Kris, a young diasporic Chinese woman, attempts to reconcile her upbringing between Canada and Singapore and scrutinize the tactics she uses in an attempt to fit into two wildly different cultures. Weaving in and out of English, Mandarin, and Singlish, Kris uses storytelling to navigate beauty standards, body image, family, food, and a new friendship with Chicken Rice Uncle.

Deftly unravelling stereotypes and addressing the universal through Kris’s determined persistence and heartwarming sense of humour, 我的名是张欣恩 (Gimme chance leh) is about celebrating difference and existing in the in-between.

Kris Vanessa Teo Xin-En (张欣恩) is a Singaporean Chinese settler based in Moh’kins’tsis, Treaty 7 territory // Calgary, AB. She moves between many roles such as playwright, performer, director, producer, and co-artistic director at Swallow-a-BicycleTheatre. Kris’s artistic curiosities come alive at the intersections of food, self-inquiry, and in-betweenness while working with a slow-cooked blend of care, anti-racist, and anti-oppressive values, inviting mutual presence and exploration. She moves, thinks, and writes slowly.

Kris Vanessa Teo Xin-En's profile page