Review: Ins Choi's SON OF A PREACHERMAN is a Tender Triumph at the National Arts Centre

The National Arts Centre's English Theatre opened its 2026-2027 season with Ins Choi's Son of a Preacherman, and this show sets the bar extremely high for the rest of the season. Ins Choi is best known for Kim's Convenience, the hit play-turned-sitcom about a Korean Canadian family running a Toronto convenience store. Son of a Preacherman, however, is far more personal. Choi weaves interconnected stories throughout the play in an organic fashion. He recounts his parents' and grandparents' lives in North and South Korea during the war before the family's immigration to Canada. He reflects on his upbringing as the son (and grandson) of a preacher and living up to expectations that do not align with his personal goals. He speaks candidly about navigating life as a second-generation Canadian with few Asian role models to look up to, as well as his own winding path to becoming a successful artist.

The small size of the Azrieli Studio enhances the show's intimacy. At times, the actors move through the areas surrounding the stage, a smart directorial choice by Kaitlin Williams that makes the audience feel even more connected to Choi's story.

The set design, by Jessica Oostergo, incorporates items from Choi's childhood and adolescence, like Christian music records, a skateboard, and a cozy armchair. The show uses projections superimposed over a wall of notes, drawings, and photographs to enhance the stories. To me, the messiness of the boards symbolizes the many competing paths Choi's life takes, with the larger-than-life images of his family showing the enormous influence they had on his life.

A live band (Haneul Yi, Belinda Corpuz, and Yunike Soedarmasto) provides the soundtrack to Choi's story, with Choi on lead vocals and the band providing backing vocals with beautiful harmonies. The musicians also support Choi's story by depicting various people in his life. Effective lighting design by Jonathan Kim allows the band to blend into the background when the focus is on Choi's storytelling, with shifts in lighting bringing them to prominence during the musical numbers. That the play contains musical elements may seem unusual. In practice, it works extremely well, supporting the narrative and keeping the audience engaged throughout the 75-minute run time. Some of the songs are genuinely funny, particularly "Birkenstock Jesus" and "Bruce Lee's Best Friend", but there are also resonant, emotional numbers like "After the Lights Turn Down," beautifully accompanied by Corpuz.

The best part about Son of a Preacherman is that it is a refreshingly honest look at someone's life: with all the good, the bad, and everything in between. Too often and especially enhanced through the lens of social media, public figures boast about their successes without sharing the hardships, missteps, and sacrifices that allowed them to achieve that success. Choi is sincere and humble, putting his vulnerability on stage.

Son of a Preacherman ends with an inspirational message; Choi tells the audience to do what you really want to do with your life before it's too late. One line really spoke to me, and I don't think I will ever forget it: "Get started before your dearly beloved becomes your dearly departed". With our daily grind, we tend to lose sight of the forest for the trees and Choi's reminder is something I will take to heart.

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