China Doll Elizabeth Wong 53h11

Wong, Elizabeth, 1958-: China Doll Bibliographic details Bibliographic details for the Electronic File Wong, Elizabeth, 1958-: China Doll Cambridge 2007 ProQuest LLC Twentieth-Century Drama Full-Text Database Copyright © 2007 ProQuest LLC. All Rights Reserved. Do not export or print from this database without checking the Copyright Conditions to see what is permitted. Bibliographic details for the Source Text Elizabeth Wong, 1958- (1958-) Kathy A. Perkins, 1934- (1934-) (ed.) Roberta Uno, 1936- (1936-) (ed.)China Doll [in, Contemporary Plays by Women of Color: An Anthology: Edited by Kathy A. Perkins and Roberta Uno] London Routledge 1996 ix, 323 p. Text type: Prose Genre: One-act, Monologue Subject: Nineteen forty, A.D., United States, Actresses, Race relations, California, Film, Racism, Asian Americans First performed: Catawba College, Salisbury, North Carolina First performed: 2001 Speakers [i.e. Number and Gender of Speakers]: 0 male, 1 female

Only China Doll included.

© 1991 Elizabeth Wong

ISBN: 0415113776

China Doll Characters ANNA MAY WONG: 33, an actress

Time 1940

Place A movie soundstage

Production Notes This play can be performed as a one-woman show or with a cast of an additional six silent characters, as follows:

MISS HARRINGTON, 20s, an actress MR. WONG, 50s, ANNA's father MR. IRVING THALBERG, a movie producer MR. SAMUEL GOLDWYN, a movie producer THE INTERPRETER THE LIMOUSINE DRIVER

These characters are on stage throughout, frozen as if they were dolls on display. Their faces are white; the stage is white; the world is white.

A movie soundstage. The year is 1940 . ANNA, a slender Chinese-American woman, 33, stands in a spotlight. Her pose is ethereal, dreamy. She speaks to an unseen actress . ANNA Now, you see darling how it 'tis. My arms like so. My legs like so. Then, you have the suggestion of soft. The essence of femininity. And when your leading man sweeps you up and gathers you in his arms, you die a little. Like so. Just a small turn of the head. That's all. Isn't it simple? This is how they want to see a Chinese girl in the arms of a white man. You die a little each time. Now let's see you do it.

(She retrieves a thermos, pours tea into a cup. A pained expression comes over her face, as the actress attempts an imitation.) No! No, no, no darling.

(ANNA steps back into the light.) Well, it's interesting. But no. Look, this is how you look.

(She takes an awkward pose.) We don't want that. No self-respecting Chinese girl thrusts out her breasts. And your neck! It's like a chicken at the chopping block.

(She slowly corrects the position.) Bring your shoulders down. Your arms must be aloft. If you persist as you do, your yellow goop will rub off, your eye prostheses will stick to your leading man's nose, and the camera will see a white girl in bad makeup. Now let's try it again.

(A pause. She watches.) Look, Miss Harrington. Sit down. Any chair. I know it's a difficult concept. Your New England soul can't fathom it. But darling, you are playing a Chinese. Therefore, you are a fantasy. You are sandalwood and jasmine. You are the promise of faraway places. But you are never real. You are not the mother. You are never the wife. You do not perspire. You are only a plaything---a China doll. (Bitterly) China doll. Like me. But I never wanted to be a China doll. Pretty China doll. And now, my dear Miss Harrington, I'm teaching you how to be one. That is what they call ironic. Shall I tell you a secret? When I was a little girl, I wanted to be blond just like you.

(She pulls up chair, sits.) I opened my eyes wide. I crimped my hair. I squeezed and prayed for big breasts. Not American enough, I said. So, I took my Chinese name and threw it away. At the age of 12, I gave myself a new name. Anna May. Has a nice ring,

doesn't it? I liked the way it lifts like a soap bubble from my tongue to the sky. Anna May. And where did I get all my ideas? The movies. I learned to be an all-American girl at the movies!

