Made in Canada: an agricultural operetta

By Pedro Chamale

PTC and rice & beans theatre have declared a company collaboration for 2018-19 or more as Derek Chan and Pedro Chamale develop their newest projects. Derek and Pedro will continue to work with each other dramaturgically in addition to each writing his own work. Heidi and Kathleen will provide dramaturgical and process design consultation and assistance in developing a structured company creation practice for rice & beans.

Where does our food come from? Who grows it? Who is nourished by it?

Where does our food come from? Who grows it? Who is nourished by it? Made in Canada: an agricultural operetta is an exploration through text and song of just who it is that works the farms that supply our markets, their journeys getting here, what awaits them once they get here, and what it takes for them to stay. The play brings temporary foreign farm workers centre stage – the unseen people who plant, tend, and harvest Canada’s produce. Using their words, news articles, and exploring the legal text surrounding the Seasonal Workers Agricultural Program, Made in Canada weaves together a play that reveals some of the hidden links in Canada’s agricultural sector. It may be local and farm-to-table, but do you really know who picks your produce?

Made in Canada: an agricultural operetta is a new work written by Pedro Chamale with music by Mishelle Cuttler.

A rice & beans theatre production
In collaboration with Playwrights Theatre Centre
Presented in partnership with Boca del Lupo at Performance Works

Made in Canada had a reading at the Heart of the City Festival at DTES Neighbourhood House on November 3, 2018

The premiere of Made in Canada, originally scheduled for May 8 -23, 2020, has been postponed due to ongoing concerns about COVID-19.

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