Tea Base’s most consistent and notable programming is Mahjong Monday. Every Monday night, the Tea Base community teaches, plays, mingles and gathers. What started off with one table and one Mahjong set, through the magic of community, became six tables and seven mahjong sets sourced from the people. Mahjong Monday became an emotional cornerstone of Chinatown Centre’s basement as tiles shuffling echoed throughout the mall. In 2020, Tea Base was renno-evicted out of their unit in the basement but has since incorporated into a Co-op and has moved back into the mall on the second floor at unit 239.
Mahjong Monday Memories is a short film by Hannia Cheng. It features community members retelling mahjong memories while Hannia’s father, Chau Cheng, perfectly predicts every mahjong tiles he draws.
Join us for an online screening of Mahjong Monday Memories on Thursday, July 22, 4 pm EST. The short film will be available to watch after the screening in VR Tea Base created by Jason Li. You can find it in the Chinatown Anti Displacement Garden, through the Mahjong Tile portal, in the “MOCA” pixel room designed by Christie Jia Wen Carrière to replicate Michael Lin’s exhibition Archipelago.