A Funny Thing

A Funny Thing Happened on My Way to Canada

NOV 4

7:30 PM

Presentation House Theatre

TICKETS

Written and Performed by Grace Chin

Directed by Raugi Yu

Stage Manager, Caroline Frost

Sometimes, you only know who you are once you find yourself. This one time…a part Peranakan, part Malaysian Chinese “cha bor” went on an unexpected journey of self-discovery – through personal, family, and cultural stories past and present, here and there, imagined and mostly real – when her father moved the family from Malaysia to Canada.

Be prepared to embark on a poignant journey of self-discovery as Grace Chin's captivating performance explores the complexities of identity and the immigrant experience.

A Funny Thing Happened on My Way to Canada has also recently been played at the rEvolver Festival 2023.

Content Advisory:

This show contains mild swearing and an anecdote that describes what could be construed as sexual assault without the use of explicit language or the term "sexual assault. Viewer discretion is advised.

Grace Chin

A Vancouver, BC-based arts administrator, performer, editor/writer, and content specialist. She is co-founder of the script development non-profit Pan-Asian Staged Reading Society, General Manager of Ruby Slippers Theatre, Executive Director of Crazy8s Film Society, and is on the Vancouver Short Film Festival board. She is also a Playwrights Guild of Canada and UBCP/ACTRA member. Previously, she served on the board of the Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre and was Festival Director of the Vancouver Asian Film Festival.
Her short solo piece, “A Funny Thing Happened On My Way to Canada,” was commissioned for the multidisciplinary show “Banyan” (SEACHS/Rumble Theatre).
It was workshopped with vAct MSG Lab and Ruby Slippers Theatre’s Advance Theatre Festival and was performed at rEvolver Festival 2023. Her one-act play “The Eulogy” was workshopped in translation in Tokyo, Japan, and a short film from an adapted screenplay is now in post-production.
She was subsequently commissioned to write a one-act play for ARC Works. A co-written feature screenplay, “BollyCop,” was optioned by Massey Productions.
Grace is Googleable.

Raugi Yu/ Director

Raugi Yu is originally from Montreal and has acted in various theatres across Canada and the U.S. Moving seamlessly between stage and film. For stage, you may recognize him from roles in The
Shoplifters, The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night Time(Arts Club), Coriolanus (Bard On The Beach) and Our Ghosts (Firehall).
On screen Mr. Young, jPod, Kung-Fu. Most recently, he released his feature film directorial debut, “Attic Trunk,” on iTunes and Amazon.
Raugi is so excited and honoured to be Directing this play and hopes you all enjoy it as much as he’s loved working on it.

Caroline Frost/ Stage Manager

Caroline (she/her) is grateful to live, learn, and work on the unceded, ancestral, and traditional territory of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh people. Caroline is a stage manager, designer, and lighting technician who works across Canada and the United Arab Emirates. Caroline is extremely excited to be reuniting with the team from A Funny Thing Happened On My Way to Canada, having previously been the stage manager for the show’s run at the 2023 rEvolver festival. She hopes you enjoy this extremely touching and funny show!
Select previous theatre credits, including stage manager for The Tempest (Studio 58), lighting designer for Wrecked: A Solo Show (Vancouver Fringe), lighting designer and stage manager for SEETHERED (rEvolver festival), and stage manager for The Code (Green Thumb Theatre).