Opening Weekend! (A Retrospective)

After months of rehearsal, it was finally opening weekend!  It was a longer rehearsal  process than most of us were used to as we spent one week in NYC and six weeks in Phnom Penh putting the show together.  It was a painstaking process for a couple of reasons:  We were combining a North American cast and a Khmer cast, so everything had to be translated into Khmer from English; In addition, no show of this scale or genre had ever been done in Cambodia before.

Stage management had to train their assistants and the backstage crew from scratch, many of whom were talented traditional artists in their own right but got involved in anyway they could just to be a part of this historical piece.  “Set shop” was simply the space outside stage left in the lot outdoors, and extra electrical rigging was specially installed by and for the imported Singaporean sound and electrics crew and their equipment. The theatre set up even required extra dressing room space to be erected in outdoor tents to accommodate the large chorus and orchestra.  I am bewildered by what producers John Burt and Fred Frumberg have been able to provide for us in a place previously so virgin and inconducive to what we were trying to bring to life.

Backstage with cast member and broadway actress Christine Toy Johnson

Even though the WEW had it’s first inception in 2001, a long journey had been taken to birth this baby.  I am incredibly proud of what we’ve accomplished.  To be a part of something that is groundbreaking and controversial and potentially healing, in addition to being a first in a marriage of cultures and tradition has been not only completely fulfilling, but a dream come true.  At the risk of sounding precious, doing work like this has only expanded my mind in terms of the kind of work I’d like my career and life to consist of.

With playwright Catherine Fillioux

It’s hard to pinpoint what’s made this show so endeared to me;  such a vibrant array of stimulation, for the mind as well as the senses.  This show has combined elements of traditional Khmer: Apsara dance, smot singing, Buddhist chant and traditional Khmer puppet theatre; with decisively modern western elements in the form of conventional modern rock opera in addition to elements of western pop, hip hop, and break dance.  Catherine Filloux’s script addresses key social issues such as the corruption that’s rampant in Cambodian government and business, in addition to the aftermath of healing from a generation that had not only been orphaned due to the KR, but who had been used as instruments of destruction as child soldiers.  The oft seen but rarely discussed dark side of the beer gardens and the exploitative career of the beer girls get a spotlight in one of the scenes.  The Princess and the Deputy Prime Minister were in attendance and it was definitely a toss up as to how they would react to this piece.  Happily, they were won over.  I will not pretend to understand Cambodian politics, but the support of the government for this piece could only be a benefit.

The Company

What I consider to be our first show was technically the dress rehearsal.  We had a full audience and it was the first time the full show had been mounted.  It was an emotional moment for all of us after curtain call, Khmer and North American cast alike, as we gathered offstage to congratulate and hug each other.  There is an amazing and divine feeling in the witnessing of something come from nothing, the first imprint of the work as seen by an audience. It’s an inexplicably special moment that was amplified by the depth in which this show hits so close to home for many of our cast members. My absolute favorite line in the show (as there are many!) is the last, as the entire company incants in the epilogue:  “The spirit set free, through acts of courage and grace; we sing this melody that we might leave a trace”.  And leave a trace we did. The show was up!

Cambodian cast members and choreographer Sean Curran at Opening night

The next day was the official press opening, complete with red carpet, champagne toast, press, paparazzi, and VIPS.  It was an overwhelming feeling as I stepped out into the reception area.  Royalty, dignitaries, ambassadors, and laypeople alike were immensely responsive on how moved they were by the piece.  Having full-grown men in suits gushing and telling me how they wept was a little intense. I felt Very ready to put this show up, despite the trepidation I felt in the beginning about playing such a character.  Happily, the most humbling compliments I received on my work was when people would tell me they thought I was Khmer, given the cadence of my speech and even the way I walked. I was beside myself!  I spend a lot of energy worrying whether I sometimes look enough like the ethnicities I’m drafted to portray.  But strangely, being multiethnic/cultural hasn’t cut me off from acceptance like I used to perceive it did in gradeschool-  in this arena, the people simply and truly adopt me as one of their own.  It struck me much later, that even down to the spelling of my Irish last name scans as Khmer, as many Cambodian surnames are spelled with a PH as well.

With co-star and broadway actor Michael K. Lee at red carpet press opening.

All in all, I have to admit it was a pretty damn cool evening.  We were the hottest ticket in all of Phnom Penh that night, traffic slowed around the Chenla Theatre so passer-bys could glimpse the party in the spotlight-lit gold and red silk tent.  We had the famous Wat Phnom elephant in attendance after she marched down Sihanouk Boulevard wearing WEW robes -and yes, my pic was on her bum.  It was a well- deserved night of kudos and celebration for all who had been involved in bringing this special piece to life.