“The Fringe feels like one giant bingo card that no one could ever finish because there’s simply too much to see—even if you’re watching four shows a day and sprinting between venues.”
WHO: Petunia Hu
WHAT: “A gothic fairytale for the culturally confused. A Chinese exchange student at an American high school sees herself in Frankenstein’s monster – stitched together and out of place. When the drama club stages Cinderella, she auditions to prove her worth, only to find herself longing for the Mandarin rhymes she once sang with pride. As foreign stories glitch into nightmares, she realises: both the princess and the monster are dead. She’s neither. Critically acclaimed at 2025 Brighton Fringe: ‘raw, eye-opening’ **** (TheatreInBrighton.co.uk), ‘refreshing and linguistically aware take on identity construction’ **** (SoundBehindCurtain.com).”
WHERE: Studio at theSpaceTriplex (Venue 38)
WHEN: 13:05 (45 min)
MORE: Click Here!
Is this your first time to Edinburgh?
I came to the Fringe in 2024 with my two-hander “Tide” and completely fell in love with Edinburgh. What struck me most was the generosity between artists. People who were bringing their own shows came to see ours, then helped hand out our flyers afterwards. Within our cast and creative team, we were constantly swapping recommendations and sending each other off to see the best work we’d discovered. The Fringe feels like one giant bingo card that no one could ever finish because there’s simply too much to see—even if you’re watching four shows a day and sprinting between venues. For me, the real win is putting your work out there and discovering artists you might never have encountered otherwise.
What are the big things you’ve learned since 2025 and have you absorbed any of the lessons yet?
As a playwright, I’ve learned that writing happens through revision, and that other people’s feedback isn’t a tax, but part of the process of making a play into what I want it to be. I’ve put some of my most vulnerable drafts out into the world and slowly learned that my play is not me, nor is it a measure of how good I am.
I’ve also learned how valuable artistic communities are. I love writers’ groups because watching and supporting other playwrights as they wrestle with feedback and discover their own voices is genuinely rejuvenating. I also keep a running list of theatres and companies that consistently produce the kind of work I love. I go to their shows, ask myself why they resonate with me, and use them as reference points to better understand my own dramaturgical instincts.
Beyond lessons in my craft, I’ve become more certain of my stance that all theatre should be political and should answer the question, “Why now?” It’s made me think more carefully about the kind of artists I want to work with and support. Being able to make theatre is such a privilege. If we have the chance to gather people in a room, why not use that opportunity to start conversations that matter?
Tell us about your show.
I’m writing and directing a one-woman show called “Cinderella and Frankenstein’s Monster Are Dead”, which is produced by my indie theatre company, The Beachcombers. We started the company as a group of women, non-binary and queer artists who love reimagining familiar stories and collecting overlooked histories and ideas to explore the experiences of marginalized people.
The play follows Zhao Lan, a Chinese exchange student in the United States who becomes obsessed with Frankenstein’s monster because she feels stitched together and out of place. When her high school drama club announces a production of “Cinderella”, she auditions for the title role, hoping it will finally help her belong. But as she struggles with language, identity, and the pressure to assimilate, she begins to wonder whether she’s been chasing the wrong story all along.
The show had a short run at the 2025 Brighton Fringe, and we’ve spent the past year rewriting and developing it. Edinburgh feels like the natural next step. We’re not sure where the show will go after August yet, but we’re excited to find out!
What should your audience see at the festivals after they’ve seen your show?
I’ve been a huge fan of Xhloe and Natasha ever since I saw their show “A Letter to Lyndon B. Johnson or God: Whoever Reads This First”, both at the Fringe and later at New York’s SoHo Playhouse. I really admire how confidently they embrace their own absurdist style. They shift so effortlessly through time and space while exploring masculinity and the myth of the American childhood. I’m so excited they’re returning to Edinburgh this year with their new show, “Bigfoot Ripped My Dog In Half I Saw It”. I’d recommend it not only for their incredibly precise, in-sync physicality, but also for the way they use conspiracy theories and misdirection to say something so sharp about today’s political climate.
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