WILD SWANS Young Vic

Jung Chang’s family history of three traumatised generations has sold over 13 million copies worldwide. 20 years after its publication, it is still banned in China. Adapted by Alexandra Wood, directed by Sacha Wares and designed by Miriam Buether, the play starts in 1948. It shows, in a visually exciting way, 30 years of political upheaval. Chang’s brutal story of famine and starvation, denunciation and humiliation, torture and death, cannot fail to have a shattering impact. Audiences will come out of the theatre feeling how lucky they were not to have been born Chinese and growing up during Mao’s Cultural Revolution: lucky that they did not have to ask the Party’s permission to court and marry; lucky not to have to attend confession sessions; lucky not to have been harassed by the Red Guard; and lucky not to have had all their books burned. A father, a committed Communist, no dissident, writes to Mao, telling him about the terrible number of people who died in his district during the Great Famine. He is accused of telling lies and sent to a labour camp. (Mao had sold their food to Russia to finance China’s space programme.) The vibrant production – a joint effort by the Young Vic, American Repertory Theatre and Actors Touring Company – is notable for its striking tableaux, its intriguing scene changes, and the amazing videography by the Beijing video artist Wang Gongxin. The staging is also enhanced by political songs, puppetry and the choreographed movement of flags and posters.