  Reviews
From AudioFile
Perhaps the chief merit of M. Butterfly is that it preserves a
performance of a play widely regarded as a contemporary classic with its
original Broadway leads, John Lithgow and B.D. Wong. A Tony Award-winner
for best play, David Henry Hwang's work looks at the life and loves of
Rene Gallimard, who learns that his Chinese mistress of twenty years is
actually a man and a Communist spy. Both Lithgow and Wong have refined
their work over hundreds of stage performances in these challenging roles.
Hearing two such accomplished actors in parts they have mastered is a rare
treat. These tapes offer a classic interpretation of an acclaimed play. On
the strength of recordings like these, the L.A. Theatre Works is producing
radio drama to rival the quality work of the BBC. G.H. ŠAudioFile,
Portland, Maine
AudioFile
Hearing two accomplished actors in the parts they've mastered is a
rare treat. A classic interpretation of an acclaimed play.
Book Description
The original Broadway cast of John Lithgow and B.D. Wong recreate
their original roles from the Tony-Award-winning production. Inspired by
an actual espionage scandal, a French diplomat discovers the startling
truth about his Chinese mistress. This sweeping drama exposes Western
fantasies of Asia that led to the debacle of Vietnam.
Description from The
Reader's Catalog
"A brilliant play of ideas...a visionary work that bridges the
history and culture of two worlds." -- Frank Rich
From The Publisher
Based on a true story that stunned the world, M. Butterfly opens in
the cramped prison cell where diplomat Rene Gallimard is being held
captive by the French government - and by his own illusions. In the
darkness of his cell he recalls a time when desire seemed to give him
wings. A time when Song Liling, the beautiful Chinese diva, touched him
with a love as vivid, as seductive - and as elusive - as a butterfly.
How could he have known, then, that his ideal woman was, in fact, a spy
for the Chinese government - and a man disguised as a woman? In a series
of flashbacks, the diplomat relives the twenty-year affair from the
temptation to the seduction, from its consummation to the scandal that
ultimately consumed them both. But in the end, there remains only one
truth: Whether or not Gallimard's passion was a flight of fancy, it
sparked the most vigorous emotions of his life.
Only in real life could love become so unreal. And only in such a
dramatic tour de force do we learn how a fantasy can become a man's
mistress - as well as his jailer. M. Butterfly is one of the most
compelling, explosive, and slyly humorous dramas ever to light the
Broadway stage, a work of unrivaled brilliance, illuminating the conflict
between men and women, the differences between East and West, racial
stereotypes - and the shadows we cast around our most cherished illusions.
Buy
this book.
Last Updated:
05/04/07
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