Between a Wok and a Hot Pot by Amanda Lin

SYNOPSIS:

Bubble tea. Kimchi. Hot pot. It’s cool to be Asian right now. Audiences members will enjoy a traditional hot pot meal while Amanda reminisces on when it wasn’t so cool to be Asian, delving into the complicated topic of cultural identity. As pressure builds and the show comes crashing down around her, Amanda must come face to face with the question: What does it mean to be authentic, and does it even matter?

CHARACTER BREAKDOWN:

• MANDY, female, Taiwanese-Canadian, 20-25.
• PRODUCTION ASSISTANT, East Asian-Canadian, 20-30.

DEVELOPMENT HISTORY:

• Awarded Fred Euringer Award in Drama by Queen’s University (June 2018)
• Production: Theatre Count, director: Stephanie Fung, dramaturg: Blair MacMillan (Aug 9-10, 2018 / Tett Centre for Creativity and Learning – Rehearsal Hall, Kingston)
• Staged Reading: Ergo Pink Fest 2019, director: Marjorie Chan, dramaturg: Elyne Quan (March 31, 2019 / Small World Music Centre, Toronto)
• OAC Development period with dramaturg: Jasmine Chen (June/July 2019)
• Workshop production: director: Blair MacMillan, dramaturg: Elyne Quan (April 2020 / Tarragon Theatre WorkSpace, Toronto) *cancelled due to COVID-19, to be rescheduled at a later date
• Workshop: Cahoots Theatre, director: Esther Jun, dramaturg: Elyne Quan (September 2022 / Cahoots Theatre)
• UPCOMING: Production: Cahoots Theatre, director: Esther Jun, dramaturg: Elyne Quan (January-February 2023 / Cahoots Theatre)

Photo by Emily Alldrit

Stephanie Fung as the Production Assistant. Photo by Emily Alldrit

Photo by Emily Alldrit.

Stephanie Fung as the Production Assistant. Photo by Emily Alldrit

Photo by Emily Alldrit.

Between a Wok and a Hot Pot is being developed thanks to support from the Ontario Arts Council and the Canada Council for the Arts. The 2023 Cahoots Theatre Production is graciously supported by the Wuchien Michael Than Foundation.