“Kim’s Convenience” to premiere at Mānoa Valley Theatre this week

“Kim’s Convenience” will have its Hawaiʻi premiere at the Mānoa Valley Theatre on Thursday, May 15. Behind the show is Reiko Ho, an accomplished playwright and martial artist, who is also the show’s director.

The production runs through June 8. Tickets, which range from $25 to $47, are already almost sold out for the first two weeks, Ho told Aloha State Daily.

“ʻKim’s Convenience’ holds a special place in my heart — as well as I hope for many audience members in Hawaiʻi — because it's centered around an Asian family, and it's written by an Asian playwright, and it's told from the family's perspective,” she said. “It's a story that feels very much like home, even though it's set in Toronto.”

The play focuses on a Korean family that operates a convenience store in Canada and the intergenerational dynamics that play out between them.

While many recognize “Kim’s Convenience,” as a sitcom that had five seasons on Netflix, she wants viewers to know the story is a play set for the stage, first.

“I actually was slated to direct it before the pandemic,” she said. “And then it got picked up for the television show. Once it went into filming, you couldn't do the play anymore.”

The cast is primarily Asian, she said.

“One of my missions is always about representation on stage,” Ho said. “It is just really a joy to tell stories that are by Asian playwrights and for Asian families. ... Representation is just so important, especially right now. We're in a very precarious time again with funding being taken from the arts and marginalized groups losing their place.”

Ho is no stranger to the stage. She decided theater was for her in grade school.

“I actually saw a play at the University of Hawaiʻi when I was in second grade,” she said. “I was bused in with [my] class field trip. I saw this play, and —  it changed my life. Ever since that moment, I have been pursuing my dreams in theater. I absolutely love being a director.”

Ho is also the artistic associate for Honolulu Theatre for Youth. She earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa’s Department of Theatre & Dance.

Her film credits include “The Cleaner and the Deadman” (2017), “The Short List” (2011), and “Ninja EX” (2016), according to IMDb.

She has also written several plays, including “The Carp Who Would Not Quit,” which recently completed a statewide tour, and “The Great Race,” which received a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts and will tour nationally in 2026.

“I actually got a little demoralized during college because I'm always creating theater under the white gaze, if you will,” she said. “And you’re kind of having to fit into other stories that never feel like your own and make theater that is not your own story. Now, I'm very committed to directing shows and shepherding artists in plays that are like ʻKim's Convenience’ that feel more like a story that is mine — and my community’s story. I want to do the same for young people.”

Currently, Ho is working on a new piece, commissioned by the Honolulu Theatre for Youth, called “Tales of the Sun and Moon," which will open their season.

She also ran a martial arts school for 15 years, she said. In fact, Ho is a fourth degree black belt in Hapkido, a Korean martial art, which actually happens to be part of the plotline in “Kim’s Convenience.’”

“We've been laughing a lot during rehearsals,” Ho said. “We've been talking about how we all know many of these characters, or someone like these characters. I really hope the audience feels that too, that this is a story that — although set far away — feels very much like it's a story from home.”

Get tickets. Shows run Thursday through Sunday.

Katie Helland can be reached at katie@alohastatedaily.com.