In the 1980's era of the megamusical, many commentators doubted that future generations would be able to craft entertaining productions of shows like
Miss Saigon on substantially lower-than-Broadway budgets. They were wrong. A good story coupled with beautiful music (courtesy of
Les Miserables co-creators Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg) are the key ingredients to good theatre, not a blockbuster budget. Sure, the Nightblue production of
Saigon isn't worth Broadway ticket prices, but what is?
The plot superficially resembles a pernicious Western fantasy with a white male hero who "rescues" a dark skinned female from her wretched conditions. But the play is actually a potent critique of said fantasy. Our protagonist, Kim (Irene Patino), is an innocent young girl, orphaned by war and forced into prostitution to survive. One night she meets an idealistic American marine named Chris (Chris Forner), who reluctantly sleeps with her when a buddy, John (Marcus Boni), gifts him with her services. The couple proceed to fall in something like love, and Chris promises to marry Kim and bring her back to the States.
Things go awry when Saigon falls to the North Vietnamese, and the lovers are separated. Chris does his best to put the demons of the war behind him with an American wife. Kim is less fortunate as she's left raising Chris's son on her own. Meanwhile John turns out to be the real standup guy in these events, dedicating his postwar life to helping the abandoned children of American soldiers. All this translates into a pretty good metaphor for the good intentions and horrendously short attention span demonstrated by America's stumbling adventures in the Third World. The songs aren't shabby, either.
Nightblue's unassuming production mostly succeeds in bringing this story to life, though some of the actors play the material in an excessively low key. Nonetheless, it's worth a viewing, if for no other reason than seeing how a great musical can succeed in various incarnations.
"Miss Saigon" runs June 1-3 at 8 p.m at Athenaeum Theatre, 2936 N. Southport Avenue. Tickets cost $22-$30 Call 312 902-1500.
