Lupercalia: Untrue Stories Live

About the Show

Lupercalia pays respects to the original heartbeat, sacrifices in love, the liminal space in love. It’s red. It’s revenge. It’s raw. It’s rare. It’s radical. It’s the rhythm of the night – its own kind of magic.

Doors will open at 7:30pm. Show up early to enjoy the festivities. Performances start at 8:00pm.

Featuring

Eat My Heart Out by Derek Chan

Eat My Heart Out is a haphazard collection of expressive vignettes; a 7-course meal told through lies, fables, objects, projections, recordings, live performance, and of course… cooking and eating a literal heart.

Tethered by Emily Jane King & Keauna Miller

Tethered: Two cunning women impart age-old warnings on the power and dangers of love in this contemporary trio of fairy tales told through narration and shadow puppetry.

قرار / Date Night by Panthea Vatandoost

قرار / Date Night is an experimental fiction that follows the unraveling of a lover’s mind desperately trying to hold on to the perfect relationship.

Covid Safety

This event will take place outdoors under tents, in the parking lot of Progress Lab, rain or shine. Masks are  encouraged but not required, and please be aware of distancing, hand-washing/sanitizing, and the varying personal comfort levels of others around you. Please stay home if you have symptoms of COVID, or have been in contact with others who have contracted COVID. Thank you for helping us keep events live, in-person, and safe.

About the Creators

Derek Chan (陳嘉昊) grew up in colonial Hong Kong, lived in Norway, and now lives and works on the stolen and ancestral lands of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations, colonially known as Vancouver. A playwright, director, performer, translator, and producer, Derek is the Managing Artistic Director of Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre. Before that, he was co-artistic director of rice & beans theatre from 2010 to 2021. He has also worked with Playwrights Theatre Centre (artistic director apprentice), Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre (associate artistic producer), and the rEvolver Festival (guest curator). Derek received his BFA in theatre performance from Simon Fraser University. Derek has been a National Arts Centre English Theatre Artist in Residence (19/20) with yellow objects, a new installation-exhibition in support of the ongoing pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong. His play, Chicken Girl (2019/20), won the Sydney Risk Award for Outstanding Original Play by an Emerging Playwright, and was nominated for Outstanding Original Script at the Jessies. He was the co-recipient of the 2021 Simon Fraser University FCAT Young Alumni Award for his work at rice & beans theatre.

Emily Jane King is a theatre artist, musician and voice coach born and raised on Treaty 1 Territory (Winnipeg, MB) now living on the ancestral and stolen lands of the xwməθkwəy̓ əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and Səl̓ílwətaʔ (Tsleil-Waututh) peoples.

Emily is passionate about arts education, feminist storytelling, and queering theatre. She loves spooky ghost stories very much. Writing projects include Highway One, co-written with Keauna Miller and produced by Little Lion Theatre Company; The duo are also collaborating on The Sisters Wild, a musical exploring the lives of the uncredited collaborators behind the Grimms’ fairy tales. Performance credits include Sarah Jeane in Infinity by Hannah Moscovitch (Volcano Theatre/The Cultch), The Collector in Mx by Lili Robinson (The Cultch). She is a graduate of the Studio 58 acting program.

Keauna Miller is a bilingual, multi-disciplinary artist from Vancouver Island, the unceded territory of the Stz’uminus First Nation, currently residing in Paris, France. She prioritizes feminist, queer, and working class stories, and believes strongly in the healing power of camping. Keauna is a graduate of Randolph College for the Performing Arts and works professionally as an actor and playwright.

Co-written with Emily Jane King, Keauna’s previous work Highway One premiered in London, England last fall with Little Lion Theatre Company. The duo are also collaborating on The Sisters Wild, a musical exploring the lives of the uncredited collaborators behind the Grimms’ fairy tales.

Panthea Vatandoost is an Iranian actor, producer, and creator for film and theatre. Panthea is the founder and Managing Artistic Director of Medusa Theatre Society, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting and producing works that engage with the immigrant and refugee community, with a focus on MENAT voices. Panthea has the honor of serving as treasurer on the board of The Only Animal Theatre Company as well as co-chair on the UBCP/ACTRA BIPOC Committee.