Date of Interview: 14 July 2025
Interviewer: Caleb Lee
Interviewee: Windson Liong
CALEB LEE
Hi. Good afternoon, Windson. Thank you very much for joining us, for this oral history interview.
WINDSON LIONG
Thank you very much for having me.
CALEB LEE
Thank you. And let’s just go straight into the interview. Could you just tell us a little bit about yourself and your journey and how your journey with New Earth Theatre began?
WINDSON LIONG
My name is Windson. I am an actor, singer, teacher, voiceover artist based in London. So how my journey started with New Earth was in 2011. So I did this show with them called Dim Sum Nights, which is this, like, amazing compilation of a lot of different short plays. And then at the end of the whole event, they are going to pick the top five plays to tour around the country.
So I was in that, I was in two of those plays, and one of the plays was selected to be their top five plays to tour around the country later. And I think a year later. But I wasn’t on that tour a year later because my visa expired by then, and then I went back to Singapore.
CALEB LEE
Cool. What was your first impression of the company when you first joined?
WINDSON LIONG
I thought it was amazing because back then, I moved to the UK in 2009 and the ESEA, the East Asian or Southeast Asian visibility in this country is actually not as visible as it is now. And it’s quite rare to see a lot of Asian actors in commercial stages and in big high profile shows.
So knowing that there is a company that actually champions and showcases people like me, I thought that was quite amazing. And that was when I was thinking like, oh my gosh, this is amazing. There is actually a company that actually not only is just doing like Asian stuff but is actively advocating for people like me. Because I have heard depressing things when I first moved there saying that, oh yeah, you are really good, but to be honest, I don’t know how to cast you because like, you know, you are not the same as the rest. I literally get that comment. Like they think that they’re trying to be nice, but actually it’s quite soul crushing. And then to have a company that actually not only, like not ashamed of what you are, or who you are, but actively promotes you and think that what we are is amazing and is worth celebrating that. I thought that was amazing.
CALEB LEE
Reflecting now that it’s New Earth’s kind of 30th anniversary, how things have shifted, in the landscape. Just maybe something a little bit more personal. But in what ways do you think New Earth had kind of influenced your own personal and professional journey here in the UK?
WINDSON LIONG
I think in terms of the psychological aspect of my personal growth, it made me feel that I have a community of people who are in this together with me. So a lot of my friends are Asian actors. We understand one another’s struggles, and we help each other. We build each other up. And, I thought that’s one of the most helpful things for me as an artist, in terms of our personal growth.
Because, like, you know, when we get together, I like even just to just to feast. Just to eat. Very typical Asian and just to hang out and just to support one another or like, just do casual play readings amongst one another just to keep up our skills and stuff like that. So all these things are the things that, to me are quite precious, that even though it’s not specifically from New Earth’s production, but it’s because of the community that I got to know, that gave me those things that are actually very beneficial beyond just one or two stage productions.
CALEB LEE
Can you just share a little bit more about what Dim Sum Night was and what it meant to you?
WINDSON LIONG
So Dim Sum Nights basically is just a night celebrating a lot of new writings, and then each piece has different actors because there are just so many plays, so many performances and so many actors. And which, which is amazing because that’s the first time that I saw so many amazing actors in one room, because sometimes you get to see the other piece as well before your pieces, especially during rehearsal.
So everybody watched everyone’s pieces. Of course, during the show, you can’t, you have to hide backstage. And then it just made me think that sometimes people think that, oh, okay, right. They always cast a certain type of people or a certain race or people because I see that there, oh, there, there are no good actors amongst the Asian community or other communities and stuff like that.
So that’s why we have to cast only a certain demographic of people, because they are so good. And then watching this rehearsal like that for Dim Sum Nights and I was thinking like, I don’t know what they are talking about. There are so many good actors, they are just not given a chance to perform in bigger shows, maybe because of the color of their skin, but they are so good.
