Islanders Mara Surel, Nick Townsend and Aidan Young are working toward a cure for one of the most insidious human afflictions.

The trio of students, who commute to Seattle Central Community College, are actors in “Yellow Fever: The Internment,” an original drama about prejudice toward Japanese Americans during World War II.

The students collaborated in the creation of “Yellow Fever” for The Conciliation Project, a nonprofit founded by Seattle Central teacher Tawnya Pettiford-Wates, who serves as “artistic conceptualist” to TCP’s collaborative plays crafted to spark dialogue about prejudice in America.

For cast and crew, dialogue about prejudice begins before the play is written.

“To do this play, we all had to work through a lot of stuff in ourselves,” Young said. “You can’t put yourself into this play until you’ve worked out your own internal racism.”

TCP’s productions are based on African ritual poetic plays, which follow a cyclical, rather than a linear, Western model.

Western plays feature an introduction, plot development, climax and resolution, while a cyclical story moves from an initiatory point through a rite of passage to revelation.

Western drama reaches resolution with all questions answered, while the cyclical play is less definitive.

“The ritual also poses the question, but leaves the answer to a participatory audience,” Townsend said. “It’s interactive. We break the fourth wall.”

Breaking down barriers is what The Conciliation Project is about, and the task begins with the actors themselves.

When Pettiford-Wates begins a new project, her students start by looking inward. The first half of the class meetings are devoted to students’ writing about watershed moments from their own lives, and then sharing their words with family and friends.

Next, the class is broken into small “family groups” to research racism – in this instance directed against Asian Americans and called “Yellow Fever.”

The title merges “yellow peril,” the derogatory 19th century phrase describing Asian incursion on North American shores, with the equatorial fever to embody the virulence of racism as disease.

The small groups next write vignettes based on the research, pieces that Pettiford-Wates and the students edit and Pettiford-Wates crafts into a script.

“Yellow Fever” is the third of a planned cycle of five plays addressing different facets of prejudice. Past productions have targeted bias against Native Americans and African Americans, while future plays will address sexism and racism directed at Hispanics.

The resolutely collaborative approach produces a remarkably coherent production, with Pettiford-Wates’ students supported by Little Theater’s professional sets and lighting.

It’s not only a revolutionary teaching method, Townsend points out, but a chance for both students and audience, as the cast “unmasks” at the play’s end to engage viewers.

“We don’t bring the curtain down, ” Pettiford-Wates said. “We don’t wait for applause. We tell them ‘we want to know how you feel,’ and it becomes a community forum.

“I’ve been involved with diversity training for many years, but I’ve never been involved with such honest dialogue.”

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“Yellow Fever: The Internment” plays at 7:30 p.m. March 19-20; 8 p.m. March 21-22; and 3 p.m. March 23 at the Little Theatre Off Broadway in Seattle.

Tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for seniors and students. Group rates available. Half-price admission for a special preview 7:30 p.m. March 18.

Reservations: www.ticketwindowonline.com or 325-6500. Call 287-5544 for more information.