Yellow Face
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Lee, Torn
Photo by Craig Schwartz
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By Ben Miles
Yellow Face, award-winning dramatist David Henry Wang’s autobiographically based play is now having its world premiere production at the Mark Taper Forum, in Los Angeles, through July 1. It is an abstract staging about a complex issue. Multi-racialism in a multi-cultural society is the show’s topic. The world of live theater is where the story unfolds.
Directed by Leigh Silverman, Yellow Face begins in 1988 and progresses, in fits and starts, to the present day. Initially, outrage is expressed among the literati, and across the Asian “community,” that English actor Jonathan Pryce has been cast as the Eurasian pimp in the Broadway extravaganza, Miss Saigon. Hwang’s alter ego, DHH, is especially put-out and outspoken regarding this instance of ethnic miscasting. Nevertheless, after finding success with his own Tony-Awarded extravaganza—M. Butterfly—and subsequent to urging the casting of an Anglo-appearing actor in a major “Asian” role himself, DHH’s tune begins to change to a more inclusive harmony.
Art and pragmatics are uneasy partners in Hwang’s conceit. They are a marriage of convenience as much as a union of necessity. Indeed, the great epiphany in Hwang’s artistic evolution is best stated in the dénouement of his play, when DHH conjectures, “Maybe we should take words like ‘Asian’ and ‘American,’ like ‘race’ and ‘nation’ and mess them up so bad no one has any idea what they mean any more. ‘Cuz, really, when you think about it, has anything human ever been pure?” With an able ensemble of seven actors, Hwang’s thoughtful script penetrates our thinking. Whether or not it will change our collective mind remains to be seen.
As DHH, Hoon Lee is intense and intelligent in his portrayal of a playwright caught in a mental web of contradictions. What’s more, Lee mines the comedic moments of his character to maximum effect. We find ourselves looking forward to his outbursts of indignation, as well as the mental gymnastics he puts himself through to justify his “aesthetic” choices.
Tzi Ma lends several personas to the proceedings. Ma is especially effective as DHH’s banker father. Ma also fares well in his lighthearted characterization of renowned actor, B.D. Wong.
Tony Torn, Peter Scanavino, Lucas Caleb Rooney, Kathryn A. Layng, and Julienne Hanzelka Kim all serve to populate the play with various and intriguing incarnations, each enriching the show.
Yellow Face is a bold and honest exploration of a pressing topic in our society. How does race and ethnicity limit us? How do these identities serve us? While Hwang doesn’t have all the answers, he surely has raised the questions.
Presented at the Mark Taper Forum, Center Theater Group, 135 Grand, Los Angeles. Tues-Fri. at 8; Sat. at 2:30 & 8; Sun. 2:30 & 7:30. For reservations, dial (213) 628 – 2772. $42-55.
Closes July 1. www.centertheatregroup.org
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