Upcoming session: Let It Die

Let It Die is a surreal, existential puppet show for anyone alive right now. Trippy visuals, techno beats, knobbly puppets, and some casual questions about the meaning of existence - it’s a low-lit spiral into connection, chaos, and why we keep going when nothing makes sense.

Created and directed by theatre-maker and experienced puppeteer Chye-Ling Huang, the show explores Buddhist philosophy, impermanence, and the paradox of self through humour, horror, and heart - all told through a cast of puppets that are somehow both absurd and deeply relatable. It’s weird, it’s warm, it’s terrifying yet reassuring; this show is a puppet-sized invitation to feel everything all at once.

In anticipation of the debut I interviewed Chye-Ling and asked 17 questions to find out some more about this curious treat:

I’m Chye-Ling Huang; a queer, Chinese-Pakeha theatre maker based in Tāmaki. I’ve been running my company Proudly Asian Theatre for over 10 years and making independent theatre and film along the way.

1/17: RR: What is your most favourite crunchy or sweet snack?

CH: Nong Shim onion rings

2/17: RR: What are you best known for? 

CH: Theatre making, writing and directing, most likely as co-founder of Proudly Asian Theatre (PAT); when James Roque and I founded PAT there wasn’t much like us as a vehicle for representing Asian stories in theatre, and now Marianne Infante and I run it together after it snowballed to meet the needs of Asian Artists in Tāmaki and beyond.

3/17: RR: What different types of media have you utilised for your previous projects?

CH: I love theatre as it combines so many artistic forms - sound, projection, spatial design…James Roque and I even did a podcast called The Elephant in the Bedroom for RNZ. 

4/17: RR: On a rainy day in spring, what might you be doing? 

CH: Clacking in a cafe - love to work in public for the accountability. 

5/17: RR: Let It Die runs from 2 to 6 September 2025 at Basement Theatre’s Studio space. What excites you about working in this venue?

CH: The Basement is home to a lot of anarchic theatre, as it runs a hire-for-nothing model; the type of work it attracts can be risk-taking. I feel like Let It Die fits the brief, and the staff are always down for a new challenge, which I love. 

6/17: RR: “Choose What You Pay” pricing is part of the show’s ticketing model. What led you to opt for this inclusive approach?

CH: The show addresses how bleak and hard things are right now, so having a choose what you pay model feels right; times are super tough, and I’d rather people come see, feel seen and get some joy out of the show than be inhibited by price.

7/17: RR: Is there any specific experience that inspired you to direct this show?

CH: The general downward spiral of humanity over the last few years; the genocide being enacted by Israel in Palestine, the rise of the right wing, the erosion of Māori rights, climate ignorance…the breaking point for the ‘this needs to be a show’ was realizing that I’d essentially become a funding app writing machine when my purpose is being an artist. Stories that connect us with our humanity are crucial in low times, and I needed that for myself, but also felt it might bring others some relief or solidarity too.  

8/17: RR: Let It Die blends Buddhist philosophy with surreal visuals and techno beats. Can you share how these elements came together in your creative process?

CH: My dad is a Taoist Buddhist, and for me the teachings I really resonate with are the ones that address the aspects of life that seem at odds with each other. Reconciling how life is chaotic and seems to have no pattern or meaning, but that living in the now becomes more precious, is potentially an antidote for some of the awfulness we’re experiencing. Similarly there’s something soulful about the repetitive and sometimes soul-less seeming energy of techno - it almost puts you in a meditative trance. I wanted the play to also be a ride to watch - so I’m aiming to surprise the audience with things they don’t see everyday, a bit of theatre magic. That dissonance is at the core of the play in all these aspects together. 

9/17: RR: Why puppets?

CH: Puppets have an innocence about them. In delivering dark themes, they’re perfect at balancing that out. They also allow for some epic work with scale and story, as the world suddenly becomes so expanded to their small size.

10/17: RR: What was the process of designing and building the puppets like? 

CH: I loved the process - Paul Lewis is a talented maker who worked on films and tv like M3GAN, The rule of Jenny penn, and Sweet Tooth. We made these for some workshops originally teaching Asian based styles of puppetry. First we talked about the energy we wanted and the purpose - humanoid but a bit abstract, non-gendered and organic, tactile and warm, and used images of sculptures for inspiration. We then carved them out of pine, made a lot of mistakes, expoxy’d joints and voila. 

11/17: RR: What might the audience have in common with yourself and/ or the puppets? 

CH: A shared sense of the darkness in the world, but looking for the shreds of light; and a saltiness, and a curiosity that the puppets have that somehow keeps them going. A dumb sense of humour. 

12/17: RR: Tell me a bit about your cast. 

CH: I’m working with three other extremely experienced actors and theatre makers. It’s quite wild how they all said yes - and I’ve seen their dedication and problem-solving shine in the process. Nikita Tu-Bryant is an incredible musician as well as an actor (check out KITA the band), Katie Burson is another amazing maker, and Natasha Daniel is a very talented actor who has done lots of work with the Pop Up Globe. They all played friends in my short film, Beast Mode, and are all hilarious.

13/17: RR: How long did it take to develop this show? 

CH: We’ve had 3 and a half weeks of rehearsals, and I wrote an outline of the script over a few weeks, after cooking the concept since June. It’s been fast, and we’re trying to capture the urgency of how we feel, now. 

14/17: RR: Are there elements or concepts from Let It Die that you see continuing into your future work?

CH: I love ensemble shows, I love exploring human connection of any kind and the contradictions of selfhood. I can see myself working with a dark techno aesthetic again - BAYKER - another kiwi musician (Cam Paget) did the score for Beast Mode too (not out yet), and he’s done the music for LID as well. I’m still finding the mystery of techno such a cool buzz within theatre.

15/17: RR: Who are your role models, who inspires you?

CH: Singaporean company The Finger Players who are world class at contemporary puppetry theatre - I’ve seen them stage horrifying ghost stories to socially stark political pieces, subtle durational shows and a myriad of others, all using puppetry as a base to create from. Ben Anderson who was a prolific puppetry theatre maker before he left to Melbourne, and Peter Linz who I was lucky enough to train with who is a muppeteer. 

16/17: RR: Tell us a bit about Proudly Asian Theatre (PAT). 

CH: We are a platform that empowered and enables Asian artists to tell their stories in theatre primarily. We noticed a gap in representation early on, and aim to equal the playing field to showcase the multitudes of Asian identities that have rich histories in Aotearoa. We are re-launching our playwright-ing initiative in Ōtautahi Christchurch and we also have a casting callout at the moment for a play in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland; see our website or socials for more info. 

17/17: RR: If audiences take one thing home after seeing Let It Die, what do you hope it is? Who is your show for?

CH: I hope it's recognition that this muddy, dark, hopeless feeling isn’t felt by just you. The fact that we are all swimming in this confusing soup makes us connected. I hope the audience feels less alone, and that these moments of connection are worth keeping going for.