Forgiveness

Mitsue Sakamoto and Ralph MacLean both suffered tremendous loss during WWII: Mitsue as a survivor of a Japanese Canadian internment camp, and Ralph as a prisoner in a Japanese POW camp. In order to rebuild their lives and their families after the war, Ralph and Mitsue must find the grace and generosity necessary to forgive those who have wronged them. Their paths eventually cross in 1968 when Mitsue’s son and Ralph’s daughter begin dating, and Ralph is invited to Mitsue’s home for dinner.

This soaring adaptation of Mark Sakamoto’s award-winning memoir affirms the power of forgiveness and shows us that in our challenging times characterized by political divisiveness, xenophobia, and race hatred, the story of Mitsue and Ralph’s personal triumphs over hatred, injustice, violence, and bigotry remains vitally relevant and urgently necessary.

• This is a stage adaptation of events from Mark Sakamoto’s 2018 Canada Reads–winning memoir Forgiveness: A Gift From My Grandparents. It will premiere in Vancouver in January 2023 and move to Calgary in March 2023.
• Hiro’s last published play, Indian Arm, won the Governor General’s Literary Award for Drama in 2017.
• Hiro is also an actor, known for roles on Star Trek: Discovery, Altered Carbon, The X-Files, and many more.
• First produced in Vancouver by Arts Club Theatre and Theatre Calgary in January 2023