Winner of the 2015 Chris Johnson Award for Best Play by a Manitoba Playwright

Finalist for the 2014 Governor General’s Literary Award for Drama

“…there is no escaping the forceful narrative pull of Rick Chafe’s The Secret Mask.” —The Winnipeg Free Press

“Complicated and compelling… Engaging, heartbreaking, tragic-comically funny… a universal—and moving—story about a child connecting with a parent.” —CBC Winnipeg

“Alternately hilarious and touching… a poignant triumph.” —The Ottawa Citizen

“Unpretentious, satisfying, and personal. Humble and lovely… a story that’s as everyday and extraordinary as real life.” —The Georgia Straight

A stroke lands Ernie in a care facility. There, he meets his estranged son after forty years.

This heartwarming and often hilarious play tells the story of Ernie and George, an estranged father and son who are reunited when a debilitating stroke leaves Ernie with a speech disorder and memory loss. While George is undeniably hurt and betrayed by the man who abandoned him as a child, Ernie can’t remember his words, or where he lives. Together they must find a way to make sense of their past and their future through fractured memories and muddled language.

Rick Chafe’s plays include his new adaptation of Shakespeare’s Dog (adapted from Leon Rooke’s Governor General’s Literary Award-winning novel), The Odyssey, The Last Man and Woman on Earth, and Zac and Speth. Rick also works as a dramaturge, television story consultant and writer, produces documentary video, and has taught playwriting to every age of student from grade one to university. He lives in Winnipeg with his wife and daughter.