A movie theatre. Lights dim . I love the dark. The seats. The velvet curtains that hide the inside from the out. I love being naughty. When my parents thought I was at Chinese school, I'd taken the city bus on College Street heading ... out of Chinatown. Take me to Hollywood Boulevard. Ever since I was 11 years old, I've been sneaking to the movies. I knew, even then, I was destined to be an actress. Eleven years old!

(Lights flicker. A movie has commenced . ANNA whispers.) The Perils of Pauline. I just love this. Seen it a million times.

(She addresses the screen.) Watch out Pauline! Behind you! Oh gosh. Hurry, hurry. The train is coming. (She reacts. She shrieks, covers her face with her hands.) I can't stand the suspense.

(Pause) Seeing a movie is great. But being in the movies? Is even better. Up there on the silver screen. The camera moving in for a closeup.

(ANNA poses for a closeup. The light brightens. She gets up, addresses the actress.) Yes, Let's take a look at your close-up, shall we? All.right ... Scene 65. (She refers to manuscript.) This is the garden scene. You are betraying your mistress to her enemy. No, use me as the camera. I'm the camera. Turn slowly to me, as I move in closer. (She pretends to hold a camera.) Oh please, don't. Don't squint. Darling, look, darling, no. Your eyes must look shifty---without being shifty. Don't you know, we Chinese are a devious underhanded race.

(Pause) Don't agree with me, dear! That was a joke.

(Pours more tea from the Thermos) By the way, darling, how old are you? (Pause) Really? That young. (Drinks tea) I thought you were a little older. Oh, me? I'm 33.

(Offers the unseen actress a cupful) Would you care for some more tea? No?

(Pause) Can I tell you my secret for staying young? I drink seven cups of ginseng tea every day. This tea makes women feel young and slim and full of youthful beauty. It rids you of bad breath, prevents high blood pressure, prevents acne ... and no wrinkles. Darling, the camera never lies.

(She holds a huge silk scarf against her body. The fan blows softly.) In this scene, you will be clad in a diaphanous ... something. You may think this restricts your movement. But it doesn't, if you know the art. Let the fabric press against your body. Don't be ashamed of the hills and valleys. And move freely about, as if you had nothing on. I learned this gimmick in the Thief of Baghdad . I wore little less than this piece of silk. Naturally, that got me a lot of attention. Not my father. He called me a courtesan. A whore.

A new light. The fan stops . ANNA is in her parents' laundry. She folds the scarf slowly. She is 17 years old. Please, BaBa, I am not a whore. I am an actress.

(Pause) It is not the same thing. I am not a disgrace. BaBa, why should I be ashamed? I have a nice body. I'm pretty, BaBa. You made me who I am. You and MaMa. You should be proud of me. When I was 12, and working as an extra, you didn't object. I'm a big girl now. I'm 17. I'm getting famous. All of America is getting to know Anna May Wong.

(Pause) No, BaBa, I don't want to marry. I don't want to marry anyone I don't know. Let me choose whom I will marry. Let me choose my life. I don't want to sweat in the steam of the laundry. I don't want to spend my entire life folding underwear, ironing shirts.

(Pause) Drape me in silk and jewels. Bring me men in tuxedos. Regale me with laughter and champagne and parties. Just get me the hell out of Chinatown. (Pause) But don't, don't ever call me a whore! I'm an actress.

Back to the soundstage. Normal light . Well, maybe only a "B"-movie temptress to the people of America. But, in Europe, they hailed me a goddess--thousands of women imitated my hair-do. At the backstage door, I was greeted nightly by a legion of Cleopatras chanting my name. Ah well, that's all behind me now. Whereas you, you are the bright light on the horizon. You will be called a star.

(Picks up a script. Leafs through it.) No Chinese was ever hailed a star. No Chinese ever got a leading role, not even me. It's true. After Baghdad, I got work. ing ones though.

(Pause) Oh God, the Crimson City? That was 1928. Warner Brothers. No, no. You are mistaken. I wasn't the lead. I ed Myrna Loy. She was the lead. Made up to look Chinese.

(Pause) Well, for your sake, I hope MakeUp will do a better job on you than they did on Myrna.

