Go behind the curtain of the Tony nominated play “Yellow Face” with the cast and David Henry Hwang.
Yellow Face, Starring 2025 Tony Nominees Daniel Dae Kim and Francis Jue, Airs on PBS May /
David Henry Hwang's semi-autobiographical play was filmed live during its 2024 Broadway run.
The 2024 Broadway production of David Henry Hwang's Yellow Face begins premiering on PBS stations nationwide May 16 (check local listings), and will be available for streaming on PBS.org beginning at 9 PM ET.
The play was filmed in the final weeks of its run at the Todd Haimes Theatre, part of the Roundabout Theatre Company's season. The production is currently up for three 2025 Tony Awards, including Best Revival of a Play.
Also up for Tony Awards are cast members Daniel Dae Kim as DHH and Francis Jue as HYH.
Theater to Stream: The Tony-Nominated ‘Yellow Face,’ ‘Vanya’ and More /
Watch the Tony nominee Daniel Dae Kim in David Henry Hwang’s comedy, and take in cabaret at 54 Below, all from your living room.
At this year’s Tony Awards ceremony, on June 8, the PBS series “Great Performances” will be honored for excellence in theater. Its spring slate alone should remind everybody why “Great Performances” has been a theater gateway for so many people. Already available is a 2024 recording of Roundabout Theater Company’s recent revival of the acidic David Henry Hwang comedy “Yellow Face,”starring Daniel Dae Kim and Francis Jue — both nominated for Tonys this year.
Watch: Francis Jue and David Henry Hwang in Conversation About Yellow Face /
Yellow Face, the Tony-nominated comedy by David Henry Hwang, airs on PBS tonight, May 16, beginning at 9pm. Here, playwright Hwang and Tony nominated star Francis Jue discuss the production and celebrate how they’ve made history in having brought it to Broadway.
GREAT PERFORMANCES: Yellow Face /
Premieres Friday, May 16, 2025 at 8 p.m. on KPBS 2 / PBS app
Tony-winning playwright David Henry Hwang’s comedy from Roundabout Theatre Company stars Daniel Dae Kim (LOST, HAWAII FIVE-0) as an Asian American playwright who protests yellowface casting in the blockbuster musical “Miss Saigon,” only to mistakenly cast a white actor as the Asian lead in his own play.
The Asian American Foundation (TAAF) will host its 2025 Heritage Summit and Awards Dinner /
May 21-22 in New York City, marking a major celebration of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) identity and influence during AANHPI Heritage Month.
The two-day event will bring together leaders from across entertainment, business, public service, and community organizing. The summit aims to elevate conversations around identity, inclusion, and intergenerational progress, while highlighting the achievements and power of the AANHPI community.
Honorees at this year’s awards dinner include actor and director Lucy Liu, Oscar-nominated actor and producer Stephanie Hsu, and Vivek Ranadivé, owner and chairman of the Sacramento Kings. Attendees will also get a special preview of Monkey King, a new production by David Henry Hwangand composer Huang Ruo.
In addition to Hwang, key participants at the event include Tan France, Poorna Jagannathan, Tati Gabrielle, Juju Chang, and Pablo Torre. The agenda features panels on media representation, fireside chats with prominent AANHPI figures, and more.
Daniel Dad Kim becomes first AAPI Tony nominee for Lead Actor in a play; record 7 Asian acting bids /
With today's announcement of the Tony Awards nominations, Daniel Dae Kim has made history as the first AAPI nominee in the Lead Actor in a Play category. Kim was recognized for his performance in the revival of Yellow Face, where he plays a satirical version of playwright David Henry Hwang. Kim's nomination is also part of a record-setting year for Asian representation at the Tonys.
BD Wong was the first actor of Asian descent to score a Tony. Coincidentally, his 1988 win for Featured Actor in a Play came courtesy of another Hwang play, M. Butterfly.
To Daniel Dae Kim and Francis Jue, Yellow Face's Broadway Success Shows How Far Asian Americans Have Come /
Daniel Dae Kim Heather Gershonowitz
The play by David Henry Hwang, nominated for three Tony Awards, will be available to stream on PBS beginning May 16.
Daniel Dae Kim has been a beloved household name for two decades, having been in Lost and Hawaii Five-O. But his 2025 Tony Award nomination for his performance in Yellow Face is the first time the actor has been recognized by a major awards body for his work. With his nomination in the category of Lead Actor in a Play, Kim is the first Asian American actor to be recognized in that category—it's a history-making moment the actor is not taking lightly.
