Bobby is a multi hyphenate Director, Producer and Casting Consultant. He has worked in film, television, stage and live concert entertainment, directing over 50 plays and musicals in Canada and throughout the Asian region including mainland China, Hong Kong SAR, Korea, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, and Singapore. He founded one of Asia’s most prolific and successful theatre companies, Atlantis Productions/Atlantis Theatrical Entertainment Group in 1999. He was also an Associate Director for Miss Saigon (2000/2001) and was Hong Kong Disneyland’s first show director opening the park in 2005.
Bobby has represented casting for Cameron Mackintosh in the Philippines for the revival of MISS SAIGON and the UK Tour. He has also been a casting consultant in the Asian region for the National Theatre of London and the Broadway production of HERE LIES LOVE (Tara Rubin Casting) directed by Alex Timbers, the Broadway revival of M.BUTTERFLY (Telsey + Co) directed by Julie Taymor, the International Tour of Disney’s THE LION KING (Disney Theatrical International) directed by Julie Taymor, the London revival/UK Tour of THE KING AND I (James Orange Casting) directed by Bartlett Sher and the film CONCLAVE (Nina Gold Casting/ House Productions). He is the winner of three Aliw Awards for Direction (live entertainment awards in the Philippines) and has been inducted into their Hall of Fame.
As a producer, Bobby has spearheaded over 65 productions (including 20 international premieres) in the Asian region. On Broadway, he was a co-producer of the groundbreaking and historic musical HERE LIES LOVE . www.thebobbygarciacompany.com
There have been studies that show that our thinking process is shaped by the kinds of crops that our ancestors had to farm. These studies have shown that due to the nature of how they are cultivated, rice farming seems to have fostered collective thinking while wheat farming favoured individualism. The studies further show that immigrants who hold onto their origin story have the advantage of being able to think both ways.
It is a very interesting study that I think about often — what are the unique vantage points that my immigrant journey has brought me?
It was also something that was reinforced early in my directing career by having a mentor who shared a similar departure point in his odyssey to North America . The brilliant artistic leader Chay Yew began his journey in Singapore while mine began in the neighbouring Philippines. I knew that finding a mentor with a common starting point was rare, so I made the most of every moment we had together. I count myself blessed to have had Chay as a mentor. Working under him at the Center Theatre Group in Los Angeles during the post-Cold War 1990’s taught me so much about understanding and embracing my heritage and recognizing the immense power it had to shape my voice as a storyteller. It is because of Chay’s mentorship that my now being a mentor to younger BIPOC artists is of great importance. I hope to continue to be available to emerging artists the way Chay has been to many. Already, I have been inspired by the crazy talented mentees that I have had the pleasure of sharing my experience with and welcoming into my rehearsal rooms.
To them I say what Chay once said to me, know your story. It is a powerful gift. If Theatre is truly about investigating the world we live in in an effort to understand what it means to be human, then our voice and our unique thinking process is as important as any other. And what better a time to celebrate our voices, both individually and collectively, than during Asian Heritage month.
