The four power-suited Chinese-American women who work at the same Wall Street bank meet every third Tuesday for lunch at Golden Unicorn in what they call an affinity group. But it doesn’t take long to realize they have little affinity for one another.
Iris (Jully Lee), the only one born in China, tells Ellen (Jennifer Ikeda) that her Mandarin “sounds like diarrhea in your mouth.” Phyllis (Jodi Long), the grand dame of the group, is incensed that the youngest and newest member is late, even though she’s not late. But as Phyllis instructed Ellen decades ago when she hired her: “Early is on time, on time is late.”
When she arrives, Katie (Anna Zavelson), who is “so stoked” to have gotten a promotion, seems free of any hint of the harshness we’ve seen in the other ladies. “How exciting is it that we get to make a difference,” she says. “Come on Asian queens!”
It is Katie, however, who winds up the most in-your-face combatant by the end of Alex Lin’s sharp and funny play.
Much of “Chinese Republicans” provides a deepening and ultimately poignant portrait of four distinct characters, made all the more palpable by a first-rate cast. At the same time, through subplots or brief scenes or just a throwaway line here or there, the play touches lightly on a bracingly wide range of topical issues – the corrupting nature of corporate culture, anti-Asian violence, the costs of assimilation, female camaraderie and competition, sexism and sexual harassment in the workplace, abortion, immigration anxiety.
Katie’s evolution is a wild and mischievous swing towards the fanciful. But it fit in better than other fanciful touches, which felt unnecessary, as if Lin and director Chay Yew were afraid the audience would get bored if the women just talked with one another. About a half hour in, there is a mock game show, complete with a hostess in traditional Chinese garb and lots of video projections. (Note to playwrights: Can we have a moratorium on the sudden insertion of game show fantasies?)
Why has Lin called her play “Chinese Republicans”? I thought she was just being catchy, or catty, until more than halfway through, when I realized she ws being crafty. I suppose it would be a spoiler to tell you the circumstances, so I’ll just give you the facts that are mentioned in the play:
“1901 to 1909 — Theodore Roosevelt establishes five new national parks and kickstarts the 20th century conservation movement — political party: Republican”
“1956 — Dwight D. Eisenhower enacts the Federal-Aid Highway Act and creates modern interstate roadways — political party: Republican”
“1986 — the Immigration Reform And Control Act signed by Ronald Reagan, one of the most far-reaching immigration laws in history that gives millions of migrants a pathway to citizenship.
“All of the greatest Republicans in America have been SOCIALISTS!”
Chinese Republicans
Roundabout’s Laura Pels Theater through April 5
Running time: 95 minutes, no intermission
Tickets: $69 – $102
Written by Alex Lin
Directed by Chay Yew
Set design by Wilson Chin, costume design by Anita Yavich, light design by Jeanette Oi-Suk Yew, original music and sound design by Fabian Obispo, projection design by Hanah Kim
Cast: Jennifer Ikeda as Ellen, Ben Langhorst as waiter, Jully Lee as Iris, Jodi Long as Phyllis, and Anna Zavelson as Katie.
