Just
thought I’d post this review of Miss Saigon at the Operettsínház. It’s
incredibly arrogant sounding because it was written for my theatre
course but I figure that it might be of interest to someone!
I
have a lot of notes on the production that went into writing this about
set/costume in particular which might make their way onto the web too.
Who knows!
Miss Saigon
- Budapesti Operettszínház - 01.07.2012
Professzor
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The owner of a club and brothel in Saigon. He employs Kim and Gigi.
|
Mészáros Árpád Zsolt
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Kim
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A young Vietnamese girl. She loses her virginity to and falls in love with Chris.
|
Dancs Annamari
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Chris
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A G.I. who falls in love with Kim but, when forced to leave Vietnam, manages to move on.
|
Dolhai Attila
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John
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A G.I. and Chris’ friend. He sets up a charity to help Vietnamese children after the war.
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Feke Pál
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Ellen
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Chris’ American wife.
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Vágó Bernadett
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Thuy
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Betrothed to Kim and a Vietnamese commissar.
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Kiss Tivadar
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Gigi
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A prostitute voted Miss Saigon. She has a bitter view of the world
|
Csengeri Ottília
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Tam
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The “boi doi” son of Chris and Kim.
|
Szurap Szilárd
|
N.B.:
Hungarian names are written surname then personal name therefore when
referring to an actor one uses their surname but this will also be the
first name.
Miss
Saigon is a two act musical based around the events of the Vietnam War
and its aftermath. It tells the story of a G.I., Chris, who, in the last
days of the Vietnam War, sleeps with and ‘marries’ a young Vietnamese
girl, and new prostitute, Kim. As the U.S. troops pull out, Kim is left
behind and, unbeknown to her at this time, she is pregnant with Chris’
son. Three years later and Thuy, Kim’s betrothed, finds her living with
her son, Tam, and, so as to ‘honour their name’ he attempts to kill Tam
which causes Kim to kill Thuy. Kim and Tam, with the Professzor, escape
to Bangkok where they wait to be allowed into America. However, Kim
discovers that Chris has married and, so that Chris must take Tam to
America where he will get a chance in life, she kills herself.
Due
to the scale of this production it is impossible to comment on every
aspect yet end up with a concise piece of writing. I therefore have
chosen what I feel to be key points within each aspect.
In
general the acting and choreography within this production was
naturalistic. Although there were some songs that included dance
routines such as “The Heat is on in Saigon” and “What a Waste” the use
of dance was realistic due to the setting. In fact, one of my biggest
complaints with regard to this production was that the brothel scenes
were too realistic, with vulgar interactions, which, in this case, I
felt detracted from the overall atmosphere and stinted my ability to
emotionally connect with the characters. I am aware, however, that this
production was directed for viewing by a Hungarian audience and that,
within this theatre culture, it is considered that art should be an
accurate imitation therefore I understand why this choice was made.
However,
this attention to detail served the production well at many other
points. Perhaps one of the most emotional scenes was that in which Chris
discovers Kim dying. For me, it wasn’t the death or Chris’ reaction
that made this scene so powerful but the reaction of Ellen. Standing
stage right she is not the focus of the scene and in many productions
would therefore react minimally so as not to detract from the focus.
However, in this production the pure emotion creasing her face was
exquisite as she turned and collapsed against the wall of ‘Kim’s house’.
I couldn’t help but wonder what she was thinking… Is she blaming
herself for Kim’s death? Does she see how Chris loved Kim? Is she simply
mourning such a needless loss of life? These questions, and her face
during this scene, have not left my mind; in that moment I connected
with the character on such a level that I feel that I need to know what
will happen to her next.
That
said, I particularly liked the character of Thuy, played by Kiss
Tivadar. Due to Kiss’ Opera training he was vocally very strong which
made his character quite intimidating. This, coupled with his height and
stage presence made Thuy a formidable antagonist. I was interested to
note the differences between his interpretation and that of Kerényi
Miklós Máté who plays the role with the same theatre company. Kerényi
Miklós, due to, in my opinion, being of average height and slight build
therefore not naturally imposing, plays a more sly version of Thuy,
using movement and, during Kim’s nightmare, grotesque facial expression
to create his character.
