Tom X. Chao, a 63-year-old Chinese-American man, has had a presence in the downtown Manhattan and Canadian fringe theater scenes for over 25 years, but has also composed and released pop/rock songs during that time. Besides the shows that the four songs on “Music for Downtown Theater” are taken from, he has performed all over Manhattan and Brooklyn, as well as touring Canadian fringe festivals. Chao's comedy Cats Can See the Devil was selected for the print anthology Plays and Playwrights 2004. Excerpts from his plays have appeared in monologue anthologies for actors and are still being used by actors for auditions. He is based in lower Manhattan.