Summary Of The Play Kim's Convenience By Ins Choi

The play Kim’s Convenience by Ins Choi is a heartwarming production about family, culture, acceptance, and forgiveness. It is evident this play is meant to bring laughter from the audience, which is what I admire most from this play. The play is able to bring humorous light to the stereotypes of the parents and the customers without being offensive. During one scene, Mike walks into Appa’s store and asks for Vaseline with his thick Jamaican accent. After a small dispute of miscommunication, Mike gives up and decides to look for it himself. Although this scene is humorous, it also subtlety portraying the everyday struggles of living in a multi-cultural city. Appa portrays the everyday struggles of language as a Korean immigrant. When Appa calls 911, he demands Janet to speak for him, “Police hear accent, they don’t take serious” (481).

This choice of setting is unique because it is the least expected choice for a play. A convenience store is usually a quick stop; for people to come and pick up snacks, lottery tickets, or lighters. For the writer to create a script that makes it possible for an audience to spend more time and see what happens behind the counter is sheer genius. Although the location of the play does not change, the setting around the family does: Walmart is moving in and condos are going up. However, when a real estate agent makes an offer on the store, Appa politely declines. Appa simply argued, “This community need me. Even if Walmart moving in, people in neighborhood need this store” (482). By keeping the store, Appa believes he is keeping his dynasty. However, the store is more than just his legacy; it is his identity: “My whole life is this store. Everyone know this store, they know me. This store is my story. And if I just sell store, then my store is over. Who is Mr. Kim? Nobody know