How can a play written in 1988 where the bulk of the action takes place in the 1960s based around an opera written in 1904 feel at all relevant or captivating in contemporary culture? That is the question answered by Director Samip Raval and his able cast in David Henry Hwang’s M. Butterfly currently playing at ArtsWest.
The play begins at the end with our protagonist Rene Gallimard sitting alone in a jail cell. He quickly establishes himself as the narrator and our guide through this complicated and epic love story. Gallimard flashes back, weaving through his childhood, adolescence and finally into adulthood and his appointment as the French ambassador to China. It is there he meets the enchanting and enigmatic Song Liling. Liling is singing the role of Puccini’s Cio-Cio-san (also known as Madama Butterfly, a pet name that will continue throughout the play). Gallimard is instantly fascinated and intrigued and he remains so throughout their 20-year affair.
As the story progresses, we are pulled in and out of Gallimard’s point of view. It becomes increasingly clear that he is somewhat of an unreliable narrator. He keeps insisting that the love between Liling and himself was pure and equally felt. He literally interrupts the story when it slips from the narrative he has created.
Unfortunately for our forthright lover, Song Liling is not only lying about their intentions, (Liling is a spy for the Chinese government and is passing on secrets from the hapless diplomat) but also their gender. When they first meet at the opera, Gallimard assumes Liling to be a woman, not knowing that in Chinese opera women’s roles are customarily sung by men. Even after learning that what he thought was his ideal woman turned out to be a man, Rene is curious enough to return home with the enigmatic opera star. Back in Song’s flat, however, we hear the tragic (and quite untrue) tale of a poor girl, forced to live as a man in order to have a chance at a better life in the strict People’s Republic of China.
Liling reads Gallimard immediately and is manipulating him from the get go. Song Liling plays the submissive and delicate “Butterfly” to perfection and is able to exploit poor Rene at every turn. This eventually leads to Gallimard’s arrest and eventual incarceration on the charge of treason which brings us up to date on the play’s timeline.
The success or failure of this complex and dense play lies heavily with the protagonist Rene Gallimard and this production is in the capable hands of David Quicksall. He comes to the role with an easy charm and a sonorous baritone speaking voice which is appropriate considering the central role the opera Madama Butterfly has throughout the play. Quicksall moves ably between various ages and emotions with a subtle but effective physicality. Tom Dan as the calculating Song Liling has a very tough line to walk. He must be totally convincing and engaging in his relationship with Gallimard while still making it clear that he is puppeteering the entire situation. While Dan was not always successful at navigating this challenging tightrope act, he was exceedingly effective when showing Song at his most vulnerable. It was in these exposed moments when both Gallimard and the audience fall for the false Butterfly and become invested in the love story.
In the final act of the play, Liling draws the parallel between the personal relationship he shared with Gallimard and the superficial understanding (or lack thereof) between their two nations. Hwang has a more hopeful view as he writes in the afterword to the play, “Truthful human contact between nations and lovers can only be the result of heroic effort.”
M. Butterfly is playing at ArtsWest through February 17. For tickets and more information, please visit https://www.artswest.org/