From left to right: Chick Reid, Dave Carley, Jon de Leon
Canadian Rajah tickets available HERE.
Dave Carley first became aware of Esca Brooke twenty years ago. By chance the playwright had come across a 1996 history by Australian professor Cassandra Pybus. Her book, The White Rajahs of Sarawak uncovered the story of Esca, a young man who should have become Rajah of Sarawak but, instead, was exiled from the British protectorate. Dave was initially intrigued by the physical span of Esca’s journey, from tropical Sarawak (now part of Malaysia) to Madoc, Ontario, poised on the edge of the Canadian Shield. But by book’s end Dave found himself obsessed by the dramatic arc of Esca’s life in Canada – and his obsessive hunt to have his heritage acknowledged.
That quest for recognition – and the dramatic showdown between Esca and Ranee Brooke, the woman who sent him into exile – forms the dramatic core of Canadian Rajah. It’s a true story, an international one – and very, very Canadian. The play is being performed by two well-known actors – Chick Reid and Jon De Leon – in the ballroom at Campbell House. The setting will perfectly recall the elegant London drawing room of Ranee Ghita, the second wife of Esca’s father, Rajah Charles Brooke. In the play, Esca has travelled there to plead his case. The Ranee lies in wait for him, armed with a barbed tongue, determined to send Esca back to the backwoods.
Over the course of writing Canadian Rajah, Dave has become friends with Esca Brooke’s Canadian descendants. In fact, Esca’s two surviving granddaughters have played an active consulting role in the play’s creation. Esca’s numerous descendants live mostly in Toronto and the Ottawa area and will be attending the upcoming run of the play.
Dave Carley’s plays have been produced widely across Canada and the United States.
Canadian Rajah’s world premiere is on January 30, 2019. The play will run for three weeks at Campbell House, closing on Sunday, February 17.
Some performances have already sold out – Get your tickets now at: canadianrajah.bpt.me