Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC) is proud to present the Australian main stage debut of the multi-award-winning play Scenes From A Yellow Peril in QPAC’s Cremorne Theatre from 3 to 12 July 2025.
Written by award-winning Chinese-New Zealand writer and poet, Nathan Joe, the smash-hit New Zealand work was reconceptualised into an Australian context by Brisbane-based independent production company The Reaction Theory.
The Australian premiere of Scenes From A Yellow Peril was presented as part of Queensland Theatre’s DOOR 3 initiative last year. It won Best Independent Production and Best Ensemble at the 2024 Matilda Awards. It was also nominated for Best Direction, Best Costume Design and Best Lighting Design.
Featuring creatives and cast from a diverse cultural heritage, the poetic and powerful play is performed by emerging Queensland talent. It portrays the nuances of the Asian experience in both Australia and New Zealand.
Performed as a series of insights rather than a traditional play, Scenes From A Yellow Peril provides an eye-opening look at racism and privilege. It exposes the reality of what it means to have an Asian identity in both Australia and Aotearoa, New Zealand.
Co-Directors and Producers, Chelsea August and Egan Sun-Bin said they knew they had found an outstanding work when they first encountered Scenes From A Yellow Peril.
“We fell in love with the play as soon as we saw it and we really wanted to get our hands on it. Ahead of our premiere season, we worked with Nathan Joe and engaged in cross-cultural collaboration to make the script more relatable to Australian audiences. We were thrilled with the critical and audience acclaim the play received in its first Australian season. We couldn’t be more excited to present our first main stage season at QPAC.”
Egan Sun-Bin says the play fulfils the relatively new and strong demand for Asian-centred theatre stories in Queensland.
“This play also creates the opportunity to reach new audiences, while bolstering the local independent theatre sector. A ground-breaking theatre work, Scenes From A Yellow Peril is more than a play, it’s a strong statement on the Asian experience in a predominantly Western context. Nathan Joe’s poignant writing gives a platform to an underrepresented voice in a dynamic, thought-provoking, sometimes uncomfortable way. It invites the audience into a world that challenges stereotype, confronts bias and celebrates the complexity of identity.”
In a twist on usual theatrical plays, the actors play themselves, not character roles, creating moments of reflection, confessions, and dialogue as well as retelling certain historical events that took place in New Zealand.
The four-strong all-original season cast comprises Daphne Chen whose credits include Pride and Prejudice (Queensland Theatre), Breaking (Metro Arts), and Much Ado About Nothing (Shake & Stir). Chris Nguyen, a graduate of Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University’s Bachelor of Acting, whose credits include short films such as Otter and Fox (2022) and Spit of You (2023). Jazz Zhao whose credits include the AACTA nominated And The Ocean Agreed (2024), Nine Network’s The Actually Very Difficult Show, and BIFF’s Winner 2025, Stiffs. Rounding out the cast is Peter Wood whose credits include A Chorus Line (A Coastal Theatre Collective), Mamma Mia! (The Show Co.), and Tick Tick Boom! (THAT Production Company).
Scenes From A Yellow Peril runs from 3 – 12 July 2025 at the Cremorne Theatre, QPAC.
Tickets: https://qpac.com.au/whats-on/2025/scenes-from-a-yellow-peril
Website: https://www.thereactiontheory.net/
Socials: https://www.instagram.com/thereactiontheory/
The Reaction Theory production of Scenes From A Yellow Peril has received majority of support from BIPOC Arts Australia and development assistance from the Wallace Foundation and the Playmarket Playfellows Programme. By arrangement with Playmarket, it premiered in 2024 as part of Queensland Theatre’s DOOR 3 initiative.
Photo credits: Nathaniel Knight
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