‘Uncle Gunjiro’s Girlfriend’ returns to S.F.

San Francisco playwright-actor Brenda Wong Aoki relates the tale of her great-uncle, Gunjiro Aoki, a Japanese immigrant and descendant of a samurai noble house, and his 1909 marriage to Helen Emery, the daughter of John Emery, the archdeacon of San Francisco’s Grace Cathedral.

The scandal that erupted at the mixed-race union, complete with death threats and the loss of Helen Emery’s citizenship, even now affects the couple’s ancestors.

Emmy-winning composer Mark Izu performs his original score live with koto player Shoko Hikage, while multimedia images of Victorian era Japanese photos and “yellow peril” headlines also accompany the tale.