The second day of The Asian American Foundation’s (TAAF) annual Heritage Month Summit continued to bring together Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) trailblazers, leaders, and advocates, for a full day of dynamic programming in celebration of the organization’s fourth anniversary and AAPI Heritage Month.
Tony nominee Daniel Dae Kim sits down with Paul Wontorek to talk about his powerful return to Broadway in David Henry Hwang’s Yellow Face. In this exclusive interview, Kim opens up about what drew him to the role, portraying a version of the iconic playwright, and why the play’s shape-shifting style and themes still resonate today. Known to millions for his work on Lost and Hawaii Five-0, Kim shares why the stage is where his career began, how it feels to return to his theater roots, and his hopes for future roles—including a dream of playing Henry V. He also discusses the importance of visibility and representation on Broadway and what the Tony nomination means to him. A must-watch for fans of Kim, Hwang, and modern theater.
The Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland has another stellar season planned in 2026. (Courtesy Photo: OSF)
Never been to Ashland for the Oregon Shakespeare Festival? Wanna go? The famous Oregon Shakespeare Festival has announced its 2026 season, and you can now plan to go see an event. Here is information from OSF (osfashland.org): Each one of next year’s 10 productions represents a caliber of art that stays with you long after you leave the theatre, offering unbridled moments of connection, catharsis, and joy. They invite you to sit with loved ones and strangers alike, and be reminded of what becomes possible when we come together to share in the power of live theatre. In the words of Artistic Director Tim Bond, “We come to theatre to experience hope — to see the resilience of the human spirit play out before our very eyes, and to witness what happens when we meet the moment.”
“Yellow Face”
By David Henry Hwang Directed by May Adrales
Aug. 5-Oct. 23, 2026 Angus Bowmer Theatre
The American Composers Orchestra (ACO) today released the world premiere recording of composer Huang Ruo and librettist David Henry Hwang’s moving and timely opera, An American Soldier, conducted by Carolyn Kuan, digitally via Platoon. This world premiere recording lands just before Memorial Day in the United States, May 26, which is also Danny Chen’s birthday. Chen would have been thirty-three years old this year.
An American Soldier was composed by Huang Ruo.
Described as "taut and haunting" by The Wall Street Journal and "clearheaded" and "touching" by The New York Times, the opera is based on the true story of Chinese-American Army Pvt. Danny Chen, who was found dead in a guard tower at his base in Afghanistan in 2011, and the ensuing courts-martial of Chen’s fellow soldiers. The New York premiere of An American Soldier in May 2024 was co-produced by Perelman Performing Arts Center | PAC NYC, Boston Lyric Opera, and American Composers Orchestra, and co-commissioned by PAC NYC and Boston Lyric Opera.
Lauded for his “distinctive style” (The New York Times), composer Huang Ruo’s vibrant and inventive musical voice draws equal inspiration from Chinese ancient and folk music, the Western avant-garde, experimental music, noise, natural and processed sound, rock, and jazz. Best known for his plays, including M. Butterfly and Yellow Face, Tony, Obie, and GRAMMY-winner David Henry Hwangwrote the libretto for An American Soldier. Hwang is a prolific opera librettist, having written several operas with composers such as Philip Glass, Bright Sheng, and Unsuk Chin. An American Soldier was David Henry Hwang's first collaboration with Huang Ruo.
Shoba Narayan, Shanelle Kaul, Diane Paulus, Lea Salonga, David Henry Hwang, and Franics Jue
The second day of The Asian American Foundation’s (TAAF) annual Heritage Month Summit continued to bring together Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) trailblazers, leaders, and advocates, for a full day of dynamic programming in celebration of the organization’s fourth anniversary and AAPI Heritage Month.
Firesides and panels featured Lea Salonga, Darren Criss, David Henry Hwang, Francis Jue, Shoba Narayan, Diane Paulus, Shoba Narayan and more. The Summit closed with a surprise performance of “A Whole New World” by Criss and Narayan. Take a look at photos from the day below.
TAAF serves the Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) community by promoting safety, fostering belonging, and advancing prosperity. Launched in 2021 in response to the rise in anti-Asian hate and to address the long-standing underinvestment in AANHPI communities, TAAF invests in initiatives to combat anti-Asian hate, integrate AANHPI studies into school curricula, elevate authentic AANHPI storytelling, and expand resources and representation for our communities. Through high-impact initiatives, events, and investments in national and local nonprofits, TAAF aims to create a permanent and irrevocable sense of belonging for millions of AANHPIs in the United States.
