The San Francisco-Northern California Local Conservatory is proud to announce the launch of the SAG-AFTRA Screenplay Reading Series! This program is a new initiative open to SAG-AFTRA members and Bay Area writers/filmmaking teams that have a complete script they intend to produce. The SF-NC Conservatory Committee has accepted nine new works for table reads at the SAG-AFTRA office in downtown San Francisco to be held over the year.
As with all Conservatory programming, participation is open exclusively to members in good standing. If space is limited, members who have not participated in a Conservatory program in the last three months will be given priority.
IMPORTANT NOTE: You may submit to perform at the table read or join us in the audience.
- To be considered as a performer: You must submit directly to the filmmaker's contact email at michael@grantavesf.com. The deadline has been extended to Monday, Jan. 27.
- If you would like to attend as audience: Please email sf@sagaftra.org. If you have also submit for casting, please wait to email us until AFTER casting choices have been made.
Casting for Forbidden City
Created by Kelvin Moon Loh and Michael Ching
Synopsis: Forbidden City, 1945. When a wanderlust-filled Larry Ching, freshly discharged from the US Merchant Marines, is forced to work as a bartender at San Francisco’s most illustrious All-Oriental nightclub, he is discovered and becomes an overnight sensation as a crooner (dubbed “The Chinese Frank Sinatra”). There he meets a beautiful dancer, Vicki Lee, who shows him behind the curtain into a world of romance, sex, and jazz as the Forbidden City envelops all who dare to venture through her doors. Based on a true story.
Logline: Forbidden City, San Francisco unearths a real gem of a true story of a rollercoaster romance between two young Asian-American performers, Larry Ching and Vicki Lee, during the '40s with a dazzling setting that provides a visual feast of theatrical spectacle and crowd-pleasing musical numbers. In the right hands, this timeless yet refreshing story that revolves around the Asian and Asian-American performers at a real-life club in San Francisco has a lot of potential to stand out from the crowd. With the tone of romantic period musical (A Star Is Born, The Greatest Showman) meets musical biopic (Elvis, Rocketman), this theatrical love story takes advantage of the performance club setting (a la Moulin Rouge) and well- loved tropes from period romance to structure Larry's musical numbers around his burgeoning love for Vicki.
Seeking performers able to portray the following roles for the in-person table read on Monday, Feb. 3:
(Professional performers do not need to fit the character descriptions to participate.)
Main Characters:
- Senior Larry Ching - 80 years old. After the death of Vicki, he remarried and decided to start singing again at various functions.
- Younger Larry Ching - 25 years. Larry is a Chinese Hawaiian singer and kind of a playboy, drinker. Left Hawaii to join the Merchant Marines during WWII. Was discovered by Charlie Low who owned the Forbidden City Nightclub.
- Senior Vicki Ching - 60 years. After she and Larry left the Forbidden City in 1959, she worked as a clerk in a shipping supply company. When she retired, she and Larry went on a fateful cruise in 1978 when she died of cerebral hemorrhage.
- Younger Nellie Chew/Vicki Lee - 20s. From Coos Bay, Oregon and as an 18 year old girl, was forced into an arranged marriage by her father and gave birth to a son, David. But she longed for a more independent life and left son and husband to become a dancer.
- Ben Fong Torres - 70 years. Former editor of Rolling Stone Magazine. Heard Larry sing at a mutual friend’s wedding and was very impressed by Larry’s singing at such an advanced age. He wanted to produce a CD for the 83 year old Larry.
- Charlie Low - 30-40. Born in Nevada, he was raised on a ranch but had aspirations of being a Nightclub owner. Started the Forbidden City Nightclub in 1938 but the club was the only Chinese nightclub outside Chinatown on Sutter St. in San Francisco.
Featured Performers at the FC:
- Dorothy Toy - 25 years, Toy and Wing dance team. Dorothy and Paul performed as a Hollywood dance team in the late 1930s. In 1941, when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor and all Japanese living on the West Coast were gathered and interned into camps, Dorothy had changed her name from Takahashi to Toy. She was outed by a rival dancer and had to flee to the East Coast. Paul joined the US Army, and after the war suffered from PTSD and became an alcoholic. But after the war, they got back together again and continued to perform.
- Tony Wing - 25-30, featured dancer. Gay Tony was Larry and Vicki’s best friend. A featured solo dancer. Very athletic, similar to Donald O’Conner.
- Jaden Wong - 25-30, featured dancer. Jaden mixed Chinese opera and modern dance in her dance routine along with the other chorus girls. She’s the diva of the group.
- Toy Yet Mar - 25-35, MC singer, gay. Called "The Chinese Sophie Tucker." She was the MC of the show. Using comedy and singing.
- Chorus girls with Vicki who was the dance captain. All were fun-loving girls who loved performing.
- Minnie Wong - 20s, chorus girl, Larry’s GF
- Paula Ming - 25-30, chorus girl, Vicki’s friend
- Connie Park - 20-25, chorus girl Vicki’s friend
- Frank Huie - Chinese man in 30s, FC Maitre’d. Frank was the front and center guy for the club. Very good with people and outgoing. Basically the boss when Charlie wasn’t in the club.
- Bob Chan - 50s, FC bartender. A wise older Chinese man who was in charge of the very large bar in the club.
Submission Instructions: To submit for consideration for the in-person table read scheduled for 7 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 3, please email your headshot and resume to michael@grantavesf.com by Monday, Jan. 27.
This table read is an unpaid stage performance presented to a live audience. This live script read casting notice is provided as an informational service to SAG-AFTRA members and is administered by entities independent of SAG-AFTRA. Any questions must be handled by the provider. This information is not intended to serve as an endorsement nor is any warranty or guarantee implied.
We are committed to diverse, inclusive casting. For every role, please submit qualified performers, without regard to disability, race, age, color, national origin, sexual orientation or gender identity, or any other basis prohibited by law, unless otherwise specifically indicated.
About the Screenplay Reading Series: This program is a new initiative open to SAG-AFTRA members and Bay Area writers/filmmaking teams that have a complete script that they intend to produce. Scripts can be in any stage of development but must be complete works in the shorts, features, teleplays and web series categories.
There is no cost to participate. The central goal of the program is to connect writers and filmmakers with the local SAG-AFTRA members who can bring their work to life. It's about fostering collaboration and new opportunities during the development stage of the process.
The SF-NC Conservatory Committee has accepted nine new works for table reads at the SAG-AFTRA headquarters in downtown San Francisco to be held over the year.
If you’d like to be involved with this or future readings and get to know the local filmmakers creating new work in the Northern California region, keep your eye out for audition notices for each production. Notices will be sent out a few weeks prior to each selected reading and the writer(s)/production teams will cast the roles based on submissions made for each specific production.
San Francisco-NorCal