Choreographer Veronica Lee-Baik wants to raise awareness about teen suicide among young girls. From 1999 to 2014, the suicide rate in the United States rose a quarter, NPR reports, after decades of decline. Especially worrisome is the fact that the rate among girls aged 10 to 14 tripled over that period. Moreover, while suicide rates for Asian American women match the national average, that group thinks about suicide and attempts suicide at higher rates than other Americans.
Over tea at a cafe in Fremont, Lee-Baik tells me that statistics like these, and the complex stories behind them, partly informed her decision to create Giselle Deconstruct. One section of the show debuted at On the Boards for Northwest New Works 2016, but a full production premieres at Cornish Playhouse on January 6 and 7.
