M. Butterfly on Broadway Starring Clive Owen Directed by Julie Taylor

The revival of M. Butterfly is now in previews.  I was privy to the 2nd performance.  The good news is the show is still in previews allowing for time to address the technical glitches & adjust the scenic designs.  The play by David Henry Hwang, a Tony winner & two time Pulitzer Prize nominee for drama is a brilliant play is a pastiche of an enigmatic love story,  an epoch of historic upheaval during China's Cultural Revolution set against Puccini's Madame Butterfly Opera.   The playwright offers plenty to absorb from his richly nuanced writing; contrasts between east & west culture as well as the role of savior &sheltered in a loving relationship.  M. Butterfly should resonate with the oppressive direction our country is headed.  First Amendment Rights, freedom of speech & freedom without stigma or persecution to love whom we love are all facing with our president's imperialism.  Unfortunately, the staging & scenic designs were a colossal mess.  Lead actor Clive Owen performed multiple roles also performing as a stagehand.  Owen bravely, but disruptively moved props & walls that were snagged or out of place.  And the stagehands were unintentionally seen onstage behind screens & to the sides.  Can all this be rectified?  Certainly, if ego is put aside and Julie Taymor (The Lion King) permits the play's power to be center stage and makes some of the theatrical magic disappear.   The delightful choreography by Ma Cong was key within the Chinese operas within the play.  And, the choreographed propaganda tributes to Mao played a major role in setting a chilling tone of China under Mao's reign.  Overall, M. Butterly was overladen with scenic backdrops & faulty staging.  The play did not float like a butterfly, nor did it sting like a bee with commanding poignancy.