Kristina Wong, Sweatshop Overlord

Kristina Wong, Sweatshop Overlord
Written by	Kristina Wong
Date premiered	November 4, 2021 (2021-11-04)
Place premiered	New York Theatre Workshop
Subject	Xenophobia and racism related to the COVID-19 pandemic

Kristina Wong, Sweatshop Overlord is a 2021 American play by Kristina Wong. Its premise is based on Wong's experience organizing hundreds of volunteers to sew masks amid the COVID-19 pandemic, calling themselves the "Auntie Sewing Squad". Over the course of the play, Wong uses comedy to address themes such as the often unattainable nature of the American Dream, anti-Asian racism in the U.S. caused by the pandemic, and the invisible labor of women and people and color. The play was a finalist for the 2022 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, and won the Lucille Lortel Award, Drama Desk Award, and Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Solo Show.^[1]

Production history

The play was developed through live Zoom performances during the pandemic.

New York Theatre Workshop, NYC (2021)

Kristina Wong, Sweatshop Overlord premiered off-Broadway at the New York Theatre Workshop on November 4, 2021.^[2] The production was directed by Chay Yew, and was streamed virtually for purchase.^[3]

West Coast Productions (2022–2023)

The show made its West Coast premiere at La Jolla Playhouse's Potiker Theatre on September 20, 2022.^[4] Wong later brought the play to Portland Center Stage beginning in November 2022 and performed at Center Theatre Group's Kirk Douglas Theatre beginning in February 2023.

Reception

The show has received positive reviews. Laura Collins-Hughes of The New York Times declared it a Critics Pick, describing the show as a "spiky comic tonic".^[5] In a review of Center Theatre Group's production of the show in Los Angeles, critic Charles McNulty of the Los Angeles Times praised Wong's performance as being full of "vibrant, wacky, lovably chaotic immediacy".^[6]

References

1. "Kristina Wong, Sweatshop Overlord". Kristina Wong. Retrieved August 16, 2024.
2. McPhee, Ryan (October 25, 2021). "Kristina Wong, Sweatshop Overlord, Inspired by Early Days of Coronavirus Pandemic, Begins Off-Broadway". Playbill. Retrieved August 16, 2024.
3. McPhee, Ryan (November 16, 2021). "Off-Broadway's Kristina Wong, Sweatshop Overlord to Stream". Playbill. Retrieved August 16, 2024.
4. "Kristina Wong, Sweatshop Overlord in the Press". La Jolla Playhouse.
5. Collins-Hughes, Laura (November 4, 2021). "'Kristina Wong, Sweatshop Overlord' Review: Our Sewing Superhero". The New York Times. Retrieved August 16, 2024.
6. McNulty, Charles (February 17, 2023). "Review: Kristina Wong assembled 'aunties' to sew masks. Her pandemic mission is now a must-see show". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved August 16, 2024.

External links

• Kristina Wong, Sweatshop Overlord at the Internet Off-Broadway Database