorism that plagues the Asian diaspora, the complexities of racial identity, and the consequences of damaging beauty standards. Will Tanya hide behind her insecurities forever or will she embody her worth as a woman of color, mother, and artist?

WHERE
The Broadwater Black Box
6322 Santa Monica Blvd.
Hollywood, CA 90038

WHEN
Saturday, August 7 at 3:00 p.m.
Saturday, August 14 at 1:30 p.m.
Saturday, August 21 at 11:00 a.m.

ESTIMATED RUNNING TIME
80 minutes

TICKET INFORMATION
Ticket holders will need to wear a mask and present proof of vaccination against COVID-19 or a negative COVID-19 test (within 72 hours) along with a government-issued photo ID in order to attend any in-person Hollywood Fringe event. Tickets are priced at $20 USD for in person performances and $15 for livestreamed performances. Available online at https://tanyathomas.com/fringe.