NINE DRAGONS
Calgary hosts the world premiere of this multicultural mystery
1 Hong Kong Whodunnit Vertigo Theatre launches its season with the world premiere of Nine Dragons, an original mystery set in 1920s China. Written by Jovanni Sy, the play focuses on Tommy Lam ( Kim’s Convenience star John Ng), a detective who battles bureaucracy and prejudice as he attempts to take down a serial killer in Kowloon.
2 Three Theatres Nine Dragons was produced in collaboration with Winnipeg’s Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre and Richmond, B.C.’s Gateway Theatre, both of which will host the show after it finishes its Calgary run. The idea is to ensure that the show has a long life. “We’ve never been known as a new play company,” says Hall, who is also Vertigo’s artistic director. “We’ve tried to invest in that and inject new work into the canon and genre. When we do that, when we invest a whole bunch of money up front to get it off the ground, we want to make sure that the show has life beyond our stages.”
3 Multicultural Mystery One reason Nine Dragons was worth launching on such a large scale is the fact that it utilizes voices beyond those typically found in the predominantly white-bred mystery genre. “To be totally frank, Vertigo is not a company that has a lot of history of showing cultural diversity on our stages,” Hall says, “and here was an opportunity to do that, while still presenting what’s really a solid genre piece that I think our patrons will love.”
4 Diversifying Portfolios To help showcase underrepresented voices in the theatre, Vertigo has partnered with the Asian Heritage Foundation, who will showcase their “Missing Chapters” exhibit in the theatre during the Nine Dragons run. It’s part of a larger push for theatre companies to embrace diversity. “The fact that the two leads in the show are Asian-Canadian is a huge thing for us, and ultimately it’s a great thing for the theatre arts in Canada,” says Hall.
5 Ripping Yarn Despite its cultural significance and push for diversity, however, Nine Dragons won’t have you thinking about societal ills too hard. “We’re not bashing anybody over the head with a deep message,” says Hall. “There’s a bit of escapism. We’re proud of the escapism. We’re changing the world in subtle ways, but what we really want to do is entertain people.” —Josiah Hughes