REVIEW OF KIM’S CONVENIENCE BY LYNN CARROLL

April 1, 2025

It is hard to know where to start to give a fair and balanced review of this stage comedy. I had never heard of this play, which apparently inspired a well received hit Netflix series of the same name which ended abruptly after five seasons. This was not due to bad reviews, it was very successful, but because the show’s two co-creators, Ins Choi and Jean Yoon, left the project.

The setting is a convenience store in Toronto, Canada, owned and run by a Korean family whose head is Mr. Kim, a stubborn but proud man in his 50s. We are shown the ups and downs of the everyday lives of his family and store customers and personal issues with his son and daughter. Had I not known that the play came first I would have thought that it developed on the back of the television series until I researched and found the opposite to be true. I have to be honest and say that I wondered why a play evolved from the series although I could find nothing but good reviews for the latter, on Rotten Tomatoes the first series had an approval rating of 100%.

The stage version is billed as a hilarious comedy but, my own struggle with comedies notwithstanding, I found very little to laugh at. Ah, you may say, that is just your opinion, and of course you are right, but judging the audience reaction I would say it was pretty much of the same opinion. A few low key titters throughout and just one laugh out loud moment. I decided early on that I should watch as I would a play (without the comedy prefix), after all even everyday life conversations have moments of comedic wit and laughter.

There were only five actors taking to the stage, there was no interval just a straight 78 minute run. One actor played four characters which of course involved many costume changes. There was a loose storyline involving the adult offspring and although the daughter was, I believe, thirty years old, her demeanour, actions and speech were those of a rebellious teenager.

I am not absolutely sure of the daughter’s age because, as is often the case, the dialogue was not always audible. In the past I have complained about the characters shouting their lines, which can detract from the authenticity, but the actors in this production spoke in a normal speaking voice which unfortunately did not carry well to the back seats of the stalls. Whether that was my own failing hearing (as relatives often tell me) or not, my guest said she too had trouble catching a lot of the dialogue.

I am well aware that one person’s idea of a great stage production is not necessarily another’s, so far be it for me to make any sort of judgement. I would certainly encourage you to decide for yourself and by all means comment with your appraisal. There was plenty to admire and nothing was left unresolved so hurry to book as it is a very short run.