Enjoy Tony winner David Henry Hwang’s comedy starring Daniel Dae Kim as an Asian American playwright who protests “yellowface” casting in the musical “Miss Saigon” only to mistakenly cast a white actor as the Asian lead in his own play.
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 repercussions resonate in this farce about the complexities of race. Filmed in November 2024 and directed by Leigh Silverman (“Violet,” “Suffs”), “Yellow Face” is an “is-he-or-isn’t-he” comedy of identity, show business and autobiography.
Recent and upcoming releases in TV and audio recording formats of four multi-award-nominated Broadway shows of the 2024-25 season are making performances of two plays available for viewing at home and the scores and songs of two musicals accessible for listening, if you weren’t able to make it to the theater to see them live, or if you loved them and can’t wait to revisit them again and again.
Yellow Face – A sidesplitting and thought-provoking Broadway revival of the 2007 quasi-autobiographical comedy by three-time Pulitzer Prize finalist and Tony winner David Henry Hwang (the first Asian American playwright to receive the award) starred Daniel Dae Kim as an Asian American playwright who protests “yellowface” casting in the musical Miss Saigon, only to mistakenly cast a white actor as the Asian lead in his own play and then suffer the repercussions. The critically acclaimed show, for which Francis Jue has already received an Outer Critics Circle Award for his featured role as the playwright’s father, ran for a limited engagement with Roundabout Theatre Company through Sunday, November 24, 2024, at the Todd Haimes Theatre. A live stage performance was filmed for PBS that month, made its broadcast debut on Friday, May 16, and is available now through June 30, for free streaming on the PBS website and app, so be sure to see this hilarious and timely look at racial identity, artistic freedom, political correctness, and media frenzy while you still can.
Playwriting alum Clarence Coo ’10 was presented with the Horton Foote Award at the Dramatists Guild’s annual awards ceremony on April 29, 2025, at the Broadway restaurant Green Fig.
"It was such an honor and a delight to receive this award the same evening David Henry Hwang received a Lifetime Achievement Award. David was my thesis mentor when I was a playwriting student at [the School of the Arts],” Coo said in a statement.
The Horton Foote Award recognizes dramatists whose work “seeks to plumb the ineffable nature of being human,” according to the Dramatists Guild. This year’s Horton Foote Award was given to Coo and playwright C. A. Johnson. Last year’s recipient was Sanaz Toossi, whose play English was just nominated for the 2025 Tony Award for Best Play.
NEW YORK — The nominations for the 2025 Tony Awards, including three for “Yellow Face,” were announced on May 1.
The awards show, hosted by Cynthia Erivo (“Wicked”), will be held at Radio City Music Hall on June 8 at 8 p.m. ET and will air on CBS and Paramount+.
David Henry Hwang’s “Yellow Face” was nominated for Best Revival of a Play along with “Eureka Day,” “Romeo + Juliet,” and “Thornton Wilder’s Our Town.”
Francis Jue was nominated for Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play along with Glenn Davis for “Purpose,” Gabriel Ebert for “John Proctor Is the Villain,” Bob Odenkirk for “Glengarry Glenn Ross,” and Conrad Ricamora for “Oh, Mary!”
Daniel Dae Kim was nominated for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play along with George Clooney for “Good Night and Good Luck,” Cole Escola for “Oh, Mary!,” Jon Michael Hill for “Purpose,” Henry Lennix for “Purpose,” and Louis McCartney for “Stranger Things: The First Shadow.”
In Hwang’s semiautobiographical play, DHH (Kim), an Asian American playwright, 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 repercussions resonate in this farce about the complexities of race. Jue plays DHH’s father, HYH.
David Henry Hwang’s identity crisis
David Henry Hwang’s play Yellow Face exemplifies the diversity-inclusion-equity (DIE) games that no doubt will continue at the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) even after federal funding is withdrawn.
Hwang, the Chinese-American playwright of M Butterfly — the stone-faced, gender-bending update of Puccini’s opera Madame Butterfly — has cemented his reputation for political correctness by specializing in racial (ethnic) discourse. Yellow Face debuted in 2007, was revived to much acclaim in 2024, and recently received several Tony Award nominations. PBS is now airing a recorded performance of the show.
The national exhibition of Yellow Face confirms Hwang’s grasp of progressive dramaturgy — a skill akin to writing successful grant proposals — in which personal experience is prized as political testament. The semi-autobiographical play recounts DHH’s own struggle session when he attacked the Broadway musical blockbuster Miss Saigon in 1990 for casting a white actor (Jonathan Pryce) as its Eurasian lead character.
