In conjunction with the Henry Madden Library’s exhibition “9066: Japanese American Voices from the Inside,” Nikiko Masumoto will do a special adaptation of her performance “What We Could Carry” from 5:30-7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, April 5, in the Table Mountain Rancheria Reading Room in the Henry Madden Library (third floor, North Wing).

“What We Could Carry” is a one-woman show developed and performed by Nikiko Masumoto, a Del Rey peach farmer, public arts performer and a member of the College of Arts and Humanities Advisory Board.

The show asks guests to consider how and what memory they carry about Japanese-American experiences before, during and after Internment and World War II. Based almost entirely on the testimony of individuals from the Los Angeles hearings of the 1981 Commission on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians, Masumoto performs testimonies from 13 individuals (in addition to her own) about internment and the weight of these memories.

Masumoto developed the piece during her graduate school work at the University of Texas, at Austin.

Masumoto performed an excerpt of “What We Could Carry” at the White House in December, as part of a panel speaking about the future of food.

The event is co-sponsored by the Sociology department and the College of Social Sciences as part of “Lived Experiences, Social Justice and Social Science” speaker series.

Fresno State’s Henry Madden Library is co-sponsoring this event as part of “9066: Japanese American Voices from the Inside,” a series of exhibitions and events commemorating the 75th anniversary of the World War II incarceration of Japanese Americans with a focus on those from the San Joaquin Valley.

This is a free, public event. Reception starts at 5:30 with hors d’oeuvres and a no-host beer and wine bar. Performance begins at 6 p.m.

RSVP at: www.fresnostate.edu/libraryrsvp (enter code LIBCARRY).

Parking is $3. Please purchase a day permit at a campus parking kiosk.

For more information about the performance, contact Dr. Matthew Jendian, Sociology Department Chair at matthewj@csufresno.edu.

For more information or assistance with physical accommodations, contact Sharon Ramirez at 559.278.5790 or sramirez@csufresno.edu.

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