For a while, it’s not entirely clear where The First Prime-Time Asian Sitcom is going to go. The latest production from Silo Theatre welcomes the arrival of New Zealand’s first sitcom with a fully Asian cast and crew, the historic fact being hyped up at the start of the show by the director and showrunner (Dawn Cheong).
When the ‘live recording’ begins for the sitcom, my initial expectations were for a behind-the-scenes focus – a writer’s room is placed to the side of the main sitcom sets - but as the straight sitcom recording carries out, the slight cracks slip through that hints at the true behind-the-scenes chaos.
The sitcom proves to be just the starting point for a wider discussion about diversity, commercialisation and the pressures artists face in representing a community. In a way, TFPTAS has striking similarities to Silo’s previous work, The Writer. Both shows begin with a performance that segues into a panel discussion, with a focus on a female writer struggling to juggle their authentic voice with commercial sensibilities.
However, while both shows give way to fantastical moments unleashing the real inner voice of their heroines, TFPTAS manages to tell a more cohesive and insightful narrative that strikes a balance between a grounded story and a more energised outburst of emotion.
Writer Nahyeon Lee has written three distinct acts that fit flawlessly together even when the characters are falling apart. Her words perfectly capture the stereotypical beats and punchlines of a cheesy sitcom, before pointedly bringing to life a quintet of panellists and then diving into the mental break of the third act.