A first time collaboration between the National Theatre of Parramatta and Performance 4A, Who Speaks For Me? is co-directed by storyteller and photographer William Yang and writer/producer Annette Shun Wah.
Exploring the vagaries of language, Who Speaks For Me? brings together personal narratives from the vibrant and culturally diverse areas of Western Sydney. These stories that consider the power of language and the difficulties facing non-English speaking migrants.
Stories include that of Cambodian mother Ly Heang Seang, who sat the written part of the Australian drivers license test 31 times, and that of Vietnamese chef Bà Quôc Viêt, a refugee who learned to communicate with her profoundly deaf grandson William. Bhutanese husband and wife Puspa Lal and Chandra Acharya will also have their story told, covering their forced exodus from Bhutan after they protested against the silencing of the Nepali language and culture.
Multi-lingual, multi-disciplinary, and multi-generational, Who Speaks For Me? is an intimate look at the issues faced by immigrants as they navigate an English speaking world. Personal photographs will accompany the shared stories.
Who Speaks For Me? marks the first collaboration between the National Theatre of Parramatta, and Performance 4A, the only professional arts company making exceptional Asian Australian for all audiences.
The show will run from October 12th until October 15th in the Lennox Theatre of Riverside, Parramatta.
For more information, please see the Riverside website.
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