Remembering Vietnam - Vietgone at the Unicorn Theatre

National Archives at Kansas City
Kansas City, MO

On Friday, May 4 at 7:00 p.m. the National Archives will partner with Unicorn Theatre for a Featured Friday event. This event will highlight Kansas City actor Vi Nhan Tran who will present The Butcher’s Son, a music and lyrics performance. Following the Featured Friday event, a presentation of Vietgone will begin at 8:00 p.m. These events will take place at the Unicorn Theatre, 3828 Main Street, Kansas City, MO. Admission to the Featured Friday is free with a ticket purchase of Vietgone. Tickets can be purchased online.

Born in Vietnam and raised in southwestern Kansas, Vi Nhan Tran is torn between the mysterious secrets of his heritage and the waving wheat fields of his adopted home. A poignant and humorous folk musical memoir, The Butcher’s Son chronicles the Tran family’s escape from Vietnam, imprisonment by the Khmer Rouge, and resettlement in the cattle country of America. Tran weaves a thrilling refugee story into an All-American tale of how family stories become family lore and where one family's search for a home ends.

In the play Vietgone, award-winning pioneer of “geek theater” Qui Nguyen brilliantly chronicles the love story of his parents’ meeting in an Arkansas refugee center after fleeing Vietnam. It’s a buddy story, an all-American romance, and a motorcycle road-trip adventure that revisits how we think about the heroes and victims of the Vietnam War. Note: this production includes strong language and adult content, discretion is advised. Vietgone runs April 18-May 13, 2018, at the Unicorn Theatre.