Despite
Thuy being present in several important scenes in the production,
“Kim’s Nightmare” stands out as the most powerful. As the name suggests,
this scene is a nightmare of Kim’s and therefore there is room for more
abstract ideas and staging. The whole scene takes place on the stage’s
apron which brings the action closer to the audience therefore making it
more threatening. The fact that the main bulk of the stage, behind the
proscenium is not used, allows for a cyclorama screen to drop which, as
well as hiding the major scene change for “The Fall of Saigon”, is lit
in a saturated red. Indeed, colour is a major feature of this scene with
Kim dressed in the same shade of red while Thuy’s ghost is totally
white, from clothes to makeup, except for a red dribble of blood coming
from his breast pocket, denoting the bullet wound that killed him. The
red is intense, disturbing, more reminiscent of blood, fire, and violent
passion than of love. Thuy, with his snake like movements and unnatural
periods of stillness, and disconcerting makeup is, no doubt a
frightening force. The fact that his vocals are louder than normal,
slightly distorted, and with an echo serve not only to build on the
atmosphere but to ensure that Kim, and the audience, are left with no
doubt: he is powerful, he is in control, and he is frightening.
Although
the dream setting allows this scene to be the most symbolic, one should
not overlook the other costumes worn, especially by the key women.
Admittedly, they are realistic and naturalistic but they also contain a
great deal of discrete symbolism and reflect the characters.
When
Kim is first introduced her costume makes her stand out as she is
wearing a plain and modest cream shirt with brown trousers yet is
surrounded by girls getting ready for the brothel’s floor show. This is a
technique that is used often with Kim’s costume as she rarely wears any
colour at all. Her clothes are almost always modest and, more often
than not, in shades of white or cream. This emphasizes her purity, not
just sexually but in thought and hope. The major exception is her
costume for “What a Waste” through to “Kim’s Nightmare”. Although this
colouration was most likely chosen to tie in with the use of colour
during the nightmare (as above) it also implies that in the years since
the fall of Saigon she has lost a lot of that purity, maybe seeing the
world through more realistic eyes.
It
is impossible, at this point, to overlook the similarity in dress
between Kim and Chris’ other love, Ellen. Again, Ellen wears quite
neutral colours in all of her scenes, mainly whites and pale greens. It
seems possible that this costume choice is suggesting a similarity
between Kim and Ellen that goes deeper than sharing a lover. Indeed,
this seems likely considering that “Les Miserables”, written by the same
people, has many characters who are parallel in character yet opposing
in aim (i.e. Jean Valjean and Javert). Another major point to make is
that, for the majority of the musical, Ellen is in a state of undress,
either in her nightdress or dressing gown. I found this particularly
effective as it’s likely that the audience, having followed Kim’s
plight, will take an instant dislike to her rival; Ellen being dressed
in a vulnerable fashion will make her seem like less of an antagonist
and increase the audience’s ability to empathise with her individual
dilemmas.
Despite
the fact that the majority of this musical uses ‘traditional’
techniques to create the atmosphere there is one scene in particular
where this is not the case. The start of the second act sees a slideshow
of facts and photos referring to children before the song “Boi Doi”
starts. Indeed, photos and videos of Vietnamese child camps continue to
be projected during this song. This is incredibly effective as it
confronts the audience with the idea that actually, although you are
watching a fictional show, it is based on atrocities that really
happened; no-longer can the audience distance themselves emotionally. I
also feel that I must comment upon the way in which the setting of board
meeting ties in with the projection. The characters are viewing this as
a presentation in a meeting, we’re viewing it as such too, however
because of the photos being real the lines between reality and the
fiction of the show become more and more blurred.
Overall,
I feel that this was one of the strongest productions that I have seen.
It was emotionally intense, visually stunning, and was performed
without any noticeable error. It is for this reason that I cannot speak
of any noticeable weakness. Although there are some things that I may
have chosen to have done slightly differently (see paragraph three) I
felt that the direction choices were right for the target audience and
worked within the overall atmosphere of the piece. Indeed, I feel that
it was refreshing to see a story that could have been turned into a
fairy-tale style romance, especially as it’s set to music, retain a
grittiness that reflects the reality of the times in which it is set.
Perhaps it is only through seeing the awful circumstances that we can
understand the choices the characters make and, maybe, once we have left
the theatre, we will think differently about our own life and our
fellow human beings.
