The WORLD of EXTREME HAPPINESS@ MTC A Misery to Watch

The WORLD of EXTREME HAPPINESS is an ambitious play with an intent to educate us of the numerous plights faced by the Chinese since the Cultural Revolution.  Playwright, Frances Cowhig, is Amer. born & educated.  She was also raised in Okinawa, Taipin & Beijing.  The span of the play is an extreme bulk of pain & misery in 1 act & 90 min. running time.  Perhaps, as in China with many of its problems stemming from over-population, massive developments & repression, the play suffers from being over programmed & intent misplaced.  It's unclear whether it wants to entertain, educate or sermonize.  The choppy, frenetic juxtaposition of past & present, with actors  fullfilling multiple roles is too chaotic to allow for the characters & their plights to resonate with impact.  Still, the sparse staging & acting by Jennifer Lim as Sunny; the unwanted girl baby left to die in a pig slop bucket was admirable.  Unfortunately, the ensemble cast was erratic, due largely in part to the writing.  Cowhig has been awarded the Yale Drama Series Award & Keene Prize for Lit.  I was not keen for this play and extremely distressed to sit through this mess.