No more MISS SAIGON...

After this Twitter thread, in which recent star Eva Noblezada writes "WERE NOT GOING BACK TO MISS SAIGON", she explains "Hey Robin! I was able to recognize the traumatic/problematic messaging behind the show shortly before my departure. (Ask any of us) & as a Filipina playing a harmful Asian stereotype who was also a victimized/hyper-sexualized Vietnamese woman...glad that’s in the past"

https://twitter.com/EvaNoblezada/status/1385431271258484737

I went down the rabbit hole of thought pieces like https://www.societyandspace.org/articles/race-sex-and-death-from-miss-saigon-to-atlanta?fbclid=IwAR0HuFxzvQJASCF-Xxldtf5R_iAQk0XcQkyKtsBu4yYho6G_PhCeP9De0XQ, etc.

Do you think we'll see the show revised somehow (is that even possible)? or is it going to be pushed into history?

I see nothing wrong with this. Honestly one of the hard truths as shows fall away from what is considered okay to portray on stage (Miss Saigon isn't the first the there's plenty of reasons why shows that were much loved no longer get as much milage) is that a lot of the shows that are problematic are in fact shows that gave performers of color opportunities. A lot of them have a lot of missteps in their characterization that make it harder for those shows to get done more, even if we think doing those shows is a win for diversity.

Miss Saigon is a masterpiece of theatre!
I still get chills thinking about that helicopter!

If Kim would have just shot Ellen, instead of herself, we wouldn’t be discussing shelving Miss Saigon!!! Now there’s a good script revision suggestion!

Updated On: 4/25/21 at 11:36 AM

Bettyboy72 said: "...be subjected to being grabbed, man handled, having to wear small clothes, dance provocatively and sing some of those demeaning lyrics."

I mean isn't that sort of the point the show was making?

It's too glorious a show and score to not be produced again. And it will be, one day. Maybe with a disclaimer à la Gone With The Wind.

I wonder if the Danny Boyle helmed film will ever see the light of day?

Reminder:

"Woke" = alert to injustice in society.

Using "woke" disparagingly = aligned with the racist/Trumpist radical right.

It's a choice.

"Miss Saigon a masterpiece."

ROTFLMAO

Haven't laughed that hard in a long time.

It's a beautiful and extremely problematic show. It will continue to be produced all over the world, but hopefully less and less.

So it took two productions in two countries, and how many dollars in the bank until she realized it? Easy for her to say now that it's done, now that she's a Tony nominee, now that she's got the money in the bank, now that she's got a career.

iluvtheatertrash said: "So it took two productions in two countries, and how many dollars in the bank until she realized it? Easy for her to say now that it's done, now that she's a Tony nominee, now that she's got the money in the bank, now that she's got a career."

Actually, yes, it is easier for her to say it now that it’s done. There are many who didn’t acknowledge the damage it has done to them until after they’ve experienced it. So many Asian performers who have done multiple productions of Miss Saigon have vowed never to do the show again and would love the show to disappear. Eva is hardly the first one who has come into a career by doing Miss Saigon and feels this way.

Ragtime has been heavy on my mind lately as well. The score is astonishing and the creatives were well intentioned, but we all know that doesn't mean the show is safe from the contemporary lens.

I've never seen the show or bothered to read the libretto, but even listening through the OBC makes me cringe a little/a lot at times. Especially toward the end. But maybe the libretto fills in the gaps? I sadly doubt it.

Updated On: 4/25/21 at 03:27 PM

I guess it is just a matter of time before opera houses stop playing Madame Butterfly.

I personally am getting tired of all this revisionist thinking. There is no doubt in my mind that the story told in Miss Saigon was, sadly, true, in that there was a war on and innocent young ladies were victimized. I don't think Miss Saigon glamorizes or white washes the issues; it is ultimately a tragedy, for heaven's sake, and does not condone her being a prostitute, it weeps for her.

I do not think Miss Saigon is a masterpiece, but I do think it can be great entertainment. The helicopter scene is brilliant...it is not about a set coming down from the ceiling, it is about the situation being portrayed, the lighting, the music, the orchestration, the emotion, the feeling of pity for the people. It is a great scene in a good musical.