(Finds the page. Holds the script.) Now for your suicide scene. When it comes to dying, I'm the expert. I've died a thousand different movie deaths. You see an Oriental woman can fall in love with a white man, as long as she conveniently dies. Hardly realistic, nonetheless a widely accepted celluloid truth. Oh, we Orientals have so much to live up to. Anyway, as I read it, this scene of yours is fairly similar to one I played with George Raft, Limehouse Blues, 1934. We dance.

(A la Fred Astaire, she uses the ghostlight as a dance partner. Movie music swells.) Do you love me? Raft flings me to the floor. I crawl back to him. We dance. He's half Chinese. You are leaving me for a white woman? No, say it's not true. Raft flings me to the floor again. I crawl back to him. We dance. I love you. He flings me to the floor. I say to him: (she clings onto the ghostlight) You are of the East. A white girl cannot bring happiness to you.

(She moves away from the lightstand.) Then I betray him to the police. And then, I kill myself. I drink a strong poison. No, that's not it. I walk into the heaving dark and swirling waters of the Pacific. No ... wait. I think that was The Toll of the Sea . Ah, I probably shot myself. Yes, I think that's what it was.

New light. She picks up her cigarette holder. She fixes a cigarette to it, but doesn't light it .

George Raft? No, I never got involved with him. The newspapers always linked me romantically with Philip, Philip Ahn. What a joke! I've known Philip since high school. He was more like my brother. The stories they cook up. After I did the Von Sternberg picture Shanghai Express , Hollywood thought I was a lesbian. That's what having your photograph taken with Marlene Dietrich will do to you. If you are not married, you must be Marlene's lover. Well, I'm not married. I would have married Mickie Nielan. But we couldn't. We just couldn't. It's just not done, you see. Inter-racial marriage is difficult. It's against the law. It would have ruined both our careers.

(She sits in chair.) Life mirrors the movies, movies mirror life. In the movies, as in life, you are never the wife. As an Oriental, you will be lusted for, sought after, even kept. You gave him the biggest erection in his life. But no wedding bells for you and the white man, missy. Because you are bad. You are wily, possessive, vindictive, and manipulative. You are the dragon lady, don't you know? Do you think you can handle that? Do you think you have it in you to be that sexy AND that rotten? Well, I'm tired of playing those roles. You can have them. Have them. If only you had it in you to be as good as me. Let me tell you, you are nowhere near it. Because if you were, you wouldn't need to wear that stupid wig. Please take that damn thing off. I feel like I'm staring in a funhouse mirror at a sickly version of myself.

(Mutters to herself) Why doesn't he just give me the job? I'm sexy. I don't need to wear a wig. I don't need to put on a yellow face. I don't have to study sex manuals or take lessons in how to make love to the camera. Looking for a seductress? This is an Asian role, right? Excuse me, um, what about me? I'm Oriental through and through, isn't that enough?

(Pause) Well ... you my dear, you have to work so much harder. Sexiness for you is an acquired attribute. But for me, it is my definition.

(Pause) I exaggerate of course. I'm sorry. It's a strain, sometimes, to lose roles one might otherwise play. Indeed, there were things I had to learn about being Chinese, just as you are learning. I went to China for that very reason. To find out for myself first hand, if I am truly Chinese or just an American giving an interpretation.

New light. China. A banquet hall, the dais. ANNA speaks first in Mandarin, then relies on her interpreter. "Sheh, sheh, sheh, sheh. Ne mon how." Tell them, I am happy to be here in Shanghai. I'm very excited about the opportunity to work here. I am sorry my Mandarin is limited. But just give me time, I promise I will soon be conversing with you in our mother tongue. I had no idea my films have been banned. I can understand why you see my portrayals of Chinese women as degrading, but that's all Hollywood will give me. That's all Hollywood wants to see of me. That's all Hollywood knows of Chinese women. Please tell them, I can't choose my parts. Jobs for Chinese are scarce in America, especially in the cinema. But I assure you, I am here in China to learn more about myself, and to bring a better interpretation to the rest of the world. (Applause. She smiles.)

New light, back to the soundstage. ANNA addresses the actress. But they didn't know what to do with me. Over there, they thought I was too "white" to play Chinese, and back here, I'm just too "yellow." (In Chinese: You can't please either one.)

