Daniel Dae Kim making history at the Tony Awards and pushing for Asian representation on Broadway

The archetypal monologue Daniel Dae Kim ever performed was by David Henry Hwang.

He had to bash 1 for his assemblage summertime programme astatine the National Theater Institute successful Connecticut. Kim chose a country from “FOB," Hwang's play astir the assimilation struggles of a Chinese American. So, it's fitting that 35 years aboriginal Hwang — the archetypal Asian American to triumph the Tony Award for champion play — would beryllium the 1 to bring Kim into the Tony spotlight.

Known for TV bid specified arsenic “Lost” and “Hawaii Five-0,” Kim, 56, is the archetypal Asian nominee successful the class of champion starring histrion successful a play successful the Tonys’ 78-year past for his enactment successful a Broadway revival of Hwang’s “Yellow Face.”

“I tin ideate a batch of things, but I did not ideate this script with David,” Kim said. “That I would beryllium successful a play with him, that we would some beryllium nominated for Tony Awards and we would beryllium capable to telephone each different friends.”

In the semi-autobiographical show, which ran past autumn astatine the Roundabout Theatre Company, Kim played a satirical mentation of Hwang. The amusement besides scored nods for champion play revival and champion show by a featured histrion successful a play for first-time nominee Francis Jue, an archetypal 2007 formed member.

You could not person scripted a amended ending for a play that was written successful effect to the philharmonic “Miss Saigon” casting achromatic actors arsenic Asian characters.

Kim's show was filmed successful November and PBS volition broadcast “Yellow Face” connected Friday. The Tonys, airing connected CBS connected June 8, besides volition enactment a spotlight connected the play.

Asian practice and the Tonys

This groundbreaking information seems similar the cleanable karmic reward for Kim, who has spent years advocating for greater Asian representation. At the pandemic's height, the Korean American histrion was a changeless media beingness speaking retired against anti-Asian hate. He besides jump-started a run for seasoned histrion James Hong, past 91, to get a Hollywood star.

He woke up to the quality of his information aft radical were capable to get astir his phone's “do not disturb” mode. His contention includes George Clooney and Cole Escola.

“It’d beryllium a immense astonishment if I won, but I volition accidental that adjacent getting the information is simply a triumph particularly erstwhile you enactment it successful the discourse of our assemblage and what this means for Asian Americans,” said Kim, whose erstwhile Broadway credits see “The King and I.”

He admits it's astonishing and “a small sad” that nary different Asian histrion has been successful this category. There’s inactive ne'er been an Asian nominee for champion pb histrion successful a play.

“Of course, the obstruction we truly privation to interruption is to really person idiosyncratic win, and hopefully that happens sooner alternatively than later, whether it’s maine oregon not.”

Kim is 1 of 7 Asian acting nominees this year. Only 3 acting trophy winners person been Asian. One was Lea Salonga for “Miss Saigon” and different was Ruthie Ann Miles for “The King and I.” Coincidentally, the archetypal was BD Wong for champion featured histrion successful Hwang's Tony-winning play, “M. Butterfly.” Hwang takes peculiar pridefulness successful helping actors interruption solid ceilings.

“I get to consciousness like, ‘Oh, possibly I’m really capable to marque a difference’ and alteration the civilization successful the mode that my little-kid-self would person loved but would not person thought possible," said Hwang, who present has his 4th vocation Tony nomination. He was past nominated 22 years ago.

Bringing Asian Americans into the theater

For a agelong time, Hwang felt the lone mode to get a play with Asian characters made was to acceptable it extracurricular America due to the fact that "Broadway audiences are not funny successful Asian Americans.”

Historically, productions with Asian ensembles person been musicals acceptable successful “the exotic lands of Asia,” specified arsenic “The King and I," said Esther Kim Lee, a theatre studies prof astatine Duke University and writer of “The Theatre of David Henry Hwang." “Flower Drum Song,” acceptable successful San Francisco, was an objection but the songs and publication were by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. Hwang really revised the publication successful 2002.

“It's 2025. We yet spot an existent Asian American play with an Asian American lead,” Lee said. “You tin person ‘The King and I’ and person large actors and they whitethorn get Tony Awards, but it’s truly not astir Asian Americans. That this has happened with ‘Yellow Face’ is conscionable incredible.”

The show's two-month tally brought the Roundabout a 50% summation successful first-time assemblage members — “a almighty statement," Kim said.

“One of the nicest compliments I would perceive aft the amusement erstwhile I would spell to the signifier doorway is, ‘This is the archetypal Broadway amusement I’ve ever seen,’" Kim said. “That meant a batch to maine due to the fact that bringing Asian Americans into the theatre is important and bringing younger radical into the theatre is important conscionable for the wellness of theatre successful general.”

‘Yellow Face’ has caller relevance

Besides discussing whitewash casting, “Yellow Face” examines the symptom of the main character's migrant father. The relation is based connected Hwang's father's acquisition being wrongly accused of laundering wealth for China. With the existent anti-immigrant and anti-DEI climate, the show's airing connected PBS feels particularly captious to Hwang.

“Whenever there’s a struggle betwixt America and immoderate Asian country, Asian Americans are the archetypal to get targeted,” Hwang said.

PBS is besides wherever successful 2020 the five-episode past docuseries “Asian Americans" aired for Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month. Kim was a narrator and remains “unequivocally proud" of the project.

Five years aft the emergence of anti-Asian hatred crimes, Kim sees “Yellow Face” simply making it to Broadway arsenic a victory.

“I don’t privation to get preachy, but I volition accidental that the extremity with spotlighting and elevating radical of colour is not to endanger the establishment,” Kim said. “The extremity was truly to accidental everyone tin lend to our society. Everyone tin beryllium a affirmative unit for change.”

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