A Door to be Kicked is a radio play and podcast in three-acts by poet, novelist, scholar and former Canadian Parliamentary Poet Laureate Fred Wah.
Set in a small-town Chinese-Canadian cafe in the 1950s, the play explores themes of place, identity, history, and culture, with particular focus on the Chinese heritage that was such an important (and often overlooked) aspect of the settlement period of the Columbia Basin.
A Door to be Kicked is a patchwork of poetic narratives and historic voices, drawing on Fred’s Nelson, B.C.-based “biofiction”, Diamond Grill, his poetry and his writing for the collaboration “highmuckamuck.ca”, a web-based, British Columbia history project sub-titled “Playing Chinese.”
Produced as a partnership between Kootenay Co-operative Radio and Touchstones Nelson Museum of Art and History, the play was workshopped in two live performances in Nelson in 2019. It has subsequently been recorded and produced for radio and podcast in Nelson, somewhat delayed during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Creative Team
Script by: Fred Wah Dramaturge: Nicola Harwood Producer, audio producer, podcaster: Catherine Fisher Director: Bessie Wapp Original music by: Don Macdonald Technical director: Anthony Sanna Vancouver studio technician: Molly Caron
Cast
The Poet: Brahm Taylor Fred Wah Sr.: Fred Wah (recording), Clement Lam (public performance) Freddie Wah: Tashi Higgs Connie Wah, Mary Morrison: Marya Folinsbee Pong, Shu Mar, Grampa Wah, Lawrence Mar, storekeeper, waiter: Jason Xiao Ed, Sandy, bus driver, girlfriend's father: Don Gordon Teacher: Bessie Wapp Cafe customer: Anthony Sanna
Presented by
Kootenay Co-operative Radio Touchstones Nelson Museum of Art and History
Supported by
Columbia Kootenay Cultural Alliance Osprey Community Foundation Kootenay Country Store Co-operative Nelson and District Credit Union Vancouver Co-op Radio Several private donors
Copyright
Script: Fred Wah Radio broadcast: Kootenay Co-operative Radio Podcast: Fred Wah/Catherine Fisher/Bessie Wapp Original music: Don Macdonald
Nicola Harwood is a queer, Anglo Canadian writer, theatre and media artist. Her plays, performance and installation projects have been produced in galleries, theatres and artist run centres in Canada, Europe and the USA. Her work has also appeared in the bush, on a river, in a hanger and on a miniature train.
Bessie Wapp
Bessie Wapp is a theatre artist, musician, educator, Jessie Award nominee, and City of NelsonCultural Ambassador (2015) of Jewish-Lithuanian / Swiss-German ancestry residing on Sinixt territory in Nelson, BC. Wapp's most recent project, Pandora's Jukebox, upends the Greek myth, recasting the "first woman" as a musical alchemist with the power to transform collective burdens into soul medicine: music. Wapp also contributed to High Muck a Muck (see Fred Wah's bio).
Don Macdonald
Don Macdonald (born 1966) is an award-winning composer of film and concert music and he has an eclectic musical background as a performer, producer, educator, and conductor. Don’s composition credits include music for theatre and dance, published choral works, and forays into everything from classical orchestral music to rock, jazz, and world music. A multiple Canadian Film Awards nominee and 3 time Leo Award winner, he has over 50 film music credits and has worked with many of the major studios including 20th Century Fox and Lions Gate Films.
Catherine Fisher
Catherine Fisher lives in Nelson and is a founding member of Kootenay Co-operative Radio. In 2012 she worked with Sinixt Elder Marilyn James to produce Definitive Lines, a documentary about the impacts of past and present colonial policies and practices on the Sinixt. Recently, she won the Neskie Manuel Award for Indigenous Programming for her production work on the Sinixt audio documentary, In the Shadow of Extinction.
Anthony Sanna
Since 1990, Anthony Sanna has built a career as a content producer and editor. His experience includes 9+ years as a community radio volunteer, producer and host (Kootenay Co-op Radio), 5 years as a podcast host and producer (Fusion Health Radio), video production, website development, copy editor and writer, live stream producer and more. See his business card at www.anthonysanna.com .
Contact Us
To contact us, use the "contact" form (see menu). For information about rights or reproduction of A Door to be Kicked email Catherine at catherinefisher551 (at) gmail (dot) com
