Julyana Soelistyo

Julyana Soelistyo is an American stage and film actress who, in 1998, was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play for her performance in "Golden Child".

Biography

Julyana Soelistyo was born to Roman Catholic parents in Sumatra, Indonesia. She attended school in Penang, Malaysia, taking lessons in piano and violin. Later, she attended Oregon State University, where she appeared in productions of "The Tempest" (as Ariel), "Les Liaisons Charmantes", "The Misanthrope" and "Piaf".Floyd, Mark. [http://oregonstate.edu/dept/ncs/newsarch/1998/May98/tony.htm OSU grad nominated for Tony Award for "Golden Child"] , Oregon State University, May 5, 1998. Retrieved June 4, 2008.] After Soelistyo graduated in 2002, she attended San Francisco's American Conservatory Theatre to earn her MFA.Drukman, Steven. [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9806EEDD1439F937A15756C0A96E958260 Trusting a Playwright's Language] , The New York Times, May 24, 1998. Retrieved June 4, 2008.] During 1995 - 1997, Soelistyo played the title characters, all of which were children, in the Seattle Children's Theatre plays "Naomi's Road", "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland", and "Still Life with Iris".

Soelistyo met David Henry Hwang at the debut reading of "Golden Child" in California, after being recommended by Hwang's friend Judy Nihei. She was tapped to originate the role of Eng Ahn, the title character; in the play, Soelistyo portrayed both the 10-year-old and the 80-year-old Ahn. "Golden Child", which premiered at the Off-Broadway Joseph Papp Public Theater, was reworked and moved to Broadway's Longacre Theatre, where Soelistyo continued in her role. She received largely positive reviews. The New York Times's Vincent Canby described her performance as "magical"Canby, Vincent. [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9402EFD8163FF935A15757C0A96E958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=3 Is the New Hot Playwright Profound or Just Slick?] , The New York Times, April 26, 1998. Retrieved June 4, 2008.] , and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer deemed her an "outstanding female newcomer".Jenkins, Jeffrey Eric. [http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/theater/bdway.html Broadway alive and kicking] , Seattle Post-Intelligencer, May 25, 1998. Retrieved June 4, 2008.] Soelistyo won a Clarence Derwent Award and was nominated for a Tony Award, but lost to Anna Manahan.

She has also appeared in the Yale Repertory Theatre's performance of "Iphigenia at Aulis", as Cordelia and the Fool in the 1998 New Jersey Shakespeare Festival's performance of "King Lear"Klein, Alvin. [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C01E6DC1F3EF930A2575AC0A96E958260&sec=&spon= A Season with Star Power on Many a Marquee] , The New York Times, September 13, 1998. Retrieved June 4, 2008.] , Imogen in "Cymbeline" at the Intiman Theatre in Seattle, Dorie in the world premiere of "On the Jump", and the Daughter of Antiochus/ Marina in the Brooklyn Academy of Music's "Pericles".

Soelistyo has appeared in the films "Earthly Possessions" and Martin Scorcese's "Bringing Out The Dead". Steven Spielberg offered her the role of Pumpkin in "Memoirs of a Geisha", and Soelistyo was cast, but the part ultimately went to Youki Kudoh.Seno, Alexandra. [http://cgi.cnn.com/ASIANOW/asiaweek/98/0918/feat4.html Asia Now: People] , CNN, November 30, 2000. Retrieved June 4, 2008.]

She is married to Tim Barrett, a former Oregon State pre-med student whom she met when he worked on stage lighting for the university's theatre program.

References

External links

* [http://www.amrep.org/people/julyana.html American Repertory Theatre page]
* [http://www.ibdb.com/person.asp?id=60527 IBDB entry]