Hwang’s vainglorious campaign underscores his later experience producing his next play, Face Value, and facing the death of his father, Henry Yuan Hwang (HYH), a patriotic immigrant and founder of Far East National Bank. Yellow Face suits PBS through its acronyms and coded blackout sketches that generate notions about ethnic identity. It’s Hwang’s satire of demoralized patriotism. His disillusionment perpetuates DIE ideology in one convenient package.
David Henry Hwang, Leigh Silverman, Francis Jue, and Daniel Dae Kim (Ghina Fawaz)
David Henry Hwang's play, starring Tony nominees Daniel Dae Kim and Francis Jue, is streaming now on PBS.
While Tony Award voters have to go to the theatre to see this season's Tony-nominated shows, there is one production they can watch from their homes: Yellow Face by David Henry Hwang—which is currently up for three Tonys, including Best Revival of a Play. The play, which closed last fall after a limited engagement, has been filmed by PBS and can be streamed until June 30 on PBS.org. For the industry folks who would rather see it in a theatre, Hwang and the show's stars have been hosting a number of screenings of the Yellow Face film.
At a May 18 screening at the Whitby Hotel, which also featured popcorn in Yellow Face containers, Hwang introduced the film by noting the play's historical significance: "I'm very grateful to the [Tony] nominators and everybody, because this is the first play in Broadway history in which East Asians are being centered as Americans." Indeed, musicals and plays set in Asia are fairly common on Broadway, but works about Asians living in America aren't as prevalent (though Hwang previously worked on a revival of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Flower Drum Song, set in San Francisco).
The first monologue Daniel Dae Kim ever performed was by David Henry Hwang.
He had to do one for his college summer program at the National Theater Institute in Connecticut. Kim chose a scene from “FOB," Hwang's play about the assimilation struggles of a Chinese American. So, it's fitting that 35 years later Hwang — the first Asian American to win the Tony Award for best play — would be the one to bring Kim into the Tony spotlight.
Known for TV series such as “Lost” and “Hawaii Five-0,” Kim, 56, is the first Asian nominee in the category of best leading actor in a play in the Tonys’ 78-year history for his work in a Broadway revival of Hwang’s “Yellow Face.”
“I can imagine a lot of things, but I did not imagine this scenario with David,” Kim said. “That I would be in a play with him, that we would both be nominated for Tony Awards and we would be able to call each other friends.”
In the semi-autobiographical show, which ran last fall at the Roundabout Theatre Company, Kim played a satirical version of Hwang. The show also scored nods for best play revival and best performance by a featured actor in a play for first-time nominee Francis Jue, an original 2007 cast member.
Best Play Revival
★ “Eureka Day”
“Romeo + Juliet”
“Our Town”
✓ “Yellow Face”
In this season’s death match between “Our Town,” the quintessential American drama, and “Romeo + Juliet,” the everlasting English tragedy, the Thornton Wilder revival won by a knockout. (Nobody really seemed to die in the Shakespeare.) But “Yellow Face,” by David Henry Hwang, complicating its story about colorblind casting with piquant ironies, will likely defeat them both. Still, I’d go for Jonathan Spector’s “Eureka Day,” a satire of vaccination politics that skewers both sides: anti-science know-nothings and trip-on-your-tongue progressives. It lets every kind of American cringe.
Two Tony-nominated plays from the current Broadway season are being broadcast on television. Both of them originated decades ago, and have gained new relevance because of the current political landscape.
David Henry Hwang’s Yellow Face starring Daniel Dae Kim debuted on PBS’ Great Performances on Friday and will be streaming through June 30 on pbs.org/gperf and the PBS app. (which helps explain why Great Performances is one of the recipients of the 2025 Tony Award for Excellence in the Theater.)
PBS is once again spotlighting theater’s finest with its annual Broadway’s Best series, airing Fridays in May as part of Great Performances. The 2025 lineup brings four acclaimed stage productions to viewers nationwide, showcasing powerful stories, legendary music, and award-winning talent.
The season kicked off last week with Next to Normal, the Tony and Pulitzer Prize-winning musical about a suburban mother grappling with bipolar disorder and a haunting family past. Starring Caissie Levy and filmed during its West End transfer from the Donmar Warehouse, this raw and intimate production offers a gripping portrayal of mental health and resilience.
Tomorrow night, May 16, PBS presents Yellow Face, David Henry Hwang’s autobiographical comedy about a playwright who accidentally casts a white actor in an Asian role while protesting similar casting choices in the industry. Featuring Daniel Dae Kim and produced by Roundabout Theatre Company, the play cleverly explores identity, race, and the complexities of representation in theater.
Go behind the curtain of the Tony nominated play “Yellow Face” with the cast and David Henry Hwang.
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.
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.
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.
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.
