"The United States of Japan" from Waterfall

Kumiko, played by Lisa Helmi Johanson, leads the ensemble in a big showstopping number in her Tokyo club. Waterfall at The 5th Avenue Theatre. October 1 - 25, 2015. Buy tickets at www.5thavenue.org/show/waterfall.

Based on the contemporary Thai novel Behind the Painting, this tempestuous romance is set in 1930s Thailand and Japan as the monarchy crumbles with Japan on the brink of war. In this turbulent time, a young Thai student and the American wife of a Thai diplomat fall into forbidden love whose dangers parallel the shifting world around them.

This 5th Avenue Theatre/Pasadena Playhouse co-production features a captivating dynamic score and spectacular visual design, and marks the U.S. debut of Thai pop superstar Bie Sukrit as Noppon, the student at the center of the ill-fated affair.

The 17th new musical produced by The 5th, this is an unprecedented, groundbreaking collaboration between Oscar and Tony®-winning American and Asian theatrical artists.