Miss Saigon is a musical play where all the scenes are sung. It was created by Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil, with lyrics written by Boublil and Richard Maltby Jr. The story is based on Giacomo Puccini’s 1904 opera Madama Butterfly, which also tells a sad story about a romance between an Asian woman and an American man who leaves her. In Miss Saigon, the setting is changed to 1970s Saigon during the Vietnam War. Instead of an American lieutenant marrying a geisha, the story follows a United States Marine who falls in love with a seventeen-year-old South Vietnamese bargirl.
The musical first performed at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, in London on September 20, 1989. It ended after 4,092 performances on October 30, 1999. It opened on Broadway in New York on April 11, 1991, with a large amount of money, more than $39 million, secured before the show began. The musical was later performed in many other cities and toured worldwide. Before its 2014 London revival, it was reported that Miss Saigon had set a world record for the most tickets sold on its opening day, with sales exceeding four million pounds.
This musical was Schönberg and Boublil’s second major success, after their 1985 musical Les Misérables. As of January 2026, Miss Saigon is still Broadway’s fifteenth longest-running show.
Background
The musical was inspired by a photograph that Schönberg found by chance in a magazine. The photo showed a Vietnamese mother saying goodbye to her child at a departure gate at Tan Son Nhut Air Base. The child was boarding an airplane heading to the United States, where the child’s father, a former soldier, could offer a better life. Schönberg believed the mother’s decision to leave her child behind was "The Ultimate Sacrifice," an idea that plays a key role in the story of Miss Saigon.
Important scenes in the show include the evacuation of the last American soldiers from Saigon by helicopter as Vietnamese people who were left behind cried out in sadness, a parade celebrating the new communist government, and a busy nightclub scene during the time of defeat.
Synopsis
In April 1975 at "Dreamland," a bar and brothel in Saigon, Kim begins her first day as a bargirl just before the Vietnam War ends. Kim is a 17-year-old girl from the countryside who is taken in by the Engineer, a French-Vietnamese man who owns the club. Backstage, other girls prepare for the night’s show, teasing Kim for being new ("Overture / Backstage Dreamland"). U.S. Marines, knowing they will soon leave Vietnam, party with Vietnamese sex workers ("The Heat Is on in Saigon"). Chris Scott, a sergeant who is unhappy with the club scene, is encouraged by his friend John Thomas to go with a girl.
The girls compete for the title of "Miss Saigon," and the winner is given to a Marine in a raffle. Kim’s innocence catches Chris’s attention. Gigi Van Tranh wins the crown and asks the Marine who wins the raffle to take her to America, which annoys him. The showgirls talk about their hopes for a better life ("Movie in My Mind"). John buys a room for Chris and the inexperienced Kim ("The Transaction"). Kim is shy but dances with Chris, who tries to pay her to leave the club. When the Engineer interrupts, thinking Chris dislikes Kim, Chris agrees to go to her room ("The Dance").
While watching Kim sleep, Chris asks God why he met her just as he was about to leave Vietnam ("Why, God, Why?"). When Kim wakes, Chris tries to give her money, but she refuses, saying it is her first time sleeping with a man ("This Money's Yours"). Moved by learning Kim is an orphan, Chris offers to take her to America with him, and they fall in love ("Sun and Moon"). Chris tells John he will take leave to spend time with Kim. John warns Chris that the Viet Cong will soon take Saigon but agrees to cover for him ("The Telephone Song"). Chris meets the Engineer to trade for Kim, but the Engineer tries to add an American visa to the deal. Chris threatens the Engineer with a gun and forces him to honor the original agreement for Kim ("The Deal").
The bar girls have a "wedding ceremony" for Chris and Kim ("Dju Vui Vai"), with Gigi toasting Kim as the "real" Miss Saigon. Thuy, Kim’s cousin, who was promised to her at 13, arrives to take her home. Thuy is now an officer in the North Vietnamese Army and is angry to find her with a white man ("Thuy's Arrival"). The two men argue and draw their guns. Kim tells Thuy their arranged marriage is over because her parents are dead and she no longer cares for him because of his betrayal. Thuy curses them and leaves ("What's This I Find"). Chris promises to take Kim with him when he leaves Vietnam. Chris and Kim dance to the same song as their first night ("Last Night of The World").
Three years later, in 1978, a street parade in Saigon (now Ho Chi Minh City) celebrates the third anniversary of Vietnam’s reunification and the defeat of the Americans ("The Morning of The Dragon"). Thuy, now a government official, orders soldiers to find the Engineer, who has been working in rice fields as part of a re-education program. Thuy wants the Engineer to find Kim. Though the time between 1975 and 1978 is not shown, it is clear Kim and Chris are separated. Kim hides in a poor area, still loving Chris and believing he will return. Meanwhile, Chris is in bed with his new American wife, Ellen, when he wakes screaming Kim’s name after a dream. Ellen and Kim both promise their love for Chris from opposite sides of the world ("I Still Believe").