"When I think about the fact that I'm the first Asian-American to be nominated in this category, that feels especially significant," he tells Playbill the morning he found out he was nominated (when he was getting ready to get on a plane to shoot Avatar: The Last Airbender on Netflix). "I remember how many Asian American actors there were before me who never received any kind of recognition despite the incredible work and hard work that they were doing for generations earlier...It says a lot about where we are now as a community, and it's meaningful. It's more meaningful for that reason than it is for me as an individual achievement."
Daniel Dae Kim Making History /
Daniel Dae Kim Tricia Baron
This year's nominations were filled with surprises and welcomed industry trends.
If the Tony Awards are the theatre Super Bowl, then the Tony Awards nominations day can be considered the play-offs (pun very much intended). This morning, theatre fans gathered at their screens to see which of our favorite teams or players will get to make it to Broadway biggest night.
While there was a number of overlooked artists, there were also some illuminating surprises and trends—all of which showcased one of the strongest (and highest-grossing) Broadway seasons in recent memory. Here's what we noticed about this year's Tony nominees.
Daniel Dae Kim and English Make History
This year included a large amount of first-time nominees (more on that later), but a notable one on the list was Daniel Dae Kim. Kim is now the first Asian actor to be nominated for a Tony Award for Best Performance By a Leading Actor in a Play (B.D. Wong, the first Asian actor to win an acting Tony, was in the Featured category for M. Butterfly). But Kim wasn't alone in making Tonys history. Sanaz Toossi is the first Iranian-American playwright to be nominated for Best Play, for English; and that show's cast members Tala Ashe and Marjan Neshat are the first Middle Eastern actors to be nominated for Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play.
Tony Nominations /
In a robust season with 14 new musicals, three tied for the most nominations, with 10 each: “Buena Vista Social Club,” “Death Becomes Her” and “Maybe Happy Ending.” And Audra McDonald, who has already won a record six competitive Tony Awards, set another record: she picked up her 11th nomination for her role in “Gypsy,” making her the most-nominated performer ever.
The nominations were announced at the end of the most robust Broadway season since the pandemic. Box office grosses are approaching prepandemic levels amid a bumper crop of 42 show openings. Several productions have drawn much-desired young audiences, and the season featured a mix of quirky and original shows alongside big-brand spectacle. But the industry faces challenges too: Ticket prices, especially for the hottest shows, have become out-of-reach for many, and fewer shows are turning a profit as the cost of producing has risen.
Four new takes on classic shows were nominated for best musical revival, including “Gypsy,” “Pirates! The Penzance Musical,” “Sunset Boulevard” and “Floyd Collins.” The four nominees for best play revival are “Eureka Day,” “Our Town,” “Romeo + Juliet” and “Yellow Face.”
Daniel Dae Kim made history as the first Asian American ever nominated as best leading actor in a play, for his performance in “Yellow Face,” according to the Asian American Performers Action Coalition. Asian Americans have historically been significantly underrepresented on Broadway, and this season was noteworthy for the relatively high number of Asian American performers, producers and members of creative teams.
Reactions From the 2025 Tony Award Play Nominees /
George Clooney, Louis McCartney, and David Henry Hwang
Learn how the artists in the play categories feel about getting nominated in this reaction round-up.
David Henry Hwang, Best Revival of a Play, Yellow Face
“This morning's nomination is a joyful affirmation of the work director Leigh Silverman and I have done over 20 years, to create and refine Yellow Face into a play which can bring audiences together, to laugh and think about how to move our country forward. Thank you so much to the nominators!"
Daniel Dae Kim, Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play, Yellow Face
"I'm really proud of the show. I feel like the entire company and our creative team worked so hard to bring this show to life, and it's really a validation of all the work we're doing. The fact that the play was nominated for Best Revival and that Francis [Jue] was recognized for Featured Actor, is all so meaningful to me and heartwarming, because it was a group effort. And when I think about the fact that I'm the first Asian-American to be nominated in this category, that feels especially significant, because it's not something I thought about before. I realized, and remember, how many Asian American actors there were before me who never received any kind of recognition despite the incredible work and hard work that they were doing for generations earlier."
Francis Jue, Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play, Yellow Face
"It's so completely flabbergasting...it's hard to breathe. I can't feel my body. On the other hand, it feels like for 18 years, I've been thinking about this play, about David's father, about what it means to be an immigrant in this country, and... all of the above. I am ecstatic, in a way that i haven't been in a long time. And partly that's because Daniel Dae Kim also got nominated, which is historic. This is the first time an Asian actor has been nominated for a Lead Actor in a Play on Broadway. I'm ecstatic for David Henry Huang, because I think it's a great American play that is going to stand the test of time. It's been a banner year for Asians in theatre in New York and on Broadway. So I'm just ecstatic."
