Why is the show called "Miss Saigon"?

[StageManager2]

Posted: 8/11/12 at 11:08pm

Kim, the protagonist, isn't actually crowned the title; Gigi Van Tranh, a minor character, is. For a while I thought it might be a play on the word "miss," which can also mean to feel the loss of something/someone. Saigon was renamed Ho Chi Minh City upon the end of the war, so "Miss Saigon," I figured, was meant to be a longing for the time before the Communists took over. Kind of like Gone with the Wind is a reference to the dissolution of the antebellum South. I don't know.

Anyone?

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 8/11/12 at 11:28pm

But in the scene just before "Dju Vui Vay," the bar girls all informally re-crown Kim as Miss Saigon because she's the one of them who ended up with an American soldier -- they all think she's getting out of the country so she's the one who is going to succeed.

[aasjb4ever]

Posted: 8/11/12 at 11:30pm

OP: Because...because...shut up! Don't question it!

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 8/11/12 at 11:32pm

I wish they'd either do the damn movie or bring the show back.

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 8/11/12 at 11:45pm

It was a play on words near the end of the run. I remember the ads saying something like "get your tickets today before you miss Saigon."

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 8/11/12 at 11:47pm

[SNAFU]

Posted: 8/12/12 at 12:13am

What is a Meta for?

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 8/12/12 at 12:30am

For winning Miss Saigon.

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 8/12/12 at 12:44am

Because Miss Cleveland just didn't sound right.

[jsg03jd]

Posted: 8/12/12 at 1:17am

Alain Boublil wanted a show title that would reference a beauty pageant and the Dreamland and Dju Vui Vay scenes supported Boublil's wish to come true.

[Neverandy]

Posted: 8/12/12 at 6:34am

It's also a reference to Madama Butterfly, on which the story is loosely based.

[themysteriousgrowl]

Posted: 8/12/12 at 7:34am

^That was my first thought.

[Fan123]

Posted: 8/12/12 at 8:08am

This has already been jokingly covered, but I think naming the show "Miss Saigon" was effectively naming the show "Character Representing Vietnam". Similarly, Chris = the US.

[SporkGoddess]

Posted: 8/12/12 at 11:05am

Yeah, some people have viewed the characters as representing their countries. Chris (the US) tries to help Kim (Vietnam) but ends up leaving and stranding her in a horrible situation.

Of course, the Vietnam War was a complicated and horrific situation, whereas Chris was just an idiot. "They'll give us plenty of word when the VC attack," really??

But I mostly see it as Lizzie's explanation: Gigi wins the contest, but Kim wins a GI who will take her away, which is the real prize in the eyes of the girls at Dreamland.

[Dave19]

Posted: 8/12/12 at 1:42pm

Because during the "Dju vuj vay" scene Gigi literally says:
"So now who's really Miss Saigon". Because Kim seems to be the girl that gets what they all dream of.

[janeshon1106]

Posted: 8/12/12 at 2:33pm

Along with the Beauty Pageant reference, and the madame butterfly basis, the story is supposedly influenced by a photograph of a Vietnamese mother leaving her child that Schonberg found. According to history, Saigon was the former name of Ho Chi Minh City which is the largest city in Vietnam. During the Vietnam war, The Fall of Saigon marked the end of the Vietnam war and the last of the American Soldiers were evacuated. This is one of the main highlights in the show and Kim being the main character remains in Saigon and watches her love Chris evacuate away.

Being the main character and "the girl that gets what they all dream of" during the fall of Saigon but yet remaining in the city while her love flees, Kim's connection with Saigon truly seems to make her a Miss Saigon in my opinion :)

[Borstalboy]

Posted: 8/12/12 at 5:41pm

Why is it called ON THE TOWN?

I would hardly call New York City a town and "on" just sounds so...lewd.

[ChiChi]

Posted: 8/17/12 at 3:06pm

I didn't like this show for a long time. I agree that it would be nice to see a movie made. But I think I would rather the show came back, because it really is a great story. With OR without a helicopter.

[Wynbish]

Posted: 8/17/12 at 3:09pm

I've only seen a touring production with a video of a helicopter flying away.

[ChiChi]

Posted: 8/17/12 at 3:16pm

I saw the original tour and the tour you are referring to. Now I seem to stand alone in this in most conversations I have about it, but I felt that the projection of the chopper, whilst not as breathtaking as the first time I saw the chopper in the original production, I really felt it work.

However, I don't necessarily think seeing the helicopter is necessary.

[Wynbish]

Posted: 8/17/12 at 3:19pm

Yeah, it didn't affect my opinion of the show. It's one of my favorite cast recordings, so I was pumped.

[ChiChi]

Posted: 8/17/12 at 4:57pm

I just recently saw the Hungarian production on video and was very impressed. Everyone in the cast was white and since it's a nice recording with close ups it was a little odd to watch at first. But I felt the cast was great. With the exception of the longest curtain call I have ever seen ANYWHERE!

[Salene]

Posted: 8/18/12 at 8:25am

With the exception of the longest curtain call I have ever seen ANYWHERE!

Ever seen any Takarazuka productions?

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 8/18/12 at 12:00pm

Why is a musical about Rose Thompson Hovick called "Gypsy"?

Incidentally, a friend of mine was the understudy for the Engineer in the Miss Saigon tour with the video helicopter. He recently starred in King & I at the Walnut Street Theatre opposite Rachel York.

Updated On: 8/19/12 at 12:00 PM

[JasonM12480]

Posted: 8/18/12 at 6:09pm

Well, the original title was "Underage Saigon Prostitute Gets Pregnant and Her Baby Daddy Leaves So She Becomes Disillusioned and Kills Herself - The Musical", but "Miss Saigon" just had a better ring to it, and went over better with investors.