The Engineer takes Thuy to where Kim is hiding. Kim refuses Thuy’s marriage offer, unaware of soldiers waiting outside. Thuy calls the soldiers in, and they tie up Kim and the Engineer, threatening to send them to a re-education camp ("Coo-Coo Princess"). Thuy then lets the Engineer go. Kim again refuses to go with Thuy and introduces Tam, her 3-year-old son from Chris. Thuy calls Kim a traitor and tries to kill Tam with a knife, but Kim shoots Thuy to protect Tam ("You Will Not Touch Him"). Thuy dies as the parade continues nearby ("This Is the Hour"), and Kim runs away with Tam, heartbroken.
The Engineer laments being Vietnamese and wishes to go to the U.S. ("If You Want to Die in Bed"). Kim tells the Engineer Tam’s father is American ("Let Me See His Western Nose"), and the Engineer says he will take them to Bangkok because Tam is his chance to leave Vietnam. Kim promises to give Tam a better life, and the three leave on a ship with other refugees ("I'd Give My Life for You").
In Atlanta, Georgia, John works for an aid group helping Bui-Doi (children born during the war) find their American fathers ("Bui Doi"). John tells Chris Kim is alive, which relieves him after years of nightmares. John also tells Chris about Tam and urges him to go to Bangkok with Ellen. Chris finally tells Ellen about Kim and Tam ("The Revelation"). In Bangkok, the Engineer runs a sleazy club where Kim dances ("What A Waste"). Chris, Ellen, and John arrive to find Kim. John finds Kim dancing and tells her Chris is in Bangkok. He tries to say Chris is remarried, but Kim interrupts, excited about the news and tells Tam his father has arrived ("Please").
The Engineer tells Kim to find Chris herself because he doubts Chris will come ("Chris Is Here"). Kim is haunted by Thuy’s ghost, who claims Chris will betray her ("Kim's Nightmare").
In the nightmare, Kim remembers the Viet Cong approaching Saigon. As the city becomes chaotic, Chris leaves his gun with Kim, telling her to pack. When Chris enters the embassy, the gates close, and orders come for an immediate evacuation of Americans. The ambassador stops Vietnamese from entering. Kim reaches the embassy gates, part of a crowd of terrified people. Chris calls to Kim and tries to find her, but John stops him by punching him. Chris boards the last helicopter leaving Saigon as Kim watches from outside, still loving him ("The Fall of Saigon").
Back in 1978 Bangkok, Kim joyfully wears her wedding clothes ("Sun and Moon [Reprise]") and leaves Tam with the Engineer while she goes to Chris’s hotel. She finds Ellen, who reveals she is Chris’s wife. Kim
Production history
Miss Saigon first performed in the West End at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane on September 20, 1989. The show ended on October 30, 1999, after 4,264 performances. Nicholas Hytner directed the production, with Bob Avian handling the musical staging and John Napier designing the scenery. In December 1994, the London production became the longest-running musical at the Theatre Royal, surpassing the record held by My Fair Lady.
Lea Salonga played the role of Kim and won the Laurence Olivier Award and Tony Award. Jonathan Pryce portrayed The Engineer and also received the Laurence Olivier Award and Tony Award for this role. Simon Bowman originally played Chris.
The musical opened on Broadway at the Broadway Theatre on April 11, 1991, and closed on January 28, 2001, after 4,092 performances. Nicholas Hytner directed the production again, with Bob Avian handling the musical staging. John Napier designed the scenery, Andreane Neofitou and Suzy Benzinger created the costumes, and David Hersey designed the lighting.
In May 2014, preview performances for a West End revival began at the Prince Edward Theatre. The revival was produced by Cameron Mackintosh and directed by Laurence Connor. The official opening took place on May 21.
A special 25th anniversary gala was held on September 22, 2014. After a full performance, Lea Salonga, Simon Bowman, Jonathan Pryce, and many original cast members joined the current cast for a special finale. The finale included songs such as "This Is the Hour," "The Movie in My Mind," "Last Night of the World," and "The American Dream." The West End production closed on February 27, 2016, after 760 performances.
In November 2015, it was announced that the West End production would transfer to Broadway in March 2017 for a limited run through January 15, 2018. The revival featured Eva Noblezada as Kim, Jon Jon Briones as The Engineer, Alistair Brammer as Chris, and Rachelle Ann Go as Gigi, all reprise their roles from the 2014 West End revival. The production played at the Broadway Theatre, the same venue as the original Broadway debut. Preview performances began on March 1, 2017, with an official opening on March 23. The final performance was on January 14, 2018, after 24 previews and 340 performances.
