Katlyn Wong

Born in Hong Kong, Katlyn Wong arrived in Auckland with her family at age two. Around the time she finished acting studies at drama school Toi Whakaari, she began showing her comic chops on TV series Facelift. Further comic roles followed in A Thousand Apologies and award-winning short Take 3, which satirised the stereotyped roles often offered to Asian actors. In 2017 Wong was named Best Actor at Kiwi festival Show Me Shorts for the poignant short film Wait, as struggling immigrant mother Xiao. Her screen credits also include Mean Mums and horse drama Mystic. She has sometimes been credited as Kat Wong or Kat Tsz Hung.

It’s quite a dynamic play, but very intimate as well. I found the daughter’s storyline of internal racism interesting, because I’ve internalised a lot of racism myself, especially being an actor. I can’t be myself, because I’m experiencing what other people view of me. So you don’t even know you have these blocks inside yourself until it comes up in the audition room, or you get a script where it hits you, like, ‘Oh, this is a stereotype I’m going to have to play.' Katlyn Wong on play Single Asian Female, in an interview with Metro magazine, 28 April 2021