Premiere
Chimerica premiered at the Almeida Theatre, London from 20 May 2013 to 6 July 2013, in a production co-produced with Headlong[7] before transferring to the Harold Pinter Theatre.[8] The production was directed by Lyndsey Turner with stage design by Es Devlin.[9]
Premiere cast
| Actor[10] | Character(s)[10] |
|---|---|
| Claudie Blakley | Tessa Kendrick |
| Stephen Campbell Moore | Joe Schofield |
| Elizabeth Chan | Liuli/Jennifer |
| Vera Chok / Wendy Kweh | Michelle/Mary Chang/Deng |
| Karl Collins | David Barker/Peter Rourke/Paul Kramer/Officer Hyte |
| Trevor Cooper | Frank/Herb/Drug Dealer |
| Nancy Crane | Doreen/Maria Dubiecki/Judy |
| Sean Gilder | Mel Stanwick |
| Sarah Lam | Feng Meihui/Ming Xiaoli |
| Andrew Leung | Young Zhang Lin/Benny |
| David K S Tse | Zhang Wei/Wang Pengsi |
| Benedict Wong | Zhang Lin |
| Rosie Armstrong | Ensemble/Understudy for Tessa Kendrick, Doreen, Maria Dubiecki, Judy |
| Tina Chiang | Ensemble/Understudy for Liuli, Jennifer, Michelle, Mary Chang, Deng, Feng Meihui, Ming Xiaoli |
| Christopher Hollinshead | Ensemble/Understudy for Joe Schofield |
| Math Sams | Ensemble/Understudy for David Barker, Peter Rourke, Paul Kramer, Officer Hyte, Frank, Herb, Drug Dealer, Mel Stanwick |
| Kevin Shen | Ensemble/Understudy for Zhang Lin, Young Zhang Lin, Benny, Zhang Wei, Wang Pengsi |
Subsequent productions
In September 2015, Chimerica was performed for the first time in the United States. The production was directed by David Muse at Studio Theatre in Washington, D.C., Rob Yang played Zhang Lin opposite Ron Menzel's Joe Schofield.[11][12]
Chimerica made its Canadian premiere at the Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre in 2016. The production was directed by Chris Abraham and starred Evan Buliung as Joe and Paul Sun-Hyung Lee as Zhang Lin.[13] Filmmaker Deco Dawson provided video which was projected during the performance.[14] This production was co-produced by the Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre and by Toronto's Canadian Stage. After playing in Winnipeg from February till mid-March, the production travelled to Toronto and played from the end of March to mid-April.[15]
Later in 2016, Chimerica played in Chicago at TimeLine Theatre under the direction of Nick Bowling.[16]
Chimerica premiered in Australia in March 2017. Kip Williams directed the Sydney Theatre Company production at the Roslyn Packer Theatre. The production starred Mark Leonard Winter as Joe and Jason Chong as Zhang Lin among the cast of 32 actors.[17]
In February and March 2022, the Crane Creations Theatre Company led a play reading of Chimerica on its Play Date. This play reading is meant to spread awareness and increase appreciation of playwrights and playwriting from around the world and to global audiences.
A French adaptation of Chimerica premiered in Montreal in January 2024 at the Jean-Duceppe Theatre of Place des Arts.[18]
Adaptations
In 2019, Channel 4 released a four-part drama called Chimerica inspired by the play. The adaptation was penned by Lucy Kirkwood who made several changes from the original script including changing the setting from 2012 to 2016. The main character in the series is called Lee Berger and is played by Alessandro Nivola.[19]
