Television and film icon George Takei, Tony Award-winning actress Lea Salonga and Broadway favorite Telly Leung head up the cast of Allegiance. It’s an epic story of love, war and heroism set during the Japanese American internment of World War II. Allegiance follows the story of the Kimura family in the weeks and years following Pearl Harbor, as they are relocated from their farm in Salinas, California to the Heart Mountain internment camp in the rural plains of Wyoming.

Sixty years after the attack on Pearl Harbor, a chance meeting forces WWII veteran Sam Kimura (George Takei) to remember his family’s relocation from their California farm to the Heart Mountain internment camp. As they struggle to adjust to their new home, Young Sam (Telly Leung) and his sister Kei (Lea Salonga) find themselves torn between loyalty to their family and allegiance to their country. Their story reflects the deep conflicts of a nation and a people divided, as younger brother Sammy strives to prove his loyalty and patriotism, while older sister Keiko comes to resist their internment and treatment by the government. The Kimura’s conflicts mirror the larger rift between the Japanese American Citizens League, which urged cooperation with the internment and unwavering loyalty to America, and the draft resisters of Heart Mountain, who steadfastly refused to serve a country that had put them in concentration camps.

With its moving score, Allegiance takes audiences on a journey into our nation’s history through the eyes of one American family. This universal story sheds new light upon a dark, under-explored, and wrenching chapter of American history. Through the remembrances of Old Sam, the painful past is revisited, and at long last, redemption and understanding begin to heal decades-old wounds. Allegiance sheds new light upon a dark chapter of American history. One of the first Asian musicals in more than a decade, with a stunning and moving score, Allegiance connects the audience with universal themes of love, family and redemption.

The cast also features Michael K. Lee (Frankie Suzuki), Paolo Montalban (Mike Masaoka), Paul Nakauchi (Tatsuo Kimura) and Allie Trimm (Hannah Campbell) with Katie Boren, Jon Jon Briones, Geno Carr, Karl Josef Co, Marc de la Cruz, MaryAnn Hu, Brandon Joel Maier, Kürt Norby, Ann Sanders, Jill Townsend, Kay Trinidad and Scott Watanabe (Ensemble) and Jennifer Hubilla and Conrad Ricamora (Swings). Directed by Stafford Arima, with music and lyrics by Jay Kuo and book by Marc Acito, Kuo and Lorenzo Thione, the production features choreography by Andrew Palermo and music supervision, arrangements and orchestrations by Lynne Shankel. Allegiance runs at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego through October 21, 2012. You can get tickets here.

Allegiance the musical highlights feature these songs:

“Going Places” performed by Telly Leung, Lea Salonga and Ensemble
“Gaman” performed by Lea Salonga, Telly Leung and Ensemble
“Ishi Kara Ishi” performed by George Takei and Lea Salonga
“Higher” performed by Lea Salonga

Allegiance the musical highlights