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11/7/2008 HOUSTON, TX – Nova Arts Project, the Houston theatre company dedicated to recreating classics and inspiring new works in a fearlessly theatrical way, presents, in collaboration with the Asian/Pacific American Heritage Association the regional premier of The Gate of Heaven by Lane Nishikawa and Victor Talmadge at DiverseWorks Art Space.

The Gate of Heaven follows two men, a Japanese-American soldier and a Jewish survivor of the Dachau prison camp, through fifty years of shared experience and a shared journey to discover the elusive American dream.

Playwright Lane Nishikawa has been called “one of Asian America’s most compelling voices” by Academy Award-winning filmmaker Steven Okazaki – who noted, “His work is funny,
angry, and deeply moving.” Upon seeing one of Nishikawa’s one-man shows, the Los Angeles Times theater critic Sylvie Drake declared that “his core is molten lead …Nishikawa
is at his best when the language takes over and we’re exposed to a tumbling profusion of culture images racing by…” His acclaimed body of work over two decades has continually
broken new ground in examining the human condition of the Asian American experience.

APAHA and Nova Arts Project are excited to join forces once again in the production of such an important artistic and cultural event. Previously, these two organizations worked
together to stage the wildly successful Joy Luck Club as part of the NEA Big Read program and the Houston International Festival. Nova Artistic Director Clinton Hopper said, “I’m humbled and thrilled to work with APAHA again. The opportunity to create a piece of theater that speaks to several sectors of our society, particularly ones that do not have many opportunities to interact is extremely gratifying. And to do so in the setting of the DiverseWorks Art Space makes the entire
project that much more wonderful.”

The Gate of Heaven opens Saturday, December 6 and plays again Sunday, December 7; then again the next weekend, Thursday, December 11 through Sunday, December 14; and
finally, Thursday, December 18 through Sunday, December 21. All Sunday performances, December 7, 14 and 21 are 2pm matinees, and all other performances are at 8pm at the
DiverseWorks Art Space, 1117 E. Freeway, Houston, TX 77002.

Tickets are on a sliding scale between $15 - $30 and can be purchased in advance online at www.novaartsproject.com
or at the door. Reservations can be made by calling the Nova Arts Project office at 832-545-8778 or emailing: info@novaartsproject.com .

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