Edward Hong – The Nerds Of Color
Despite this new revival of Flower Drum Song having a second revision from David Henry Hwang, no amount of rewrites cannot shake the core that this Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, now playing at East West Players, is still very much outdated as a orientalist and voyeuristic crowd pleaser for old white people with subpar musical numbers. Read more…
Travis Michael Holder – TicketHoldersLA
Opening night at the Aratani Theatre it was instantly clear, despite any reservations I had about the production that aren’t at all that hard to overlook, playwright Henry David Hwang and the prolific East West Players have once again done more than just put on a show. They have reminded us that our precious life stories are not static artifacts but living, breathing things that deserve to be revisited, revised, and above all celebrated. Read more…
Jonas Schwartz – Theatermania
In 2001, the Mark Taper Forum presented a vibrant revision of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein’s Flower Drum Song, reframed by Tony winner David Henry Hwang. In the new collaboration between East West Players and the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center, Hwang has revised his book again. This time, however, the results are uneven: the staging often reads as conventional and, at moments, oddly old-fashioned. Read more…