2025 Tony Award Nominations /
Sarah Paulson and Wendell Pierce will announce this year's nominees for Broadway's top honors beginning at 8:30 AM ET.
It's all ties with this year's Tony Awards nominations, announced May 1 by Sarah Paulson and Wendell Pierce. Musicals Buena Vista Social Club, Death Becomes Her, and Maybe Happy Ending all tied to become the most nominated productions of the season, each including the much coveted Best Musical. (With a Special Tony Award being bestowed on Buena Vista Social Club's band, the musical is technically the most recognized in this nomination announcement.)
And even looking at plays (which have less opportunities for nominations), John Proctor is the Villain and The Hills of California tied to become the most nominated plays of the season, with seven each including Best Play. Musicals Dead Outlaw and Sunset Blvd. also earned seven nominations, the second-highest of this year's nods.
Best Revival of a Play
Eureka Day, Jonathan Spector
Romeo + Juliet
Thornton Wilder's Our Town
Yellow Face, David Henry Hwang
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play
George Clooney, Good Night, and Good Luck
Cole Escola, Oh, Mary!
Jon Michael Hill, Purpose
Daniel Dae Kim, Yellow Face
Harry Lennix, Purpose
Louis McCartney, Stranger Things: The First Shadow
Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play
Glenn Davis, Purpose
Gabriel Ebert, John Proctor is the Villain
Francis Jue, Yellow Face
Bob Odenkirk, Glengarry Glen Ross
Conrad Ricamora, Oh, Mary!
Who Should Be a Tony Awards Nominee in 2025? /
Jesse Green saw all 42 productions that are eligible for Tony Awards this season, as well as many, Off Broadway and elsewhere, that aren’t.
Though the official Tony Awards nominations aren’t scheduled to be announced until Thursday, I give you my unofficial ones right now. If it were up to me, these would be the nominees.
They include some, marked with an asterisk, that because they were seen Off Broadway or were otherwise ineligible, the real Tonys won’t include. Call it theatrical license that I do so anyway. Also bucking the rule book is my best ensemble category, which I argue for every year even though choosing among the Broadway riches is all but impossible.
Best Revival of a Play
Eureka Day, Jonathan Spector
Romeo + Juliet
Thornton Wilder's Our Town
Yellow Face, David Henry Hwang
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play
George Clooney, Good Night, and Good Luck
Cole Escola, Oh, Mary!
Jon Michael Hill, Purpose
Daniel Dae Kim, Yellow Face
Harry Lennix, Purpose
Louis McCartney, Stranger Things: The First Shadow
Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play
Glenn Davis, Purpose
Gabriel Ebert, John Proctor is the Villain
Francis Jue, Yellow Face
Bob Odenkirk, Glengarry Glen Ross
Conrad Ricamora, Oh, Mary!
Gold House names 100 most influential AAPIs /
Olympic gold medalist and swimmer Torri Huske, Wicked director Jon Chu and U.S. Senator Andy Kim (D-NJ) are among the more than 100 Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders named to the 8th annual Gold House A100 list.
The nonprofit which champions narrative change released its honor roll of the most impactful Asian Pacific leaders on the morning of May 1, day 1 of Asian Pacific Islander Heritage Month.
Also singled out in the entertainment field were R&B sensation Bruno Mars; Darren Criss and Helen Shen, lead actors of Broadway’s Maybe Happy Ending; David Henry Hwang and Daniel Dae Kim, playwright and lead actor of Broadway’s Yellow Face; and Abdullah Saeed, Asif Ali, Saagar Shaikh and Poorna Jagannathan, lead cast and creators of Hulu Boys Deli Boys.
Daniel Dae Kim becomes first AAPI Tony nominee for Lead Actor in a Play; record 7 Asian acting bids /
With today's announcement of the Tony Awards nominations, Daniel Dae Kimhas made history as the first AAPI nominee in the Lead Actor in a Play category. Kim was recognized for his performance in the revival of Yellow Face, where he plays a satirical version of playwright David Henry Hwang. Kim's nomination is also part of a record-setting year for Asian representation at the Tonys.
BD Wong was the first actor of Asian descent to score a Tony. Coincidentally, his 1988 win for Featured Actor in a Play came courtesy of another Hwang play, M. Butterfly.
Photos: Dramatists Guild Awards Honor David Henry Hwang /
Daniel Dae Kim, David Henry Hwang, Leigh Silverman
The ceremony was held April 28, 2025 at the Green Fig.The ceremony was held April 28, 2025 at the Green Fig.
