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Hey Hey ShayShay!

I am an Irish-Japanese-American non-binary writer, director and drag artist with eight years experience of writing for theatre and live performance.  I am co-founder of The Bitten Peach, a Pan-Asian, queer artist collective.

My work explores Trans & Non-Binary Identities, Experiences of the Asian Diaspora, and the Intersections of Race & Queerness. I subvert stereotypes, creating outrageous yet relatable characters, and transform underrepresented narratives into fast-paced, colourful stories that remain accessible to a wide audience.

Currently, as part of the 2022 cohort of Edinburgh TV Festival’s The Network, I am expanding into screenwriting, where I plan to bring my unique queer performance sensibility from the stage to the screen to write for TV comedy. 

About Me

Born in California’s San Francisco Bay Area to mixed Irish and Japanese heritage, I moved to London in my early 20s. I immediately began performing in drag, quickly became a pillar of the East London queer scene, hosting cabaret shows and club nights. As the producer and host of The ShayShay Show, I platformed new work from emerging artists and helped bolster the careers of many prominent London performers. In 2019, I founded The Bitten Peach, a queer Pan-Asian artist collective, alongside Lilly SnatchDragon and Evelyn Carnate. Our mission is to mission is to diversify Asian representation, provide safe spaces, and empower the queer Asian community.

I am the star of the Iris prize-nominated documentary ‘Peach Paradise’ (Netflix, 2022), which focuses on my work with The Bitten Peach and my Japanese-American ancestry. As a descendent of World War II Japanese Internment, I am dedicated to honouring that legacy, and regularly create work to shine light on this shamefully overlooked piece of history.

As a writer and director, I make explicitly queer work that champions trans joy. Working with The Vaults, I have created three original works that combine drag, cabaret, and panto into semi-immersive plays.

I’ve taken part in The Yard Theatre’s Live Lab (2021), Soho Theatre Writers Lab (2022), Edinburgh TV Festival’s The Network (2022), and Criterion New Writing (upcoming 2023). 

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Clients & Partners

Attitude Magazine

Benefit Cosmetics

Bethnal Green Working Men’s Club

Cabaret at the Kit Kat club

Gamesys

Garrick Theatre

Club Revenge, Brighton

Gunnersby Park Museum

Hayward Gallery

HSBC

Lambrini

Mighty Hoopla

Museum of Transology

National Maritime Museum

Netflix

Pangaia

Pleasance Theatre

Revenge, Brighton

Rimmel London

Royal Vauxhall Tavern

Smirnoff

Soho Theatre

Southbank Centre

Taylor Mac

The Glory

The Posh Club

The Vaults

The Yard Theatre

Virgin Atlantic

Youtube

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