Dawn’s Light: The Journey of Gordon Hirabayashi

Theatre Review by Patricia Lamkin
Special to Asia
Photos of actor Ryun Yu by Michael Lamont

“Dawn’s Light: The Journey of Gordon Hirabayashi” at the East West Players, is a moving, and often humorous one-man show which chronicles the true story of one Japanese American’s enduring fight for his constitutional rights.

With the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, a fearful nation declares personal war on its Japanese citizens. First curfews are imposed. 24 year-old Gordon Hirabayashi, an American born citizen, and fiercely patriotic student at Washington State University, defies the curfew, staying at the library with his friends to study. Then comes the order:  all west coast persons of Japanese descent must liquidate their property and report to prison camps.  Gordon refuses again, citing to his constitutional rights as an American citizen, in which he is entitled to “secure the blessings of liberty” and due process. Charged with breaking curfew and refusing the camp order, Gordon is thrown in jail.

With faith in the protections of the Constitution, Gordon takes his battle all the way to the Supreme Court, which to his disbelief, unanimously sides in favor of the government, upholding the military had just cause for its actions. Gordon is convicted and sentenced to serve two consecutive 90 day sentences.

One of the most poetic moments of the play is when Gordon requests to serve his term in an Arizona facility because it is semi-outdoors. His request is granted, but since there are no funds allocated to transport him there, he offers to pay his own travel expenses. And so he is actually released, freely hitchhiking and sleeping under the stars to enjoy the beauty of his America on his way to serve an unjust prison sentence.

Some 40 years later new evidence is found showing that the military threat from Japanese Americans did not justify imprisonment. The report had been illegally concealed from the Supreme Court proceedings. The landmark case is reopened in 1987, and overturned. The endurance of the American spirit even when all odds are against it is finally proven a worthwhile fight.

Based on actual letters written by Gordon she found at the University of Washington, actor/playwright Jeanne Sakata effectively shapes the story, which spans Gordon’s lifetime, and interviewed the man himself twice for his personal recollections. Ryun Yu portrays Gordon, showing his disillusionment, alienation and steadfast conviction to his ideals with depth and humanity. As Gordon, Yu narrates, delightfully shifting into various other characters with believability and humor. The minimalist staging and projections designed by Maiko Nezu compliment Yu’s performance. Projections of the flag and preamble of the Constitution help bring Gordon’s experiences into the present, as we struggle with our current administration’s controversial decisions in Iraq.

“Dawn’s Light: The Journey of Gordon Hirabayashi” runs through December 2nd, with performances at 8 pm Wednesdays through Saturdays and 2 pm Sundays. For ticket information, contact (213) 625-7000 or eastwestplayers