The Emperor, his Mom, a Eunuch and a Man
24.02.2026
Immediate Release
Return of an acclaimed stage classic
Highlighting power struggles in the Qing royal court
The Emperor, his Mom, a Eunuch and a Man
【HKRep】With its focus on the mysterious beheading of eunuch An Dehai—who had stood by the side of Empress Dowager Cixi—this original script penned by Poon Wai Sum uncovers the complex web of power and sex in the Qing court. At its 2013 world premiere directed by Roy Szeto, The Emperor, his Mom, a Eunuch and a Man received great acclaim, winning six accolades at the 23rd Hong Kong Drama Awards including Best Director, Best Supporting Actor (Tragedy/Drama), Best Performance and Top Ten Most Popular Productions. The play was revived both in 2014 and 2015 with touring performances in Guangzhou, Shanghai and Beijing, all of which were enthusiastically received. Through Empress Dowager Cixi, the tussle between An Dehai and Ding Baozhen reveal the complexity of power relations in the royal court. Starting with nothing, the eunuch managed to rise and wield tremendous clout. Caught in the whirl of palatial politics, how did he manage? This season, the HKRep revives The Emperor, his Mom, a Eunuch and a Man featuring its distinct set design, bringing the audience into the realpolitik inside the Forbidden City, witnessing how An rose in stature, reached the pinnacle of power, then got caught in the vortex of destiny.The Emperor, his Mom, a Eunuch and a Man is written by HKRep Artistic Director Poon Wai Sum and directed by Roy Szeto, featuring Lau Shau Ching, Pang Hang Ying, Chan Suk Yi, Jason Wang, Kiki Cheung, Tunes Ting and Lo Man Chak. It will be presented at the Shouson Theatre, Hong Kong Arts Centre, from 21st March to 5th April. This production will tour across Mainland immediately after its Hong Kong run.
The Emperor, his Mom, a Eunuch and a Man: During the reign of Qing Emperor Tongzhi, the eunuch An Dehai was an all-powerful aide to the Empress Dowager. Using the excuse of procuring a dragon robe to leave the Forbidden City, he was arraigned by the magistrate Ding Baozhen while travelling in Shandong. As messengers dart from one place to another, An’s fate is on the edge of a precipice… will he survive? There may be a flicker of hope in the royal court, but others want him dead. Everything hangs by a thread…
Playwright Poon Wai Sum states: “I wanted to address history. History knows so much, yet we know so little. There are two reasons why this is so. First, we are lazy; second, history is even lazier than we are. History doesn’t tell me, or doesn’t bother to tell me, things I want to know, such as the death of An Dehai. History informs us of An Dehai’s death—how he died, what crime he committed and who beheaded him, as in providing factual time and place. That is history. Yet history isn’t telling me what I really want to know. That is also history, perhaps it is history’s secret.”
Director Roy Szeto explains: “At its world premiere and three re-runs, this play has become a fully-fledged and highly effective work. Poon Wai Sum, one of Hong Kong’s top playwrights, has delved into history to create The Emperor, his Mom, a Eunuch and a Man specifically for the HKRep. Grand eunuch An Dehai’s ascendance under the patronage of Empress Dowager Cixi obviously attracted jealous rivals, as power struggles and problems such as corruption arose. What’s the difference between this and the modern-day office? Is there a line between right and wrong with regards to An’s behaviour? Or is that endemic of the system itself?”
About Director Roy Szeto
Roy Szeto received an MFA in Directing from the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts’ School of Drama in 1990 and joined Tsui Hark’s Film Workshop, later working in television. He has also founded companies in the fields of animation and film production. Between 2006 and 2012, Szeto served as the HKRep’s Resident Director. His creative experience and contributions in film and television production make him one of the most versatile directors on Hong Kong’s dramatic stage. He had also held the positions of Associate Professor and Head of Directing at the HKAPA’s School of Drama. To date, he has participated in numerous popular large-scale productions, among them Snow Wolf Lake, The Legend, Freemen Show 2, War of the Genders and Deling and Cixi. He has directed more than 100 productions, most recently Proof (2022), his 111st production The Top Restaurant (2022), Skylight (2023) and Journey to the West (2024); he also directed the HKAPA’s A Journey of Sanshiro (2024), inspired by Akira Kurosawa’s Yojimbo. In 2026, he directed Su Dongpo, a new Yue opera.
