Synopsis
Air Raid Siren is a frantic collage of war memories, weaving together fragments of survival from across the ages. The narrative leaps through time and space: from Ms. Lin, an aging woman still waiting in a Japanese colonial-era air-raid shelter, to a modern officer remotely executing targets via a drone screen; from soldiers reconciling in the heat of a tropical jungle, to world leaders gathered for an absurd celebratory banquet. Through layers of linguistic misinterpretation, the play captures the humble longing for a normal life and the spiritual distortion of humanity under extreme fear.
Playwright Wei Yu-chia uses an experimental, darkly humorous style to navigate the gaps between physical ruins and digital screens. She explores how war does more than destroy the body—it actively reshapes the souls and memories of the living. This high-tension work was awarded a National Culture and Arts Foundation Creation Grant and debuted as a staged reading at the 2025 Playwright in Focus Festival.
Wei Yu-chia, Playwright
Wei Yu-chia is an award-winning Taiwanese writer who writes for the stage, television, and cross-media performances. She is the recipient of numerous accolades, including the Taiwan Literature Award, the Taipei Literature Award, the New Taipei City Literature Award, and others. Two of her works—A Fable for Now and Big Zoo—have been translated into English and performed in New York. She holds an MA in Playwriting from National Taiwan University.
Credits
Playwright: Wei Yu-chia
Director: Yoon Hansol
Cast: Kim Sojeong, Kim Jinhong, Zunbul Betul, Yang Jinkue, Lee Ma-rie, Lee A-Huin, Lee Hyunsong, Jung Youngrok, Han Kyongsu
Stage Manager: Jung Inhyuk
Play Translator: Kim Yisak
Subtitle Translator: Jeremy Tiang
The School of Drama at Korea National University of Arts
The School of Drama at Korea National University of Arts (K-Arts), founded in 1994, is the only national institution in Korea dedicated to professional theatre training. The school offers undergraduate and graduate programs across five departments: Acting, Directing, Playwriting, Stage Design, and Theatre Studies. With a curriculum that emphasizes both artistic practice and critical inquiry, the School of Drama provides intensive training for emerging theatre artists. The program maintains close collaborations with leading theatres and artists in Korea and internationally, creating opportunities for students to engage with diverse theatrical practices. Graduates of the school have played a significant role in shaping contemporary Korean theatre and are increasingly recognized on the global stage.
About the 2026 Taiwan International Play Reading Festival
The 2026 Taiwan International Play Reading Festival is curated by the Prologue Center for New Plays and jointly organized with the Taipei Performing Arts Center, aiming to establish an international exchange platform centered on playwrights and plays. Each year, the festival focuses on a specific country or cultural region, exploring the differences and resonances among theatrical traditions and textual aesthetics through staged readings and cross-cultural interpretation. In the festival, plays are not only the starting point of theatrical creation, but also a medium for cultural exchange through which diverse social experiences and creative perspectives are reflected, opening up a space for cross-cultural dialogue.
Organizer
