March Minh Ly

Ga Ting: A revised version of the play is now showing at The Cultch theatre until March 19, according to CBC. Minh Ly, the Toronto-based actor who wrote the play, said the play message remains relevant today — there is still a lot of stigma around being gay in Chinese culture, he said. Ga Ting, which means "family " in Cantonese, tells the story of a grieving Chinese-Canadian immigrant couple who invite their late son Caucasian boyfriend over for dinner, in an attempt to learn more about their son life which quickly devolves into a cultural and generational clash. Minh Ly is a Toronto-based playwright. "It still very taboo. Ga Ting draws from elements of Ly own life but is "definitely not autobiographical." The idea for the play actually began with Ly wanting to create a piece that showcased older Asian actors. "I had this image of … a middle-aged Asian man and a middle-aged Asian woman with a younger Caucasian man on stage," Ly said. "I thought would be intriguing if the show started off that way, and it evolved into the story it is now." However, the play did help Ly communicate his feelings when he came out to his own mother, when she flew to Vancouver to see the play. "In a way the production two years ago spoke what I needed to say, and said what I wanted to say." Revised show Ly said it "very exciting" for Ga Ting to be playing at The Cultch, and said the revised show goes deeper into exploring the characters and their conflicts. "I'm very curious how a new audience will respond," he said. You don't talk about it … there isn't even a word for gay, really," said Ly, who added that being gay is often thought to be "wrong" or a "phase" and something that can be changed. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.