Ascent

A new play based on the true story of Qian Xuesen, the brilliant aerospace engineer from China who helped launch America’s space age—until Cold War paranoia forever changed the course of his life...and ours.

"More than just a cultural event; [Ascent is] a powerful and timely investigation into how political paranoia can dramatically reshape history and mirror the social injustices we face right now... Don’t miss this powerful piece of theatre." - Hype Magazine"The production’s beauty abounds... As Qian Xuesen, Trieu Tran has a couple of monologues (especially in conjunction with Randy Wong-Westbrooke’s scenic design and Yuki Izumihara’s projection design) that are transcendent." - Stage Raw"An urgently relevant production... filled with incredible performances... I highly recommend for all to watch this play about this incredible man brought to life by such talented artists." - The Nerds of Color

Qian Xuesen, a promising young engineer from China, travels to America in 1935 on a Boxer Indemnity Scholarship. Advancing quickly through the ranks at MIT and Caltech, he becomes a pioneer of the American space age, co-founding JPL (Jet Propulsion Laboratory) and helping the United States of America win World War II. Then, as extreme nationalism swells at the beginning of the Cold War, Xuesen finds himself accused of being a Communist, and what happens next shapes the future of both his new and native homelands.