A SAMUEL FRENCH, INC. TITLE

Kim's Convenience

Full-Length Play, Dramatic Comedy  /  2w, 3m

Ins Choi

Popularized by the CBC sitcom adaptation, Kim's Convenience is about a Korean Canadian family who run a convenience store, but are working through struggling relationships between a traditional father and a son who has left home.

Kim's Convenience

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  • Cast Size
    Cast Size
    2w, 3m
  • Duration
    Duration
    90 minutes
  • Audience
    Target Audience
    Adult

Details

Summary

The most successful new Canadian play of the last decade, Kim's Convenience – set in a family-run Korean variety store – is a hilarious and heartwarming ode to generations of immigrants who have made Canada the country that it is.

With new luxury buildings going up around the convenience store and a Walmart preparing to move in, pressure is on to sell the Kim's family store. Mr. Kim's immigrant path towards building a life for his family in Canada is put under strain when a realtor makes a generous offer for the land. Questions of legacy and culture clash with economic concerns in this laugh-worthy, touching play about family and the relationship between one generation and the next.

History
Kim's Convenience premiered at the Toronto Fringe Fesival in July 2011. It was then picked up by Soulpepper Theatre in Toronto, who produced the play again in January 2012. It went on a Canadian National Tour in 2013. A CBC sitcom adaptation of the play made its debut in 2016, and in July 2017, Kim's Convenience premiered off-Broadway at the Signature Theatre.
Keywords
Performing Groups

APPA (Dad) – a 59-year-old 1st generation Korean-Canadian man. The owner of Kim's Convenience Store. Speaks with a thick Korean-Canadian accent.
UMMA (Mom) – a 56-year-old 1st generation Korean-Canadian woman. Married to Appa. Speaks with a thick Korean- Canadian accent.
JANET – a 30-year-old 2nd generation Korean-Canadian woman. Daughter of Appa and Umma.
JUNG – a 32-year-old 2nd generation Korean-Canadian man. Son of Appa and Umma.

The following characters are played by the same actor:
RICH – a young Black man.
MR. LEE – a successful Black real estate agent. A friend of APPA.
MIKE – a Black man with a thick Jamaican accent.
ALEX – a Black police officer. A childhood friend of JUNG and JANET.

  • Time Period Contemporary
  • Setting A convenience store in Toronto. 
  • Features Contemporary Costumes/Street Clothes
  • Duration 90 minutes
  • Cautions
    • No Special Cautions

Media

“A vivid, detailed, celebratory portrait of multi-ethnic Toronto.” – Edmonton Journal

“Genuinely funny, roaringly so.” – Broadway World

“Its well-judged performances and abrupt humour allow it to demonstrate the importance of familial love, respect, and reconciliation, without drowning in sentimentality.” – City A.M.

“This is popcorn theatre: we could go on watching and watching.” – The Guardian

“Sacrifices began to seem like something quite real, not just a comic premise. The actors were crying. I cried, too.” – The New York Times

“Laughter in store.” – The Stage

“Heartfelt... truthful story.” – The Stage

“Warm-hearted” – The Times

“Slick comedy.” – Time Out

“It has heart and likability by the bucketload.” – WhatsOnStage

“Achingly funny... Hilarious, heart-warming story of love, family and survival through change and challenge.” – Everything Theatre

“A sitcom, with snappy one-liners, light slapstick and intermittent doses of sentimentality.” – The Globe and Mail

“The play beautifully braids the serious concerns of legacy and culture with comedy.” – Vancouver Sun

Licensing & Materials

  • Minimum Fee: £55 per performance plus VAT when applicable.
    Performance rights for this title are currently withdrawn in the UK and Ireland. To be informed as soon as it becomes available in the future, please submit a license application.

Scripts

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Authors

Ins Choi

Ins Choi
Ins Choi was born in Korea but grew up and currently lives in Toronto, Canada with his wife and two children. Some of his theatre acting credits include Banana Boys, lady in the red dress (fu-GEN); Hamlet, The Odyssey, Comedy of Errors, The Taming of the Shrew, All's Well Tha ...
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