A deeply personal, powerful new play by Eric Hsu explores family, grief, and the right to choose.
A mother's final decision becomes a family's most intimate reckoning in The Pyrex: A Euthan-Asian Story, a new play written and directed by Eric Hsu, premiering at the 2025 Hollywood Fringe Festival.
Drawing from interviews with family members and inspired by real-life events, The Pyrex tells the story of Ying-Ai, a Taiwanese American matriarch who decides to end her life on her own terms-and the storm of love, resistance, memory, and acceptance that follows. Audiences are immersed in the unfiltered rhythms of a family navigating the most surreal of moments with heartbreak, humor, and grace.
Featuring a powerful ensemble cast including Grace Su, Amy Tsang, Chai Savathasuk, Alison Tominaga, Gary Hayashi, Sam Miyamoto, Steven Ng, Evelyn Wu-Coffey, Hillary Tang, and Toni Christopher, The Pyrex brings a deeply human story to life with honesty and heart.
"Watching my mother battle cancer was a profoundly chaotic and emotionally draining time for my family," says playwright and director Eric Hsu. "It culminated in this beautiful moment, when my mom got to decide when the suffering was enough. This play highlights the importance of California's Death with Dignity law, but at the core, it's about what a moving experience it was for my family, and how grateful we are that we got to be together to send her off."
During the writing process, Hsu conducted hours of interviews with his family to ensure accuracy and honesty in the storytelling. "It's like she came down to write this with me," Hsu says of his mother. "I could feel her nudging me to wake up early and get the pages written."
The Pyrex: A Euthan-Asian Story will run for four performances at The Actors Company (916 N Formosa Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90046):
Tickets are $15 and the show runs approximately 60 minutes.
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