Ch'ing.lish

"Chinglish" by David Henry Hwang is that rare thing: a simple, unaffected play that really works. There's nothing particularly original to be found here, Hwang is mining a rich but well worn seam of mis-translation jokes, but it's a genuine, heartfelt work that deserves more than its all too brief time on Broadway.

Hwang takes a naive American businessman travelling to China as his narrative starting point for what becomes an elegantly intelligent exploration of linguistic and cultural divides. Daniel Cavanaugh, subtly acted by Gary Wilmes, is trying to sell signage to China and naturally some of the infamous, awkward chinglish signs are quickly show to predictable laughs. It doesn't take Hwang long however to quickly undercut this easy, even patronising, humour with faultlessly rendered characters.

Cavanaugh soon begins an affair with a Chinese minister, charmingly played by Jennifer Lim, and in relationships, just as in Business, Hwang ably demonstrates the gargantuan differences between East and West. Thanks to faultless plotting and a continuous stream of clever jokes the show speeds along, and though the final conclusions are far from earth shattering, "Chinglish" feels like a journey taken with critical eyes but respect for all.

Situated in the small Longacre Theatre, "Chinglish" is staged in a wonderfully compact and effortless production. Using two revolves and sliding chairs (we get something of a waltz of the armchairs), the show is technically impressive yet never feels anything other than natural. The mid-sized cast is filled with strong performances, Larry Lei Zhang delivers a brilliant Chinese bureaucrat and Stephen Pucci's British translator gradually reveals a 3-dimensionality that rings completely true.

A frankly stunning play whose power really derives from how ordinary it at first seems to be. There's nothing big or special, it's just a good story, well told and the end result is something deeply thoughtful and affecting. A pity is has had such a short stint on Broadway, you've got a few more days to catch it and "Chinglish" is more than worth the effort.

(Review of Performance on Saturday, January 21st, 2012 at the Longacre Theatre)