Miss Saigon has been performed in at least 25 countries and translated into at least twelve languages. New theaters were built in Tokyo, Stuttgart, and The Hague specifically for the show.
A production in Toronto opened on May 8, 1993, at the Princess of Wales Theatre. It starred Ma-Anne Dionisio as Kim, Kevin Gray as The Engineer, H.E. Greer as Chris, Rufus Bonds Jr. as John, and Charles Azulay as Thuy. The show closed on April 30, 1995. Norm Lewis later joined the cast as John.
The musical opened in Australia at the Capitol Theatre Sydney on July 29, 1995. It starred Joanna Ampil as Kim, Peter Cousens as Chris, Cocoy Laurel as The Engineer, Milton Craig Nealy as John, Darren Yap as Thuy, and Silvie Paladino as Ellen.
In Bømlo, Norway, the show played outdoors from August 5 to August 16, 2009. A Bell helicopter was used during the performance. A 2013 production at Arlington, Virginia’s Signature Theatre included a new song called "Maybe," which replaced "Now That I've Seen Her." This song was later added to the 2014 West End revival.
In 2023, a revival took place at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England. It starred Joanna Ampil as Kim and Jessica Lee as The Engineer. The production was nominated for three What's On Stage awards.
The first US tour began in Chicago, Illinois, in October 1992. The tour played in cities that could accommodate the large production, including Boston, Florida, Washington, DC, and others. Cameron Mackintosh said, "Corners haven't been cut. They've been added. There are only a dozen theaters in America where we can do this."
A second US tour started in Seattle in early 1995 and ended in Buffalo, New York, in August 2000. It played in major cities across the US and Canada, including Honolulu, San Francisco, Toronto, Boston, Chicago, and West Palm Beach. The original cast included Deedee Magno Hall as Kim, Thom Sesma as The Engineer
Casts
- Kim: Joanna Ampil , Ma-Anne Dionisio , Naoko Mori , Jamie Rivera , Monique Wilson , Carla Guevara Laforteza
- Chris: John Barrowman , Graham Bickley , David Campbell , Peter Jöback , Jérôme Pradon , Glyn Kerslake
- The Engineer: Hilton McRae , Jon Jon Briones
- Ellen: Gunilla Backman , Ruthie Henshall
- Gigi: Lorraine Vélez
- Kim: Rona Figueroa , Joan Almedilla , Deedee Magno Hall , Jennie Kwan , Jennifer Paz , Annette Calud (a/t)
- Chris: Jarrod Emick , Eric Kunze , Peter Lockyer , Will Chase , T
Controversies
Hubert van Es was a Dutch photojournalist who took the most famous picture of the fall of Saigon in 1975. The image shows people climbing a ladder to a CIA helicopter on a rooftop. He considered taking legal action when his photograph was used in the musical Miss Saigon.
The musical Miss Saigon has faced criticism for its portrayal of Asians and women. Some people said the show had racist or sexist themes. In the original production, white actors playing Eurasian or Asian characters used eye prostheses and bronzing cream to look more Asian. This practice upset some people, who compared it to a "minstrel show," a type of performance that used racist stereotypes.
Although there was a search for Asian actresses to play the role of Kim, there was no similar effort to find Asian actors for the major Asian male roles, such as the Engineer and Thuy. Angelica Pao, an American scholar, noted that in the West End, the producer, Cameron Mackintosh, chose Asian actresses to play Vietnamese women to make the roles more authentic. However, he allowed white actors to play Vietnamese men.
Yutian Wong, another American scholar, said that when Miss Saigon first opened in London in 1989, British newspapers gave it mostly positive reviews. Critics did not find the portrayals of Asian characters problematic. The controversy began in 1990 when the show moved to Broadway in the United States. Wong explained that the United States has a larger East Asian population than the United Kingdom, which may have influenced the reaction.
When the show moved from London to New York City, the Actors' Equity Association (AEA) refused to let the white actor, John Neville, play the role of the Engineer, a Eurasian pimp. David Henry Hwang and B.D. Wong, both Asian-American playwright and actor, wrote letters protesting the casting. They said Neville’s portrayal in "yellowface" (a term for when white actors use makeup to appear Asian) was disrespectful to Asian people. AEA’s leader, Alan Eisenberg, stated that casting a white actor in an Asian role was offensive and unfair to Asian actors who could have played the part.
AEA’s decision to block Neville’s casting led to criticism. Some said it was unfair to Neville because the Engineer’s character was Eurasian (French-Vietnamese), and others argued that Neville had "star status," a rule allowing famous foreign actors to take roles on Broadway without an American casting call. Producer Cameron Mackintosh threatened to cancel the show despite high ticket sales. After pressure from Mackintosh, the public, and some AEA members, the decision was reversed, and Neville played the role on Broadway.