So it meant a lot to me because it made me realise that, well, a lot of people said previously were just, pardon my choice of language, bullshit. So it’s not true. There are so many good talents within our community. They just need to be given a chance and given a platform to shine. And they definitely did shine on that platform.
And that was created by Yellow Earth back then and New Earth now. So I thought that was quite amazing. And that was really important to me, that the world needs to see how many amazing talents there are within our community.
CALEB LEE
Yeah. Thank you. Just to kind of extend on that question about the kind of projects and productions that you were involved in, could you share with us other projects with New Earth that you might have done?
WINDSON LIONG
So in terms of performance, I’ve only done Dim Sum Nights, and I also did another, a production called Oh Deptford, which is basically an interactive, immersive show that’s set in Deptford where the old office was. So that was quite fun too, because like, you get to immerse yourself within the neighborhood and that uniqueness of Deptford. And I find that quite fun and quite interesting.
And, but most of my work actually revolves around education, with New Earth Theatre. So I do a lot of workshops in schools, and I also do a lot of storytelling sessions in museums and in different places. So that’s mostly what I do with New Earth over 14 years, I’ve been collaborating with New Earth for.
CALEB LEE
Are you still doing the workshops currently?
WINDSON LIONG
Yes, I’m still doing the workshops and I’m also still doing the storytelling sessions. In fact, one of my favorite gigs through them was the Docklands Museum in Canary Wharf. So I really love working with them because they’re so nice and they always invite us to come back year after year after year to do all their Lunar New Year events.
So I’ve done quite a few years now, like five years at least.
CALEB LEE
From your perspective, in what ways do you think the company has evolved?
WINDSON LIONG
I don’t know whether there is a lot of evolution. I don’t mean that they have not evolved, but more so that they have always been very inclusive. They have always been very good at representing our community.
So they have always been at the top of their game in that aspect. So. So I think it’s hard enough for them to just maintain that. So I don’t know whether there’s another ceiling for them to break through if you know what I mean. I just always feel that they have always been very good at championing our culture and our authenticity and our place in this world.
So they have always been really good at that time.
CALEB LEE
So what does it mean for you to be part of this thirtieth year legacy of New Earth?
WINDSON LIONG
I feel very honored. So thank you for inviting me to do this. And I feel very thankful as well, because as I said earlier, New Earth has always been really good at championing the visibility of us, and I feel that we have made a mark in the landscape in that theatre landscape in the UK.
And hopefully this mark will just get bigger and bigger and bigger because the visibility of our community or within the industry has been a lot more and a lot more visible. And hopefully it will be even more and there will be more of us like headlining shows, and there are more of us doing big productions.
And it’s our talent that counts, not just the color of our skin.
CALEB LEE
And what are your hopes for the next generation of artists, ESEA artists for New Earth’s kind of future?
WINDSON LIONG
For the new generation I hope that they will be able to be proud of who they are and what they are and celebrate themselves. And then when you go out to make a mark in the world, it’s everything about them that makes them successful.
We all tread on the successes of our predecessors. And then when we shine on the stage, we all shine together. Not just as an individual, but as a community. And I just hope that, you know, whoever that comes after us, will feel supported to be in a place to do the best that they can and be able to celebrate themselves and not be ashamed of who they are and what they are, especially as a minority in this country. Because I know a lot of people do get bullied, you know, like growing up and stuff like that. So sometimes some of them will tend to shut off their heritage and shut off their origins and stuff like that, thinking that’s something that is not worthy to be proud of. I will say to them, no, be proud of who you are and what you are, and that’s what makes you unique.
And then that also is what makes all of us unique. The more we celebrate ourselves, the more our community will be accepted.
CALEB LEE
If you could leave a message for someone discovering New Earth Theatre for the first time, right? What would you say?
WINDSON LIONG
Well, I would say come join us. Dive into the deep end. And even if the deep end is very dark but that gives you room to shine. And hopefully that own little corner that you started in will expand out to a big wide world for everyone to be in.