HOME / 2023-24 SEASON / THE NAME JAR

CELEBRATE THE MEANING BEHIND YOUR NAME

In this world premiere based on the timeless book by Yangsook Choi, Unhei has moved from Korea to America with her family and has started a new school. When the kids struggle with her name, she wonders if she should choose a new one to fit in. Her classmates decide to help out by filling a glass jar with names for her to pick from, but will any of them fit? The Name Jar is a celebration of culture, family, and what’s in a name.

Recommended for ages 5+

GENERAL INFORMATION

DATES

Mar 22 - Apr 14, 2024, at Stages Theatre Company

• Mar 24 at 4 pm: Pay What You Can

• Apr 6: Sensory-friendly performance

• Apr 14: Pre-show author signing with Yangsook Choi and post-show talkback with Choi and playwright Susan H. Pak

TICKETS

Tickets range from $5 to $18, not including free lap passes for children 2 years and under. Mu 2023/24 season subscribers will have access to a special discount code.

Discounts are available for groups of 10 or more.

As ticketing for The Name Jar is through Stages Theatre Company, please contact its box office at (952) 979-1111, option 4, or at info@stagestheatre.com with any questions.

VENUE INFORMATION

The Name Jar will take place at Stages Theatre Company, located at 1111 Mainstreet, Hopkins, MN 55343. There is a free public parking ramp on 11th Avenue just south of Mainstreet. Parking for those with mobility limitations is available at the rear of the Hopkins Center for the Arts (subject to availability) and on the street level of the public parking ramp.

EXPLORE MORE & FEATURED PRESS

Fox 9’s Shayne Wells chats with actors Vivian Nielsen and Jeannie Landers about how they’re related in the show and outside of the show, and more. Watch now.

Check out our Q&A with author Yangsook Choi and playwright Susan H. Pak to get insights about The Name Jar’s inspiration, childhood memories with their own Korean names, and more. Read more.

KSTP’s Minnesota Live chats with actor Vivian Nielsen and Mu programs manager Morgen Chang about rehearsals, the meaning of the play, and more. Watch now.

Actor Vivian Nielsen talks a little about the inspiration behind the scenic and costume design of The Name Jar. Watch now.

IN COLLABORATION

The Name Jar is brought to you by a collaboration with Stages Theatre Company.

MEET THE cast

Understudies: Sydney Lin, Addica Sharbono, and Jake Sung-Guk Sullivan

MEET THE AUTHOR

YANGSOOK CHOI (she/her) grew up in Korea. She started drawing at age four and loved telling her grandma scary stories. Since moving to New York to pursue her art, she has written and illustrated many books for young readers. Her books have been acclaimed as a New York Times Outstanding Book of the Year, an American Library Association Notable Book, and with an International Reading Association's Children's Book Award. When she is not creating, she loves to spend time with children in her community and around the world. The local children in a shelter, the mountain children in the Himalayas, the Bedouin children in the Arabian desert, the orphans in flooded Cambodia, and the North Korean defector children are among her greatest teachers.

MEET THE PLAYWRIGHT

SUSAN H. PAK (she/her) has taught playwriting, screenwriting, television writing, and webseries writing at the university-level for over a decade. Productions and readings of her work include: Masks Off and Election at the Goodman Theater, Miguk Saram at Local Lab 2021, The Fixer at the Steppenwolf Theater, Marabar at Chicago Dramatists, Ghost Girl at the Workshop Theater, T.A.B. at New York’s Downtown Urban Theater Festival and the Manhattan Repertory Theater Festival, Haters at New York’s Midtown International Theater Festival, Baby Shower at New York’s Network One Act Festival, Incredible Invisible at Chicago’s Bailiwick Director’s Fest, and The Writers at Theater Unleashed in LA. Susan’s plays Miguk Saram and The F*ck House were both finalists at the 2020 and 2021 O'Neill National Playwrights Conference. Susan was also a member of the 2021/22 Goodman Playwrights Unit and is the 2023/24 BIPOC resident playwright at Strawdog Theatre Company in Chicago.

Meet the Director

JAKE SUNG-GUK SULLIVAN (he/him) is a director, actor, and educator from the Twin Cities metro area. Recent directing credits: The Wedding Singer (Lyric Arts), A Different Pond (Theater Mu/Stages Theatre Company), Cambodian Rock Band - associate director (Theater Mu/The Jungle Theatre), Disney's The Little Mermaid (Lakeshore Players Theatre), [title of show] (Lyric Arts). He also serves as the theatre teacher at Breck School. 

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