Happy Valley premieres at Firehall Arts Centre from May 25 to June 4
English-Cantonese production by rice & beans theatre analyzes Hong Kong’s democratic reality
SPONSORED POST BY Firehall Arts Centre
Derek Chan for Happy Valley. Photo by Pedro Augusto Meza
Firehall Arts Centre closes its 2022-23 season with the world premiere of rice & beans theatre’s Happy Valley from May 25 to June 4, with various performance times. Previews are happening May 25 and 26 at 7:30 pm, and opening night is on May 27 at 7:30 pm.
Conceived and performed by Sydney Risk Award-winning playwright Derek Chan 陳嘉昊, Happy Valley is a solo interdisciplinary performance that dissects the historic, political, and cultural context surrounding Hong Kong’s current democratic struggles.
Happy Valley is a follow-up to Chan’s 2021 theatrical installation yellow objects at the Firehall Arts Centre. The performance, directed by Anjela Magpantay, is named after the historic race course that hosted the infamous Concert for Democracy in China back in 1989, almost exactly one week before the Tiananmen Square massacre.
Using text, song, multimedia, and music in both English and Cantonese to tell its story, Happy Valley examines Hong Kong’s history while asking audiences to consider what they will remember of it in 50 years.
The performance then delves into the present day, where the people of Hong Kong are still awaiting the day they will have full agency over their fate—highlighting that democracy is a luxury for many people. Audiences will be introduced to ‘Uncle Chan’, who questions whether he will ever be able to go home.
Dramaturgy for the show is by Heidi Taylor, with set, prop, and costume design by Megan Lane. The show’s multimedia conception is put together by video designer Andie Lloyd, lighting designer Jonathan Kim, and sound designer Sapphire Haze.
A Vancouver-based production company, rice & beans theatre was founded by Chan and Pedro Chamale in 2010. It provides a platform for the creation, development, and production of boundary-pushing theatre by artists of colour or otherwise marginalized theatre-makers, and supports artists by providing dramaturgy, direction, and mentorship.
rice & beans theatre facilitates original Canadian work that is accessible, honest, uncompromising, and personal. In 2022, its production of yellow objects won a Jessie Richardson Theatre Award for innovation.
A post-show talkback for Happy Valley will take place on June 1. Tickets and more information are available at Firehall Arts Centre.
Post sponsored by Firehall Arts Centre.
Derek Chan for Happy Valley. Photo by Pedro Augusto Meza