Solo Fest 2025 Spotlight: Aaron Pang’s HEREIN LIES THE TRUTH
Join us for PlayGround’s eighth annual Solo Performance Festival, a curation of the best in California solo performance! The festival runs January 24-February 9, 2025 (Fri-Sun), presented live on our stage and also simulcast online. More…
Today we’re spotlighting Aaron Pang in Herein Lies The Truth (1/26 at 7pm, 2/1 at 4pm, & 2/2 at 7pm). One accident, two stories: one you’ve heard a thousand times, one you’ve never heard before. Falling: a disabled love story is an autobiographical solo show that tells the story of how an accident changed the trajectory of Aaron Pang’s life. When strangers gesture to his cane and ask him “what happened?”, he is unsure of what to say. Faced with a spinal cord injury, this show follows Aaron’s journey to understand this new body in the uncertain world of first loves, online dating, and sex. The show untangles his own understanding of his body and the stories he tells himself. Part stand-up comedy and part storytelling, Falling is an uncomfortably sexy and hilariously vulnerable stumble through Aaron’s misadventures searching for love, lust, and life after disability.
Hear from the playwright:
What was the seed of this play? What inspired you to write it?
I felt restricted when telling my story about my disability. The want of audiences for an very specific type of disabled story felt really limiting and I wanted to challenge that. I wanted to tell my story in a real and true way, that the challenges I face can live by themselves and not as just a plot device.
Why is a solo show the ideal way to tell this story?
The story is autobiographical. It follows me as I interact with the world around me. It is my perspective and I think the solo show is perfect form for to capture the story.
What are your artistic influences for this show?
My show finds influence from four main solo shows. Mike Birbiglia’s My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend for the storytelling style. Derek Del Gaudio’s In and of Itself for the show’s mechanics and interactivity. Hannah Gadsby’s Nanette for it’s mission. And Jerrod Carmichael’s Rothaniel for its vulnerability. These shows create a canon that helped me understand what I wanted to achieve and how I could make it real.
What surprised you during the creation of this piece?
I live in my disabled body and so I know that disabled movement is different from able-bodied movement. Yet until I saw myself moving across the stage, I didn’t realize how important it was for me to show the audience the difference. This story is more than just a man sitting telling a story. The bodiement of the piece really made me proud of what I produced.
Is there anything audiences should know about you or your piece before they attend? And/or is there anything else you want to share about your piece?
Come with an open mind. I want to share a story that is both funny and complex. Thanks PlayGround for giving me the opportunity!
Aaron Pang (HEREIN LIES THE TRUTH) is a storyteller, comedian, and writer living in Iowa City, Iowa. Aaron Pang tells uncomfortable, funny, and challenging stories about disability. He is interested in leading audiences to places they’ve never been. Aaron has appeared on The Moth Radio Hour, Proof by America’s Test Kitchen, and Frictions Media. His essays have appeared on Essay Daily and Michigan Quarterly Review. He has performed with The Moth Mainstage, Infinite Dream Festival, Unruly Storyfest, Slant’d Media, and more.