Paul Poon Wai-sum (; born 1950s) is a Hong Kong playwright, theatre director and educator. Since 1986, Poon have created more than 50 plays. He is best known for a group of five plays collectively called the "Insect Series," in which five insects symbolize Hongkongers during the 1997 handover period. His plays are noted for their deployment of vernacular Cantonese, fragmented narratives, and absurdist humour. His artistic styles are often associated with the ambiguous characters, unconventional dramatic situations, and playful yet disorienting dialogue.

From 1993 to 2012, he served as the artistic director of the Prospects Theatre Company (新域劇團). Between 2012 and 2017, he served the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (HKAPA) School of Drama, eventually becoming dean of the School of Drama in 2017. In 2023, he was appointed the artistic director of the Hong Kong Repertory Theatre.

Early life and education Poon was born in the 1950s and spent his childhood in Wong Chuk Hang, Hong Kong, helping with farming and raising pigeons. He left school after Secondary Four and worked briefly as an elevator maintenance apprentice for Jardines. Finding the job unsatisfying, he later returned to education after meeting a former classmate in Tsim Sha Tsui who was involved in creative work. This experience led him to develop an interest in literature and eventually pursue studies in Taiwan and the United States.

He later studied English at Soochow University in Taiwan before pursuing theatre studies at Michigan State University and Asian Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He returned to Hong Kong from Taiwan in 1988.

Career In 1985, he wrote his first play, In the Shade of the Woods (榕樹蔭下的森林), won the scriptwriting category in the Urban Council Libraries Chinese Literary Creation Awards. It was staged by the Hong Kong Repertory Theatre in the following year.

From 1993 to 2012, he served as the artistic director of the Prospects Theatre Company (新域劇團). During his tenure, he is known to be establishing series-based production as the company's developmental direction. Under this approach, he produced a large number of works, including the "Water Margin Series", the "Insect Series" (昆蟲系列), the "Pearl Delta Series" (珠三角系列), and the "Anthropocene Series" (人間系列).

In 2001, he published his novel, The Diary of Song, online, coinciding with the revival of his 1995 play The Mosquito Hero. In 2005, he collaborated to develop an animated film adaptation of the novel. The 2017 stage version of The Diary of Song is based on this film. Wong Wai-yee of the IATC praised the work for using gender contrasts to depict men under societal pressure and women showing intelligence and loyalty, reflecting on patriarchal society.

In 2012, Poon joined the HKAPA School of Drama as a resident playwright and discipline leader of dramatic writing. He later served as the dean of the School of Drama from 2017 to 2022. In 2023, he was appointed the artistic director of the Hong Kong Repertory Theatre. Plays In the Shade of the Woods (1985) Central in Ruins (March 1985) Crying Weekend (October 1989) Summer Breeze (1990) As If Dancing on the Sand Dunes (1992) The Legend of the Road Hero (December 1993) The Isle (March 1994) Oh! Tai O (1995) Who likes to be on the bottom? (January 1996) "Water Margin Series" (adaptations) The Mosquito Hero (May 1995) - nominated 5th Hong Kong Drama Award for Best Script The Black and the Blue of a Man (1990s) Picking Flowers from Song Jiang (1990s) The Diary of Song (written in 2001; produced in 2017) - adapted from his novel The Oak Tree (1996) - nominated 6th Hong Kong Drama Award for Best Script "Insect Series" (昆蟲系列) The Cockroach that Flies like a Helicopter (1997) - won 7th Hong Kong Drama Award for Best Script The Rising Ants (1998) - nominated 8th Hong Kong Drama Award for Best Script Cricket in My Life (1999) - won 9th Hong Kong Drama Award for Best Script To Kill or To Be Killed (2000) - nominated 10th Hong Kong Drama Award for Best Script Spiders in Meditation (2001) - won 11th Hong Kong Drama Award for Best Script Hu Xueyan, My Dear (2000) - won 10th Hong Kong Drama Award for Best Script Ng Wong the Swordsman (2001) - nominated 11th Hong Kong Drama Award for Best Script Of Fire And Fireworks (2002) - nominated 12th Hong Kong Drama Award for Best Script "Pearl Delta Series" (珠三角系列) trilogy Dragon Head (October 2003) The Massage King (January 2006) Night and Dream in the South (October 2006) Of Minds and No-mind (2004) - nominated 14th Hong Kong Drama Award for Best Script The Massage King (2006) - nominated 16th Hong Kong Drama Award for Best Script Dust and Dawn (2007) - nominated 17h Hong Kong Drama Award for Best Script "Anthropocene Series" (人間系列) trilogy The Happiest Day I Lost (March 2009) The Memorable and the Forgettable (March 2010) To Those Who Deserve to Die (February 2011) Bun in the Cave (November 2009) Peacock Man and Durian Woman (2010) - nominated 20th Hong Kong Drama Award for Best Script and Best Director (Comedy/Farce) Show Flat (2012) The Emperor, his Mom, a Eunuch and a Man (2013) - nominated 23rd Hong Kong Drama Award for Best Script Confrontations (2022) - nominated 31st Hong Kong Drama Award for Best Script and Best Director (Comedy/Farce)

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