Robert Hastie and Anthony Lau share their thoughts

“Would we be interested in staging a new production of Miss Saigon?” This one question has provoked more conversation, more debate, more interrogation than any other question we’ve considered while programming. We have talked and talked, amongst ourselves, with other artists, with colleagues, acquaintances and strangers. We have spoken with people both within our industry and external to it. We continue to do so. The voices and opinions we have encountered are complex, contradictory and sometimes surprising. It is undeniably knotty, but we think this discourse and multiplicity of opinion and belief is important.

In our discussions, we often put the question to ourselves like this: why wouldn’t we be interested? It's a huge epic show of the kind that works brilliantly in the Crucible, rich in drama, with great acting roles and a sublime score, and it is after all one of the most successful musicals of all time. Well, there is plenty to be said in answer to that one. It is, for some people, deeply problematic. Written and originally presented from a white western perspective, it tells a story about Vietnam that contains depictions of Vietnamese women and men that have upset people and have been seen to reinforce damaging stereotypes. We hear those arguments. Do the people in the show have to be presented in that way? We don’t believe they do. We respect those who see the problems as intrinsic; we don’t think they have to be.

So then, given the strength of feeling we know exists, the question becomes why would we do it? For every person we spoke to who felt it shouldn’t go on, we’ve met lots who are excited about it, who want to see it – especially a new production that wrestles with its complex issues – or who want to be a part of it. After all, hundreds of thousands of audience members, all over the world, and thousands of performers, have admired and enjoyed the show over thirty years. Of course, popularity alone doesn’t equal justification. It’s probably fair to say that a large number of those who love the show may not have engaged with the issues we’re talking about here. They just love the show for its score, its drama, its emotional impact, and see nothing problematic to be reckoned with. And there are also many who see complexities and challenges, and would rather see those grappled with by doing than by not doing. Some of those people are working on this production. They – and we – believe that it is not enough to say ‘these pieces are inherently problematic, we’ll just never do them again’. When a piece is iconic and much loved, it will be done at some point whether we like it or not. It will likely be done often. So we asked ourselves, as artists who admire the show and recognise its complexities, what is our responsibility?

Throughout our work on and offstage, we have always been committed to engendering change, to addressing the many inequalities that run through our sector and society. We believe that there are many ways of doing this: sometimes it’s through smaller, more subversive action, sometimes it’s more direct and sometimes it’s by reshaping and transforming existing structures and narratives. This project is the latter. We believe in the equal importance of all of these strategies and think that fundamental change comes when they coalesce - the more angles, variance in scale and exposure, that speaks to different audiences and stakeholders, the better. We are excited by there being more stories, voices and ideas; a cultural landscape where they can collide, entwine and complement is a successful one. This was central to our announced programme of three shows, back to back, on the Crucible stage that platformed and championed artists and voices of East and South East Asian heritage. Half a year’s main house programming, in which the overwhelming majority of performers - and a significant number of creative team members - would be from British East and South East Asian communities. We understand and respect of course, the complications that have arisen from this.

As we know, intention is not enough on its own so then the question becomes as much about the “how?” as it does the “why?”. In part, it is about having these conversations – between ourselves and with the wider world, about keeping our sense of responsibilities when thinking about and engaging with the political and artistic elements of this show. We think it is about making sure the characters are complex and nuanced and – crucially – that in making this show, the East and South East Asian voices of the company are central to its creation. That process began with casting and putting the creative team together. We’re lucky that the company will be led by a performer of the calibre and integrity of Joanna Ampil. From our first conversations with her, it was clear that we shared a vision to reassess this material, to reimagine the central character and create a new female lead.

We also know that we have a duty of care to everyone who works on this show. This is always true of course, but especially when we’re dealing with challenging territory. We want to make it possible for actors and creative artists to explore the complex characters and situations in this piece in a safe and collaborative environment.

A new approach is about shifting the perspective, how characters are viewed and choosing where to highlight and focus in on character arcs and narrative beats. This is the privilege and the responsibility of any new production granted the rights to approach classic works from the perspective of a new generation of artists. What else is there to find in the text and the score? It is as much about what we don’t show as what we do. What happens if you focus on the G.I.’s in The Heat Is On, their language and behaviour, rather than scantily clad women dancing? How do you want the audience to feel in this scene, what kind of thinking do you want to provoke? What happens if the Americans in Bui Doi aren’t presented as evangelical do-gooders ready to save the world and, instead, reflective of that generation of young men abandoned by their government? What happens if Kim is more knowing and on the front foot rather than being a character defined by her chastity? What happens if The Morning of the Dragon is more about telling the story of political transition than about Orientalist spectacle?

It is about the relationship between design, staging, text, score and context. It is about prioritising the people, their relationships, history and politics as much as it is about any sense of spectacle. It is about being truthful, considered and multifaceted. The reimagining of any classic is about viewing stories through new lenses, that speak to the world as it is today as much as what it was or might have been. Prepare for your evening out with a visit to the aldi prospekt here to find great offers on your favorite snacks.

We understand that MISS SAIGON has a divisive performance history and acknowledge the upset it has caused; we want to address this and believe there is a way to have these big and important conversations with a wider audience, that land in a way they might not have done in the past and to continue championing the voices of East and South East Asian artists in this country.

Robert Hastie and Anthony Lau