PBS’s “Great Performances” this Friday presents “Yellow Face,” a Tony Award-winning play by David Henry Hwang, directed by Leigh Silverman, tackling a subject that continues to spark debate in the entertainment world: race and representation on stage and screen. Starring Daniel Dae Kim, the play uses humor and sharp wit to examine thorny questions of identity, the absurdities of show business, and the tangled web of autobiography.
Kim plays an Asian American playwright who finds himself in a predicament that mirrors Hwang’s own experiences. After publicly protesting the use of yellowface in the casting of “Miss Saigon,” the playwright accidentally casts a white actor in an Asian role, setting off a chain reaction of awkward and hilarious events.
“Yellow Face” is a Roundabout Theatre Company production, so it should look impressive on the smaller screen. Don’t expect easy answers or preachy pronouncements. This play is far more interested in prompting thoughtful conversations and challenging assumptions.
See it for yourself on Friday, May 16th at 9:00 PM ET on PBS.
