MOCA PERFORMS – Echoes of Arrival: Becoming

MOCA PERFORMS – Echoes of Arrival: Becoming at Museum of Chinese in America, New York.

Seven immigrant artists from Taiwan, the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Myanmar, Mexico, and Trinidad and Tobago reflect on their journeys to the United States—what they had to learn to survive and build a life, what they chose to carry with them from home, and what new parts of themselves emerged along the way. Through personal narration, poetry, music, dance, and stand-up comedy, they share stories of migration, transformation, and becoming.

CREATIVE TEAM Conceived by Dennis Yueh-Yeh Li Devised & Performed by Shan Y. Chuang, Nikkiesha N. McLeod, Timmy Ong, Pascal Phoa, Jeremy Rafal, Nedelka Sotelo, Fang Tseng 

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE Friday 10/2 Shan Y. Chuang, Nikkiesha N. McLeod, Pascal Phoa, Jeremy Rafal, Fang Tseng Thursday 10/8 Shan Y. Chuang, Timmy Ong, Pascal Phoa, Jeremy Rafal, Fang Tseng Friday 10/16 Shan Y. Chuang, Timmy Ong, Pascal Phoa, Jeremy Rafal, Nedelka Sotelo Thursday 10/22 Shan Y. Chuang, Nikkiesha N. McLeod, Timmy Ong, Nedelka Sotelo, Fang Tseng Friday 11/6 Nikkiesha N. McLeod, Timmy Ong, Jeremy Rafal, Nedelka Sotelo, Fang Tseng ABOUT ARTISTS SHAN Y. CHUANG Shan Y. Chuang is a Taiwanese queer multidisciplinary performing artist, actor, singer, dancer, choreographer, and immersive theater artist based in New York City. For over a decade, she has performed, collaborated, and created across the city’s vibrant arts community. In June 2026, she premiered her dance work Quiet Acts of Becoming at the Museum of Chinese in America, inspired by the stories of pioneering Chinese American lesbian women. Her work explores LGBTQIA+ identity, social justice, and self-discovery through theater, movement, and dance. She has performed at Prelude Festival ’23, PhysFestNYC ’25, and MOCA, and is a member of the New York Chinese Cultural Center. IG: @shanychuang | shanychuang.com

DENNIS YUEH-YEH LI Dennis Yueh-Yeh Li is a director/playwright. His works explore sexuality, power structure and diaspora experiences, culminating often in devised, immersive and participatory theatre. Dennis excels at adapting modern classics, connecting them with timely sociopolitical issues. His directorial portfolio spans across plays, musical theatre, and opera. His playwriting focuses on queer and diasporic lived experiences, and has received support from organizations including Queens Council for the Arts. Master’s in Performance Studies, NYU.

Dennis is an alumnus of Drama League's New York Directing Fellowship, Target Margin Theater's Institute Fellowship, and a member of Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab. Dennis worked with The Living Theatre and is Al Límite Collective’s founding member. Currently, Dennis is the Director of Performance, Storytelling & Community at the Museum of Chinese in America. www.dennisyuehyehli.com

NIKKIESHA N. MCLEOD Nikkiesha Nicole McLeod is a queer, non-binary/trans Trinidadian singer-songwriter, drummer/percussionist and writer. They began playing the steel pan at the age of twelve when they convinced their parents to let them join the neighborhood steel­band orchestra, Panasonic Connection. Their debut EP, Quarrel, was released in 2018 that FRESH ON THE NET described as “unique to the ears and is a complete triumph”. In the summer of 2025, they released the steelpan driven singles “Fever to Touch”, and “Rush”. The single “Rush” was song of the day on the prominent radio station KUTX FM 98.9. “Rush” was described as “a brilliant microdose of McLeod’s affinity for flair and flourish”. 

Nikkiesha “Nikkie” played the drum kit for many bands in New York City, the most notable are Telenovela Star and Kenyon Phillips & The Ladies In Waiting. Nikkiesha's work has appeared in the literary journal [sic], and on the online literary and artistic expression of queer and trans* people of color forum Black Girl Dangerous, and the LGBTQ mental health anthology Headcase published by Oxford University Press. Nikkiesha also hosts and co-produces the podcast "When We See Each Other" which focuses on BIPOC queer/trans/non-binary musicians/singer-songwriters/artists. Nikkiesha’s website:https://nikkieshamcleod.com. IG: @nikkieshamcleodmusic

TIMMY ONG Timmy Ong is a Malaysian theater artist based in NYC. As a performer, Timmy has originated leading roles on both Malaysian and US stages. Selected credits: Libao Gong in “Late Blooming” (world premiere), Lamont in "Mr. Holland's Opus: A New Musical" (world premiere), and Procopio in "The Sacrifice of Cassamba Becker" (nominated Best Performance In A Play in the BroadwayWorld Off-Broadway Awards). As a theatermaker, he has created commissioned site-specific and multidisciplinary work with/for Riuh, A.R.T./NY, the Museum of Chinese in America, and the New York Chinese Cultural Center. One-half of The Green-Eyed Monster Project. 2024-25 Performance Project Fellow at University Settlement. MFA: The New School. IG: timmy_ong

PASCAL PHOA Pascal Phoa is a New York based actor from Indonesia who loves performing in contemporary and classical plays. He is super thankful for the opportunity to be working with MOCA again to tell AAPI stories. He has acted in numerous theatre festivals in New York including the Chain Theatre Festivals, and is currently an acting member of Dot in the Box Theatre Company, under Circle in the Square Theatre. @pascalphoa.

JEREMY RAFAL Jeremy Rafal is a New York–based Filipino American actor, musician, and writer. A classically trained pianist and international prizewinner, he holds a doctorate from Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music. His film and television credits include FBI, Raising Kanan, The Hunting Party, Law & Order, and Bikini Moon. Stage credits include Galas (Little Island), Heart Strings (Atlantic Theater), Maple and Vine (Constellation Stage & Screen), The King & I (Interlakes Theatre), and Machinal (The Mechanicals). Jeremy is the creator and performer of the internationally acclaimed solo play The Boy from Ba