Shad contributes raps to Chilean refugee play set to open in Vancouver

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This article was published 07/01/2020 (2452 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

TORONTO – Rwandan-Canadian rapper Shad is making his theatrical debut with verses he’s penned for a stage play at the Vancouver Playhouse next month.

The Juno-winning wordsmith says he’s co-written the “rap pieces” with playwright Carmen Aguirre for her dark comedy “Anywhere But Here,” about a family of Chilean refugees who are travelling from Canada back to Chile in their 1970s convertible.

The “magic-realist play” bends time as the father and his two young daughters wind up stuck at the U.S.-Mexico border where they encounter characters from different eras, ranging from the 1800s to modern day, while still existing in their 1979 reality.

“It’s about displacement,” explained the London, Ont.-raised performer in a video posted on the Electric Company Theatre website.

Beyond his acclaimed music career, the rapper born Shadrach Kabango is known as the former host of CBC’s “Q” and current host of Netflix’s documentary series “Hip-Hop Evolution,” which won Peabody and Emmy awards.

“Anywhere But Here” is produced by Vancouver’s Electric Company Theatre and runs from Feb. 4 to 15.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published on Jan. 7, 2020.

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