New York City
Based loosely on Puccini’s Madame Butterfly, this pop opera relocates the story to Saigon in the last days of the Vietnam War. An American soldier, Chris, has a brief, torrid affair with an innocent Vietnamese girl named Kim. In the chaos of the U.S. exodus, they are tragically separated. Believing that Kim has died, Chris returns home and, eventually, marries. Kim, meanwhile, begins a harrowing journey to escape her ravaged homeland and reunite with the man she’s certain is waiting for her — and their son. The musical features music by Claude-Michel Schönberg, lyrics by Richard Maltby, Jr. and Alain Boublil, and book and original French lyrics by Alain Boublil. David Bennett directs.