Interludes

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Daniel Dae Kim leads Roundabout’s pointed Broadway revival of David Henry Hwang’s YELLOW FACE

• By drediman
• October 17, 2024
• No Comments

Last night at the Todd Haimes Theatre, I attended Roundabout Theatre Company’s timely Broadway revival of Yellow Face by Tony-winner David Henry Hwang (M. Butterfly). A Finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, the 2007 play tells the somewhat autobiographical story of a Chinese American playwright — loosely based on Hwang — who finds himself navigating the slippery nature of his identity vis-à-vis the tricky topic of race in America after having both protested the well-documented casting of a White actor (ahem, the British actor Jonathan Pryce) as a Eurasian pimp in the blockbuster musical Miss Saigon and subsequently mistakenly casting another White actor in an Asian role in one of his own plays.

Once the farcical machinations are put into motion — which thankfully doesn’t take very long — Yellow Face is a consistently head-spinning and revealing excavation of the complications of being Asian American, particularly as it relates to the opposing forces of assimilation and alienation. The play is also often very funny as it careens between reality and fiction, along the way making pointed and nuanced observations as the pseudo-fictitious playwright faces off with the press, political inquiries, the business we call show, and various personal relationships (family, friendships, and otherwise). Throughout, Hwang places his trust in the ability of theatrical storytelling to reveal truths about the nature of things. As such, much of the work’s commentary and criticisms are ultimately directed as much at Hwang himself as it is outwardly towards American society at large, resulting in a play that’s a bit of a reckoning not only for the playwright, but hopefully for audiences, as well.

The perfectly-paced production has been cleanly and efficiently directed by Leigh Silverman (currently represented on Broadway with Suffs), who returns to Yellow Face after having directed the original production. In the lightly-veiled role of “DHH”, Daniel Dae Kim is exceptional, exuding ample charisma and more than at touch of neuroticism as the playwright caught between a rock and a hard place. The play’s other roles are designed primarily to egg DHH down his rabbit hole, and they’re portrayed by a veteran ensemble of stage actors who flick from character to character with great skill. Among them is the great Francis Jue, who also returns — like Silverman — to the role(s) he originated (most notably DHH’s opinionated banker father HYH).

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

YELLOW FACE
Broadway, Play
Roundabout Theatre Company at the Todd Haimes Theatre
1 hour, 40 minutes (without an intermission)
Through November 24