When the show moved from London to Broadway, another issue arose about the actress Lea Salonga, who was Filipina. AEA wanted to prioritize its own members, which initially prevented Salonga from continuing in her role. However, Mackintosh could not find a suitable replacement for Salonga after holding many auditions in the U.S. and Canada. An arbitrator later allowed Salonga to continue in the role.
Later productions of Miss Saigon have faced boycotts from Asian actors.
Internationally, people have protested the show, saying it is racist and sexist. D Hideo Maruyama, a 2010 Fulbright Hayes Scholar, said, "It’s time to see the real Vietnam, not the Miss Saigon version." Mai Neng Moua, an American artist and activist, said she protested the show in 1994 because it was racist and offensive to Asian Americans. Denise Huynh, a Vietnamese American activist, said the stereotypes in the show made her feel physically ill when she attended a performance.
Sarah Bellamy, co-artistic director of the Penumbra Theatre, said the show uses people of color, tropical settings, and fake cultural costumes to reinforce ideas about white supremacy.
Yutian Wong described Miss Saigon as promoting the image of "an effeminized and infantized Asia" serving as a "low-budget whorehouse for the West." The show does not mention how the Vietnam War caused poverty and forced many Vietnamese women into prostitution. The fictional Dreamland brothel in the show is shown as normal in Vietnam. In 1999, when Miss Saigon closed in London, a new advertising campaign used posters with an Asian woman in a military jacket showing cleavage. Wong said this sent the message that "Asia equals prostitution."
Karen Shimakawa, an American scholar, said the romance between the Marine Chris and Kim was meant to show that the Vietnam War was justified. Chris treats Kim as someone to protect, not as an equal. Kim accepts American law over Vietnamese law, which Shimakawa said shows that Vietnam is a place for Americans to enjoy.
Richard Fung, a Trinidadian-Canadian critic, wrote in 1994 that if Miss Saigon were the only show about Asian women and men, it might not be a stereotype. However, he said repeated portrayals of such stereotypes in films, TV, and plays harm the self-esteem of Asian Americans, especially women.
In 2019, the Overture Center for the Arts in Madison, Wisconsin, planned to host a touring production of Miss Saigon and scheduled a panel discussion to share Asian American perspectives on the musical’s portrayal of Asian characters. The center later postponed the panel discussion.
Critical response
The critic Michael Feingold from The Village Voice strongly disliked the musical Miss Saigon. He called it "unlikely," "overused and not enjoyable," "exploitative or misleading," and even more negative.
In contrast, Frank Rich from The New York Times reviewed the original Broadway production and described the musical as "exciting and traditional entertainment." He noted that it included "rich melodies," "amazing performances," and "emotional moments." While he mentioned that some lyrics were simple and the characters Chris and Ellen were not clearly defined, he believed the strong music and outstanding performances by Salonga and Pryce helped the audience overlook these issues.
Awards and nominations
The show received awards and praise but did not win the Best Musical Award at the 1989/1990 Laurence Olivier Awards. The award went to Return to the Forbidden Planet in London.
When the musical opened on Broadway in 1991, it was highly anticipated as the best musical of the year by critics and audiences. It set several records, such as selling $24 million in advance tickets, offering tickets priced at $100, and repaying investors in less than 39 weeks.
Miss Saigon and The Will Rogers Follies each received 11 nominations for the 1991 Tony Awards. According to The New York Times, both shows were seen as strong candidates for the Best Musical Tony. However, some theater professionals believed Miss Saigon, which had been successful in London, might face challenges due to the intense attention it had received and the efforts by its producer, Cameron Mackintosh, to bring two of its foreign stars—Jonathan Pryce and Lea Salonga—to perform the same roles on Broadway that had earned them awards in London.
Although Miss Saigon lost to The Will Rogers Follies for several major awards, Lea Salonga, Jonathan Pryce, and Hinton Battle each won individual awards for their performances.
Film adaptation
On October 21, 2009, it was reported that a film version of the musical was just starting to be made. Producer Paula Wagner was working with the original musical producer, Cameron Mackintosh, to create a movie version of the musical. Filming was planned to take place in Cambodia and possibly in Ho Chi Minh City (formerly known as Saigon).
Cameron Mackintosh said the film version of Miss Saigon would depend on how well the movie version of Les Misérables did. In August 2013, director Lee Daniels shared hopes of making a film adaptation of the musical.
On February 27, 2016, during the closing night of the Miss Saigon London revival, Mackintosh suggested that the movie was almost ready to be made. He said, "Sooner rather than later, the movie won't just be in my mind." Also, the 2014 "25th anniversary" performance of Miss Saigon in London was recorded for a cinema broadcast later that autumn.