Last night, the Dramatists Guild of America honored the recipients of their 2025 Awards with a ceremony at Green Fig at which playwrights, composers, lyricists, and librettists celebrated their fellow theatre writers.
Amanda Green, President of the Dramatists Guild Council, hosted the event, which featured musical numbers, moving speeches, and many powerful moments of solidarity and community.
The final award of the evening was the Dramatists Guild Lifetime Achievement Award, presented by the Dramatists Guild Council’s Treasurer, Christine Toy Johnson, to playwright David Henry Hwang.
Photos: Outer Critics Circle Marks 75th Anniversary With Star-Studded Cocktail Party /
Francis Jue and David Henry Hwang of Yellow Face
(© Tricia Baron)
See photos from the event, which took place at the West Bank Cafe.
The Outer Critics Circle celebrated its milestone 75th Anniversary on Monday, April 28, with a star-studded cocktail party at the West Bank Cafe.
A group comprising critics and journalists from print and digital publications across the country, the Outer Critics Circle presented awards first during the 1949-50 season, where recipients included Sheila Guyse (Lost in the Stars) and Daniel Reed (Come Back, Little Sheba), T.S. Elliot’s The Cocktail Party and Gian Carlo Menotti’s The Consul.
This year’s full list of nominees can be found here. Winners will be announced May 12.
2025 Outer Critics Circle Awards Nominations- The Full List /
The Outer Critics Circle (OCC), the official organization of writers on New York theatre for out-of-town, national, and digital news publications, has announced the nominees for the 2025 Outer Critics Circle Awards, honoring the 2024-2025 Broadway and Off-Broadway season.
Leading the pack with the most honors of the season is the Broadway musical Death Becomes Her, with twelve nominations, followed by Maybe Happy Ending with nine nominations. Stranger Things: The First Shadow leads in the play categories with a total of seven nominations, followed by The Hills of California with six.
2025 OUT CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD NOMINATIONS
Outstanding New Broadway Play
Cult of Love
The Hills of California
John Proctor Is the Villain
Purpose
Stranger Things: The First Shadow
Outstanding New Broadway MusicalOutstanding New Broadway Musical
Boop! The Musical
Death Becomes Her
Maybe Happy Ending
Operation Mincemeat
Real Women Have Curves
David Henry Hwang doesn’t mind being the butt of the joke — in fact, for Broadway’s ‘Yellow Face’ he needed to be /
David Henry Hwang (Credit: Courtesy of David Henry Hwang)
The three-time Pulitzer Prize finalist explains why he structured the comedy as a pseudo-documentary and how putting himself at the center freed up audiences.
David Henry Hwang’s “Yellow Face” opens like a documentary citing a source. “Email, received January 30,” the character of DHH begins, reciting the first line of Hwang’s satire about racial identity and family. The play hangs on two tentpole events, according to Hwang: “One is the protest against the casting Jonathan Pryce in ‘Miss Saigon’ and the second, towards the end [of the play], would be the charges against my father for allegedly laundering money for China,” Hwang explained. “Once I had those two real events, it just seemed to make sense that I could use a kind of stage-documentary format.”
But beyond those two events, “I just haven’t really affirmed or denied what’s true in the play,” Hwang told Broadway News. In “Yellow Face,” DHH is a Tony Award-winning playwright who finds himself in the spotlight when he objects to “Miss Saigon” casting a Welsh actor as Asian (in yellow face). DHH’s father is so proud of his son making the news; DHH not so much. Later, DHH finds himself in a bind when he accidentally casts a white actor in an Asian role — ironically in his play about mistaken racial identity, called “Face Value.”
‘Yellow Face’ star Francis Jue on playing David Henry Hwang’s father for 17 years: ‘He was allowed to thrive until he wasn’t’ /
“In 17 years, I think every single cell in your body has changed over at least once. I think that I changed more than the play did,” says Francis Jue in reference to the play Yellow Face. The actor first performed the role of Henry, a stage version of playwright David Henry Hwang’s father, off-Broadway in 2007. Nearly two decades later, Jue returned to the role in the Broadway revival to great acclaim. He recently joined Gold Derby to discuss the script’s continued relevance.
Henry is an immigrant from China and is obsessed with American ideals and culture. Yellow Face dives into the tricky world of identity politics and asks who has the right to the American dream. “When we first did it in 2007, people were wondering why he was still writing about identity? Weren't we past issues of racism? Obama was about to be president and isn't theater wonderful,” notes Jue. American culture has caught up with the discussions in the play, just in time for this revival. “Identity still is an issue. America still is wrestling with the question of what it means to be American.”