Photos: First Look at the Chicago Premiere of THE CHINESE LADY at Theater Wit

14-year-old Afong Moy is put on display so the American public can get its first view of an “authentic Chinese Lady.”

By: May. 18, 2022
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For its 25th anniversary season finale, TimeLine Theatre is presenting the Chicago premiere of The Chinese Lady, Lloyd Suh's acclaimed play inspired by the story of the first Chinese woman to step foot in America.

Check out photos below!

Performances run through June 18, 2022 at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., in Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood. For tickets and information, visit timelinetheatre.com or call the TimeLine Box Office at (773) 281-8463 x6.

Brought here from China in 1834 by enterprising American merchants, 14-year-old Afong Moy is put on display so the American public can get its first view of an "authentic Chinese Lady." Over the course of 55 years, Afong performs an ethnicity that both defines and challenges her own views of herself. Meanwhile, she witnesses stunning transformations in the American identity. As these dual truths become irreconcilable, Afong must reckon with herself and the history of her new home with startling discovery and personal revelations.

Suh's piercing and darkly poetic portrait of the United States as seen through the eyes of the first Chinese woman to step foot on U.S. soil unearths hidden history with humor and insight, illuminates the roots of the bigotry and hate facing today's Asian American and Pacific Islander community, and inspires us to see and understand each other anew.

Photo credit: Lara Goetsch

Photos: First Look at the Chicago Premiere of THE CHINESE LADY at Theater Wit
Mi Kang

Photos: First Look at the Chicago Premiere of THE CHINESE LADY at Theater Wit
Mi Kang

Photos: First Look at the Chicago Premiere of THE CHINESE LADY at Theater Wit
Mi Kang

Photos: First Look at the Chicago Premiere of THE CHINESE LADY at Theater Wit
Glenn Obrero & Mi Kang

Photos: First Look at the Chicago Premiere of THE CHINESE LADY at Theater Wit
Glenn Obrero & Mi Kang

Photos: First Look at the Chicago Premiere of THE CHINESE LADY at Theater Wit
Glenn Obrero & Mi Kang

Photos: First Look at the Chicago Premiere of THE CHINESE LADY at Theater Wit
Glenn Obrero & Mi Kang

Photos: First Look at the Chicago Premiere of THE CHINESE LADY at Theater Wit
Mi Kang

Photos: First Look at the Chicago Premiere of THE CHINESE LADY at Theater Wit
Mi Kang

Photos: First Look at the Chicago Premiere of THE CHINESE LADY at Theater Wit
Glenn Obrero

Photos: First Look at the Chicago Premiere of THE CHINESE LADY at Theater Wit
Mi Kang

Photos: First Look at the Chicago Premiere of THE CHINESE LADY at Theater Wit
Mi Kang



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