Often called China’s equivalent of Hamlet, The Orphan of Zhao is an epic, classic tale of revenge that shows the struggle between good, honorable men and those corrupted by power. Set in the Emperor’s court, we follow along as evil minister Tu’an Gu slowly plots against and executes his political rivals, including the entire Zhao clan. Or, should I say, ALMOST the entire Zhao clan. Watch as the common people of China, none of whom knew the Zhao clan personally, make countless sacrifices to hide and protect the Orphan until he can avenge his family and stop the murderous Tu’an Gu from becoming Emperor. Will the Orphan succeed in serving justice, or be caught in the grasp of Tu’an Gu? The play will be performed on May 20th and 21st, 2026.

The directors are Mr. Nick Jodka and Ms. Karinne Syers. The assistant directors are Chris Lee ’26, Jonathan Jiang ’26, and Victor Oudin ’26.

The cast in this play are Chris Lee ’26 as Cheng Bo, Jonathan Jiang ’26 as Tu’an Gu, Addie Pieroni ’27 as Princess, Adrian Li ’27 as Cheng Ying, Kaden Song ’27 as Wei Jiang, Alex Wykoff ’28 as Chu Ni/Tavern, Andres Seal ’26 as Wife of Cheng Ying/Tavern, Chris Newson ’28 as Han Jue/Tavern, Danny Chu ’26: Gonsung Chijiu, Ryan Kang ’26: Zhao Dun, Jagger Newlin ’28: Ghost of Cheng Ying’s Child/Tavern/Slapping Guard, Shelby Jackson Jr. ’28: Tavern Bard/Guard/Peasant 3, Jason Hu ’28: Tavern Cook/Guard, Fede Piedrahita ’26: Tavernkeeper/Peasant 1, William Lin ’27: Tavern Bartender/Guard, Ethan Bu ’27: Tavern Drunk/Peasant 2, Andy Duan ’27: Ensemble/Guard at house of Zhao /Tu’an Gu’s Guard, Eric Choi ’28: Ensemble/Guard at house of Chujiu/Tu’an Gu’s Guard, Lief Abramson ’28: Ensemble/Messenger/Captain of the Guard, Michael Kao ’27: Ensemble/Guard at Forbidden Palace, Minkyu Ko Ensemble/Ti Miming, Sebastien Chen ’26: Ensemble/Servant.

Our backstage crew includes Ryan Yuan ’28, Martin Gilmore ’27, Edward Kim ’26, Ülla Williams ’26, Austin Yeung ’27, and Harvey Syers ’27.