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Nancy Ma and Kim Wuan in rehearsal for “The Warrior Sisters of Wu.” (Photo by Ariel Estrada)<\/p>\n
At auditions for Damon Chua\u2019s new play Warrior Sisters of Wu<\/em>,<\/strong> actors not solely needed to seize the humor and ferocity of Wan and Qing, two of probably the most desired ladies in historic China\u2014additionally they needed to showcase their swordplay and kung fu abilities. The play, in any case, opens with spurs flying in the dead of night because the sisters spar, and the combat goes on from there. Still, performing was paramount. As actor and combat grasp Michael G. Chin, who serves because the present\u2019s combat choreographer, put it, \u201cThere\u2019s no CGI onstage, so we have to adapt to the actor\u2019s skill. It\u2019s easier to teach an actor how to fight than a fighter how to act.\u201d<\/p>\n Chua\u2019s fashionable feminist adaptation of the 120-chapter 14th-century Chinese epic Romance of the Three Kingdoms<\/em>\u2014about how the collapse of the Han dynasty led to the division of the nation into the Wei, Shu-Han, and Wu kingdoms\u2014was commissioned by Pan Asian Repertory Theatre<\/a> and can premiere Feb. 7-March 10 at ART\/NY. \u201cIt\u2019s like adapting the Old Testament, The Iliad<\/em>, or The Odyssey<\/em>\u2014I could spend my life adapting Romance of the Three Kingdoms<\/em>,\u201d mentioned Chua.\u00a0<\/p>\n He lastly honed in on a brief however important a part of the e-book, about two sisters within the southern Wu empire who vie with male generals and varied suitors on the eve of conflict. Incorporating parts paying homage to Much Ado About Nothing<\/em> and Pride and Prejudice<\/em>, it\u2019s a narrative about robust, fierce ladies who combat for his or her nation and decide their very own destinies\u2014which can clarify why these ladies have grow to be widespread online game characters within the twenty first century<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cThe events are 200 A.D. and the novel was written in the 1300s, but a lot of it feels relevant,\u201d mentioned director Jeff Liu. \u201cLook at our own Supreme Court here\u2014it\u2019s an ongoing story about power and gender. Each culture has its own karmic path to work through.\u201d<\/p>\n Onstage, although, the characters flip the drama on its head with a mixture of quippy one-liners and kickass comedy. Said Chua, \u201cYou have to lighten it up by having something people can understand and grab onto. Like the yin-yang symbol, it\u2019s a matter of balance.\u201d<\/p>\n Kelundra Smith (she\/her) is managing editor of American Theatre.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n