Ins Choi’s stage sitcom returns to the London scene after its initial run at the Park Theatre, bringing back the drollery and humour from the family tale that led to the Canadian Netflix hit. Guillermo Nazara chats with one of its lead actors, to learn all the fun facts about a show where laughter is always in store.
How does it feel to be bringing back this story to the London scene?
It’s amazing to bring this story back and contribute to the make-up of different stories we have here in London theatre scene. For the second time!
New venue, old and new colleagues. How different does it feel doing this play to its first run this year?
I was most excited about continuing to work on the relationships in the story from where we left off at Park Theatre. We’ve had such a great response from the audience, and I felt truly honored and grateful to have been a part of it. But to do it again with new colleagues made me think of fresh perspectives and new approaches to the character and to the story that I did not imagine before.
Do you feel your role has evolved in any way during this time?
Definitely, I feel lucky to have another chance to delve deeper into my character. I feel like I am changing with every rehearsal and with every performance, and therefore I believe the character of Janet is always changing. I’ve been enjoying finding new discoveries in therelationships between the family.
Even though the play is the basis for the Netflix series, is the TV show present in your performances or understanding of the piece at all?
Among all the characters you see in the Netflix series, I find Janet the most different in the play. I am aware of those differences present in the two versions of Janet, my understanding of the character would be based on the play more.
How much of yourself have you put into your portrayal of Janet?
When my parents were running their family small businesses, I myself was a Janet for my parents. I have to admit I have put early 20s-Jennifer growing up in California into my portrayal of Janet for the show. When my parents came to watch Kim’s Convenience for the first time at Park Theatre earlier this year, my mom recognized this immediately and commented post show, ‘Oh gosh, I remembered and saw you and your dad on stage!’.
Do you feel any kind of personal connection with her?
Because of my experiences growing up in a Korean immigrant family, I definitely do. I can relate to the struggles and frustrations she sometimes has when she shares her passion and drive for her career with her parents. It’s probably universal that our parents want us to have a life that’s financially stable and encourage us to stay off from unstable career choices such as acting. At the same time, I have also learned about some definite differences between Janet and me through the run, and I realized that I am way more Korean than Janet is, thanks to my mom.
Unlike Janet, I always spoke Korean in our house, consumed more Korean pop culture, and learnt to honor and respect my parents and elders at church.
What, would you say, are the biggest challenges of your performance?
Keeping the performances fresh as we have done the play before. We performed our show now close to 60 times, and it’s easy for us to get into a rhythm and a pattern with our performances. In order to keep myself fresh, I try to focus and to listen to my acting partners, taking things from moment to moment. And I am pleasantly surprised that when I do that, I find new discoveries yet again even after having done the show numerous times. I love it.
Why come see Kim’s Convenience?
Because it’s a joyous family comedy just over an hour. Everyone will have something to relate to from the show for that reason. Maybe some will even identify with a character they see on stage. If you are a fan of the Netflix series, you will see some of your familiar, favorite characters live on stage. If you’ve never seen the Netflix show, then perhaps watching the show will perk your interest and will end up binge-watching the series. Either way, you’ll have a great, fun night out. You won’t regret it!
Read our review of Kim’s Convenience here!
All production pictures credit to Danny Kaan.
Kim’s Convenience plays at London’s Riverside Studios until 26 October. Tickets are available on the following link.
Help us continue our work
We count on your support to keep bringing the greatest quality in theatre-related content, from interviews with the biggest names in the industry to reviews of every show in town and beyond.
We appreciate every donation to maintain our high pace and standards and continue to grow.
Thank you for believing in us!
***************************************************