What happens when the traditional Chinese goddess Nüwa begins to appear in Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream?” This term, the student-directed play “Nüwa in Fairyland” is being led by Melinda Wu ’25 and Wendi Ying ’25 as part of their Theatre 901 play production course. Entirely student-run, Theatre 901 courses give Andover students the chance to conduct an official course. The play first caught co-director Wendi Ying’s eye this past summer.
“I did an acting intensive over the summer, and during that time, we did a lot of scene work… Naturally, it became really repetitive, and you get sick of seeing the same scene over and over again. But I remember these two kids doing a scene from ‘Nüwa in Fairyland,’ and it was a hit every single time, like people would die laughing no matter how many times we ran it and that was what really got me to read the entire play. I started to find that themes of the play really resonated with me and it made me really want to direct it and do it justice. I don’t see a lot of lead characters in plays that look like me, an Asian American, so finding a play that does a good job of not only representation, but being a well-written show on its own, is very rare,” said Ying.
The complex story of “Nüwa in Fairyland” follows high schooler Benji Wells, an Asian American adoptee, as he grapples with his queer identity and feelings of cultural disconnect. As a theater kid himself, Benji becomes so engrossed in method acting that his school play begins to come to life. Co-director Melinda Wu ’25 commented on what she hopes to communicate through the show.
“‘Nüwa in Fairyland’ toes a fine line between cultural acceptance and self-determination. The characters are suspended between this outlandish, fairytale-like goddess from Chinese folklore and a totally normal family working out their own stresses and issues. Both are compelling, and both are important perspectives. I’m excited to see the audience decide their stance and interpret this contrast,” said Wu.
As Asian Americans, Ying and Wu saw a special opportunity to merge their passion for theater with a central part of their identities. While “Nüwa in Fairyland” has elements that are classically Shakespearean, it also subverts the Western fairytale narrative. In this way, the play is exploring the “clash” of Eastern and Western cultures while also touching on the intersection between sexuality, identity, and displacement. Moreover, Ying wanted to explore how this play fit into the portrayal of Asian American identity in the broader media.
“I’ve been contemplating the idea of what defines Asian American focused media, whether that’s films or literature — we really should start expanding the scope of what we consider that to be, because I want audiences to see that an Asian American storyline doesn’t need to be confined to solely focusing on the experience of being Asian. There’s so much more, and this play encompasses so much humor, complexity, and subplots, while also highlighting a less commonly portrayed Asian American experience of being an adoptee,” said Ying.
The cast features a group of highly motivated students, some who have an extensive background in acting while others are new to the art form. A long-term participant in theater, Daisy Lopez ’26 plays the role of Maryanne, Benji’s adoptive mother, while doubling as Titania, a Shakespearean fairy queen. One of her main challenges was balancing these two drastically different yet overlapping parts. She shares how her directors’ socratic approaches have helped her step into these roles and really embody her characters.
“Both Wendi and Melinda challenge us to interpret each scene, and I really like the way they help us figure what each scene means, even it’s difficult for us, they ask us things like, ‘Oh, how would they feel in this moment’ or ‘Pretend as if this was something you’d see in a Nickelodeon show.’ It’s important to have an open imagination because it’s a comedy, so I wanted to make it as funny and magical as possible,” said Lopez.
The role of a director is double pronged, as they guide the actors technically and support them personally. Tina Phan ’26, who plays the folkloric Chinese goddess Nüwa, remarked on how Ying and Wu have succeeded in facilitating an environment centered around both growth and community.
“They’re both really proactive and organized people, and it helps so much that they’re very assured of themselves, so it makes us as cast members feel okay, like they’ve got us if anything goes wrong. It feels nice to know that we have very reassuring directors who know what they’re doing and they hold us to a standard of discipline that I really appreciate… Wendi and Melinda really accommodate to us well. Say we’re sick or we have a ridiculous amount of lines to remember, they’re really understanding of that, which is really helpful for me,” said Phan.
Editor’s Note: Wendi Ying is an Arts Editor for The Phillipian.
