Play reclaims forgotten history of Chinese New Zealanders
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Talia Pua is staging a new season of her play Pork & Poll Taxes in Auckland, New Zealand, from September 16 to 19, bringing to light the experiences of early Chinese migrants and their families.
Pua first researched the topic as a high school student, learning about the 1881 Chinese Immigrants Act which imposed a poll tax on Chinese people entering New Zealand and limited the number allowed to immigrate.
This law arose from growing anti-Chinese prejudice as employment in goldfields dwindled, despite the government initially bringing Chinese workers to Otago to mine for gold. The play focuses on a fictional Chinese family in the 1890s, with men seeking fortune in New Zealand, referred to as “New Gold Mountain”, while women remained in China. Pua wanted to explore the sacrifices made by the entire family, drawing on Chinese proverbs about building new lives while maintaining ties to one’s homeland.
She specifically aimed to give voice to the women left behind, a perspective often missing from accounts of this period. Pua cast an all-Asian cast to tell the story from a Chinese perspective, even having the actors portray the Pākehā (European New Zealanders) characters they encountered.
She hopes the play will resonate with contemporary audiences, prompting them to consider parallels between historical discrimination and recent surges in anti-Asian sentiment, and to reflect on how New Zealand can better support migrants today.
