The Dao of Unrepresentative British Chinese Experience at Soho Theatre

Daniel York Loh’s psychedelic, semi-autobiographical The Dao of Unrepresentative British Chinese Experience is premiering at Soho Theatre this June. This punk, rock and rap riff on what path you choose, which identity politics you embrace, or whether it’s easier to be a butterfly dreaming of being ‘Chinese’ is an original piece of gig theatre exploring race politics, mental health and personal testimony.   

Based on Daniel’s own experiences, The Dao of Unrepresentative British Chinese Experience challenges the British Chinese stereotype of ‘model minority’; the quiet, high-achieving, polite and invisible individual. Through a blend of disruptive music, multimedia and a range of performance forms, Daniel and collaborator An-Ting  take us on a hilarious but touching journey through his struggles with drug addiction and journey into recovery, art and ‘activism’.

Semi-autobiographical, free-form and explosive, Daniel York Loh’s work is an exploration of race and identity politics, addiction, mental health, as well as personal and social history. It incorporates aspects of ancient Chinese philosophy as well as music written by An-Ting and performed live by the cast, with an astonishing range of genres including punk, pop, psychedelia, electronica rap, and acid rock.

Daniel York Loh comments, The Dao of Unrepresentative British Chinese Experience is a heavily mythologised and dreamy version of real events with the names changed to protect the guilty. Delving into the challenges of individuality outside both the mainstream and modern identity tribes, blending various styles and performance forms, the play challenges conventional notions of ‘Chinese culture', 'community' and the diversity cliches of modern Britain. Shot through with social history, it’s a rock n’ roll state-of-the-nation play for our times.

An-Ting comments, Regarding the musical elements, I delved into extensive research on the music influencing Daniel's life, notably 70s punk like The Clash. I'm captivated by how this era's music boldly challenged societal norms. Today's artistic output often lacks the raw substance to address current issues. To counter this, I've incorporated a diverse range of music styles—punk, post-punk, rock, psychedelic, and experimental electronic—aiming to use musical expression to deeply resonate with the themes explored in Daniel's script.