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FACTORY THEATRE PRESENTS
THE WORLD PREMIERE OF
LADY SUNRISE
WRITTEN BY MARJORIE CHAN
DIRECTED BY NINA LEE AQUINO
STARRING BELINDA CORPUZ, MA-ANNE DIONISIO, ZOÉ DOYLE,
ROSIE SIMON, LINDSAY WU, AND LOUISA ZHU
FEBRUARY 15 – MARCH 8, 2020 AT FACTORY THEATRE
Toronto, ON (January 20, 2020) – FACTORY THEATRE is proud to announce the World Premiere of Marjorie Chan’s LADY SUNRISE, directed by Factory’s Artistic Director, Nina Lee Aquino. The play features a powerful ensemble of six Asian Canadian women, Belinda Corpuz, Ma-Anne Dionisio, Zoé Doyle, Rosie Simon, Lindsay Wu, and Louisa Zhu. Presented at FACTORY THEATRE, February 15 – March 8, 2020 (opening night February 20, 2020).
Set in Vancouver, Canada’s condo and casino playground, this hard-hitting new play is a tale of social climbing, and the damaging effect of today’s hyper-consumerist society. Featuring six characters ranging from a second rate beauty queen, a wealthy condo developer, a ruthless bank executive, a madam, a blackjack dealer, and a trafficked sex worker, Chan expertly portrays the contemporary face of moral and individual degradation in a world, and a city, where the pursuit of money is the only serious occupation.
Influenced by the seminal work of Chinese modernism, this exquisite World Premiere is sure to speak to Torontonians as our city continues to rise to new heights while forgetting the people who live on the ground.
Lady Sunrise is inspired by the modern classic, Sunrise, originally written by Chinese playwright Cao Yu in 1936, which centres on the degradation of society and moral standards as played out in Shanghai, after the economic collapse of the 30s. Inspired by Ibsen, Sunrise uses a city in flux as the stage for a tale of fortitude and tragedy.
Marjorie Chan (Playwright) is a multi-disciplinary theatre artist working as a playwright, librettist, director, and dramaturge. A nine-time nominee, Marjorie is the recipient of four Toronto Dora Awards. As a playwright and librettist, Marjorie’s works have been performed in the USA, Scotland, Hong Kong, and Russia as well as having their premieres in Canada. In 2005, she was named the K.M. Hunter Theatre Artist, an Ontario-wide award for mid-career artists. Her first play China Doll earned a nomination for the Governor General’s Literary Award. Marjorie is currently the Artistic Director of Theatre Passe Muraille.
Nina Lee Aquino (Director) is a director, dramaturge, playwright, and the Artistic Director of Factory Theatre. Aquino wrote Every Letter Counts (Factory Theatre, 2013), an examination of her own family history and the violent politics of the Philippines, and with Nadine Villasin she co-wrote Miss Orient(ed) (Carlos Bulosan Theatre 2003). She is the recipient of the Ken McDougall Award for Directing (2004), the Canada Council John Hirsch Prize (2008), and has received multiple Dora Award nominations for Outstanding Direction. In 2011, she was awarded a Dora for Direction of paper SERIES (Cahoots). Recent directing projects include School Girls; or, the African Mean Girls Play by Jocelyn Bioh, a co-production by Nightwood Theatre and Obsidian Theatre Company (2019).
The sterling cast includes an ensemble of six Asian Canadian talented performers, including Belinda Corpuz, recently of Tita Jokes (Toronto Fringe) & Prairie Nurse (Factory Theatre/Thousand Islands Playhouse), Ma-Anne Dionisio, recent star of Next to Normal (Mirvish Theatre/Musical Stage Company), Zoé Doyle of Mixie and the Half-Breeds (fu-GEN), Workin’ Moms(CBC) and Orphan Black (Space/BBC America), Rosie Simon of acquiesce(Factory Theatre/fu-GEN) & Cowboy Versus Samurai (Soulpepper), Lindsay Wu, recently of Beneath the Bed (Toronto Fringe), and Louisa Zhu, recent star of The Silver Arrow: The Untold Story of Robin Hood (Citadel Theatre).
Director Nina Lee Aquino
ABOUT FACTORY THEATRE:
Factory’s mission is to enthral audiences with the imagination of Canadian playwrights and develop the next generation of intercultural theatre artists. Since its founding in 1970, Factory has committed to exclusively produce Canadian plays. Factory has made it an artistic priority to invest in and showcase Canadian artists who bring their stories to our theatre in Toronto. This has made Factory the home of the Canadian playwright and, for over four decades, has developed and produced some of the finest theatrical works in our national canon, giving space to some of the most gifted and prolific playwrights in Canada.
LADY SUNRISE was originally commissioned by the University of British Columbia and developed with the support of the Ontario Arts Council, The Arts Club, Cahoots Theatre, and The Banff Centre for the Arts (Playwright’s Lab).
LADY SUNRISE: FEBRUARY 15 – MARCH 8
When: February 15 – March 8, at 8:00pm (Mondays dark), Sunday, February 16 at 7:00pm, other Sundays at 2:00pm
Opening Night: Thursday, February 20, at 8:00pm
Closing Day: Sunday, March 8, 2020 at 2:00pm
Previews: Saturday, February 15 to Wednesday, February 19, 2020 at 8:00pm
Where: Factory Theatre, 125 Bathurst Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5V 2R2
Price: Regular ticket price $40 – $50 (plus HST), previews $20 (plus HST). To purchase tickets, please visit factorytheatre.ca/box-office/tickets/
For all media inquiries, contact Ashley Belmer, B-Rebel Communications, Ashley@b-rebelcommunications.com / 416-617-8934 |
