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Tuey Ping Lee-Hum was a Cantonese opera star who came to Canada in 1937 with her performance troupe in order to raise awareness and support for the war effort in China against Imperial Japan. Cantonese opera during this time was incredibly popular and the three Cantonese opera houses that existed in the city were full every night, attended by both Chinese and non-Chinese audiences. Lee-Hum specialized in male roles, for example generals and soldiers leading against invaders. In Vancouver, she joined for the Chinese Freemason-sponsored Jin Wah Sing opera troupe, performing in Vancouver, Toronto, and Montreal, Quebec. After touring with the troupe, she settled in Toronto, where she met and married Hum See Tong, a Chinese immigrant who worked in restaurant business.
Here, Lee-Hum performed with the local Jin Hung Sing Music Club. The troupe often toured across the country for performances and, following the war, were invited to New York, where Lee-Hum spent three years, taking her young children with her. Lee-Hum's son, Doug Hum, mentioned that members of the troupe were hailed as war heroes by New York City’s Chinese American community because of their efforts in raising awareness of Japan’s threat leading up to World War Two. The troupe also raised funds for Chinese refugee relief through the Red Cross. After she returned to Toronto from New York, she performed less frequently, and occasionally coached others in opera. One of her last public performances was around 1980.
According to Doug, many of the Cantonese Opera costumes were brought from Hong Kong to use, but a lot of them were hand made locally in Canada as well. Doug’s father was also a tailor besides running his own restaurant, so he could hand make any costume she needed. Doug donated a few costumes to the Toronto District School Board Archives, and the rest to her opera troupe after she passed away in 1994.
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Filip, Mona. Carol Sawyer - The Natalie Brettschneider Archive. Accessed October 28, 2024. https://kofflerarts.org/Koffler/media/docs/CarolSawyerInteractivePDF.pdf.
The Cantonese Opera Star. Accessed October 28, 2024. http://countercultures.net/design/portfolio-item/the-cantonese-opera-star/#toggle-id-4.
“The Jin Hong Sing Opera Troupe with Tuey Ping Lee-Hum, Toronto.” Chinese women project - exhibits. Accessed October 28, 2024. https://www.mhso.ca/chinesecanadianwomen/en/database.php?c=553.