Many of Szeto’s HKRep productions have been selected among the Hong Kong Drama Awards’ Top Ten Popular Productions. He was nominated Best Director nine times, winning in that category for Le Dieu du carnage (Comedy/Farce) (2010), Shed Skin (Comedy/Farce) (2012), the latter was made into a film in 2017 with original music by Leon Ko. In 2014, Szeto won Best Director (Tragedy/Drama) for The Emperor, his Mom, a Eunuch and a Man. In the past decade, Szeto’s work received much international attention. In 2016, he directed Twelfth Night (HKAPA), which won two awards—Best Ensemble Acting (Fusion) Award and Audience Award—at the Istropolitana International Drama Schools’ Festival in Bratislava. In 2017, Hu Xueyan, my Dear garnered four Hong Kong Drama Awards, also winning Best Director at the Shanghai Jing’an Modern Drama Valley One Drama Awards. In 2019, the new version of Hu Xueyan, my Dear won six awards at the 2nd Chinese Theatre Awards, among them Best Director and Best Production. Szeto was also named Director of the Year at the IATC(HK) Critics Awards. In 2021, his mainland China production of Deling and Cixi won him Best Director at both the 4th Chinese Theatre Awards and the inaugural International Theatre Academy Award (Directing Award). In 2023, The Top Restaurant won him Best Director at the 7th Chinese Theatre Awards, his third win in that illustrious category. In 2024, he led the Shanghai Dramatic Arts Centre in Journey to the West, winning Best New Play at the 8th Chinese Theatre Awards. The following year he won (along with co-director Ata Wong) Best Director (Tragedy/Drama) at the 33rd Hong Kong Drama Awards for A Journey of Sanshiro, along with six other awards at the Shanghai Jing’an Modern Drama Valley One Drama Awards for The Top Restaurant and Journey to the West, in addition to Best Director for The Top Restaurant.
Roy Szeto received an MFA in Directing from the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts’ School of Drama in 1990 and joined Tsui Hark’s Film Workshop, later working in television. He has also founded companies in the fields of animation and film production. Between 2006 and 2012, Szeto served as the HKRep’s Resident Director. His creative experience and contributions in film and television production make him one of the most versatile directors on Hong Kong’s dramatic stage. He had also held the positions of Associate Professor and Head of Directing at the HKAPA’s School of Drama. To date, he has participated in numerous popular large-scale productions, among them Snow Wolf Lake, The Legend, Freemen Show 2, War of the Genders and Deling and Cixi. He has directed more than 100 productions, most recently Proof (2022), his 111st production The Top Restaurant (2022), Skylight (2023) and Journey to the West (2024); he also directed the HKAPA’s A Journey of Sanshiro (2024), inspired by Akira Kurosawa’s Yojimbo. In 2026, he directed Su Dongpo, a new Yue opera.
Many of Szeto’s HKRep productions have been selected among the Hong Kong Drama Awards’ Top Ten Popular Productions. He was nominated Best Director nine times, winning in that category for Le Dieu du carnage (Comedy/Farce) (2010), Shed Skin (Comedy/Farce) (2012), the latter was made into a film in 2017 with original music by Leon Ko. In 2014, Szeto won Best Director (Tragedy/Drama) for The Emperor, his Mom, a Eunuch and a Man. In the past decade, Szeto’s work received much international attention. In 2016, he directed Twelfth Night (HKAPA), which won two awards—Best Ensemble Acting (Fusion) Award and Audience Award—at the Istropolitana International Drama Schools’ Festival in Bratislava. In 2017, Hu Xueyan, my Dear garnered four Hong Kong Drama Awards, also winning Best Director at the Shanghai Jing’an Modern Drama Valley One Drama Awards. In 2019, the new version of Hu Xueyan, my Dear won six awards at the 2nd Chinese Theatre Awards, among them Best Director and Best Production. Szeto was also named Director of the Year at the IATC(HK) Critics Awards. In 2021, his mainland China production of Deling and Cixi won him Best Director at both the 4th Chinese Theatre Awards and the inaugural International Theatre Academy Award (Directing Award). In 2023, The Top Restaurant won him Best Director at the 7th Chinese Theatre Awards, his third win in that illustrious category. In 2024, he led the Shanghai Dramatic Arts Centre in Journey to the West, winning Best New Play at the 8th Chinese Theatre Awards. The following year he won (along with co-director Ata Wong) Best Director (Tragedy/Drama) at the 33rd Hong Kong Drama Awards for A Journey of Sanshiro, along with six other awards at the Shanghai Jing’an Modern Drama Valley One Drama Awards for The Top Restaurant and Journey to the West, in addition to Best Director for The Top Restaurant.