(Pause)

I stayed in China for nine months. I learned to speak Mandarin, just as I learned to speak German when I was in . When I was in London, I acquired an Etonian accent, at considerable expense. I picked up French on my own. I was determined to conquer any barrier, to fight in any language for recognition as an actress.

(Pause) Acting is my priority. I eat, drink, sleep, breathe acting. I don't know how to do anything else. I don't want to do anything else. I even gave up marriage for my career. I'm not telling you to give up marriage, all I'm saying, is if you have a dream, go after it. Fight for it.

New light. The office of Irving Thalberg. 1936. Long pause .

Mr. Thalberg, I've been waiting all my life for a role like this. This is 1936, not 1926. It's time for a truer portrayal of the Chinese. I know you agree with me, don't you?

(Pause) Mr. Thalberg, I'm perfect for the role of O-Lan. Perfect. That role was made for me. Luise Rainer is a fine actress, of course, but she's German. She doesn't even look Chinese. The Good Earth is the most sympathetic movie on a Chinese subject and you are telling me NO?

(Pause) Does this have something to do with the Doris Mackie interview? You can't possibly blackball me for that. That interview was three years ago. I won't deny what I said. Isn't it true, we Chinese always play the villains--murderous, treacherous, snakes in the grass. O-Lan is the first sympathetic role. That is why this role means so much to me.

(Pause) Do you mean to tell me that a Chinese cannot play a Chinese? Are you saying, sir, that I do not know how to play myself? No, I won't calm down. Let me try to understand. In your opinion, Miss Rainer has as much right to this role as I do, and her interpretation would be just as valid as mine because this is acting after all. I strongly protest. It is not the same. It is not the same.

Back to the soundstage. Pause.

(To herself) The role of a lifetime to a German. I could start World War II myself.

(Pause) What? Where were we? Sorry. Shall we try your swooning technique? Scenes 17, 78, 102. Now swoon.

(She watches impatiently.) Stop! What was that you think you're doing? That's not swooning. You do not buckle your knees forward and lunge like a buffalo. That is the American way of dropping dead. We Asiatics are much more delicate. Pay attention, please.

(She gets up, demonstrates.) First the knees wobble, then you shift your weight to the right side, and then ... the head falls back gently and slightly to the left. Then you press, not clutch, at his chest wherein lies his beating heart. Do you see the difference. Yah? Now you try.

(She watches. Pause.) Nein, nein, nein. (Pause) Absolutely, nyet! Think in oppositions. Oppositions! Try again. Swoon gracefully, please!

(A knock is heard.) Yes, come in. I see. We're not through with the lesson yet, but I defer to duty. Miss Harrington, your limousine is here to take you to the location. Acting must come first. Well, we will continue our swooning tomorrow. Yes, same time. Goodbye.

(Pause. ANNA lights her cigarette. Another pause. She picks up the receiver of a telephone, dials the office of Samuel Goldwyn. Pause) Hello? Mr. Goldwyn, please. This is Anna May Wong calling. Tell him it's urgent. It's regarding Miss Harrington.

(A short pause) Hello, Sam? Sam, I can't work with this girl. Sam. I can't take any more of this. I can't teach this starlet anything. Her swooning technique is atrocious. She's too stiff. She's slow. She's not right for the part at all. I showed her how to cross her legs, the way a Chinese girl would do it. Emphasize the silky line of your calves, I said. But she's a cow. Her eyes twitch like marbles in a sack. She's a nervous Nelly. She's no good. Sam, I can do this role. Let me have it.

(A short pause) Yes, yes. I know you need a scene coach first and foremost. Yes, but damn it, Mr. Goldwyn. This is killing me, Mr. Goldwyn. Please, don't discard me, put me on the shelf like a ... China doll.

(Pause) Yes. I understand. We discuss this in your office. Tomorrow? The next day then. Very well. At your convenience. (She hangs up the phone.)

(Long pause)

(To audience) Why won't they let me do what I ... what I love most of all? I'm not a teacher. I'm an actress.

(Lights out)