Fractured Mosaics responds to the surge in Asian American hate. The term “Asian American” is a social and political construct which groups together 20 different ethnic groups originating from more than half the earth’s land mass. Though loosely bound by the color of our skin, we are not a monolith. Our different cultural and political histories are deeply embedded in our origin memories. We struggle to explain what it means to live in a yellow skin – a skin which is not dark enough to deserve protection from violence or discrimination; a skin which is not white enough to be accorded the privileges of whiteness. How do we explain the insidiousness of “yellow racism”?

These five scenes by five Asian American composer/writer teams bound together by musical interludes say what words can only say, inadequately. They show what we dream of, what we struggle with and how we triumph. We are often fractured; but when we come together, the fractured mosaics form something beautiful.