Henry Hwang Theatre "The Year of the Dragon," on stage at
the Henry Hwang Theatre through Feb. 25 is a tale
of an Asian American family trying to cope with United States
culture.
By Janet Nakano
Daily Bruin Contributor
With a character like China Mama, an ancient Chinese woman who
smokes joints, “The Year of the Dragon” would appear to
be somewhat of a risque production.
In East West Players’ revival of Frank Chin’s drama,
“The Year of the Dragon,” however, what is truly
presented is the conservative tale of an Asian American family just
trying to survive. The play will run at the Henry Hwang Theatre
through Feb. 25.
Chin’s play, which premiered in 1974, portrays the
difficulties that many Asian immigrants experience while trying to
raise a family in America which is not a land of golden
opportunities, but one of struggles and hardships. The satirical
eye through which the ideas are presented, however, are not warmly
welcomed when first performed in Santa Monica.
Directed this time around by Mako, the brilliant drama is
revived again, but reveals a different set of struggles than when
first performed. The time frame has remained the same, however,
with the play opening on Chinese New Year’s Day, 1976: the
Year of the Dragon.Â
Throughout the play Fred Eng (Keone Young) interacts with the
audience, sardonically screaming “Gung Hay Fat Choy!”
(Happy New Year!) as he invites the audience to become his tourists
and take a trip through his crazy life in Chinatown, San
Francisco.
Fred’s dark and comical character is successfully
portrayed by Young, as he fakes having a Chinese accent to please
the tourists. He arouses the audience with mocking stereotypes and
amusing puns, quickly moving viewers to the opening scene in the
Eng home.
The audience finds China Mama (Shizuko Hoshi) sitting in a
darkened corner as Sis (Mimosa) reluctantly returns home with her
white husband Ross (Brian Mulligan).
Sis and Ross’ performance as husband and wife struggles
through the first scene, as the audience is not quite convinced
that they are newlyweds returning home for the first time.
Meanwhile, Pa Eng (Dana Lee) is dying, and, having never truly
assimilated to the American culture, decides to finally bring over
his original wife from China. With this action, which he feels
brings him closer to his native culture, he believes he will be
allowed to die “Chinese.”
Lee’s performance as Pa is strong, and becomes more
natural over the progression of the play. His character is
central to the story and his inability to conform to American ways
symbolizes the difficulties that many Asian Americans
experience.
At this point in the story, the audience is thrown into a
whirlwind of precarious dilemmas. Pa bringing home China Mama and
Sis’ interracial marriage sets the premise for the drama.
Ma (Momo Yashima) is Pa’s Chinese-American wife, a
complicated character that has difficulty dealing with the entrance
of China Mama as well as her daughter’s white husband. At
times she simply cannot deal with the tensions at hand and
frequently escapes to the bathroom, her safe haven.Â
It is evident that Ma feels estranged from her husband and
family and unfortunately alienates the audience as well, through
her well-intended but unexpressive performance.
“The Year of the Dragon,” gives audience members a
glimpse inside the life of the Eng family, where many important
issues are raised but never solved.
The weak performances from the actors leaves viewers unable to
relate to the issues at hand. The audience remains as spectators to
the events in the play and is rarely drawn into the highly intense
emotions that the play could possibly invoke.
Something remarkable about Chin’s message and dark humor,
however, can be found by viewers who have the ability to look
beyond the actors’ imperfections.
THEATRE: “The Year of the Dragon”
shows through Feb. 25 at the David Henry Hwang Theatre, 120 Judge
John Aiso St., Little Tokyo. Performances at 8 p.m. Thursdays and
Fridays, 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturdays and 2 p.m. Sundays. Tickets
from $20 to $30; student discounts at the box office. For more
information call (213) 625-4EWP.