Abstract
This article critically examines the contextual rationales behind the Royal Shakespeare Company’s (RSC) production of The Orphan of Zhao, arguing that the casting choices were linked to the conceptual limitations regarding the presentation of the three plays produced in the ‘A World Elsewhere’ season. After proposing an Asia-centric rationale for tying the new adaptations of Boris Godunov, A Life of Galileo, and The Orphan of Zhao together (such that a substantial East Asian presence would be highly beneficial if not essential) I use Chen Shi-Zheng’s 2003 English-language adaptation of The Orphan of Zhao as a telling point of comparison. The RSC production thus illustrates the shortcomings of colour-blind casting and reveals the broader pattern of discrimination faced by artists of British East Asian descent.
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