The Story

Act I The action begins on a Friday night in Saigon in April 1975. Backstage at Dreamland, an after-hours club which is frequented by American Marines, a group of bar-girls is preparing to perform. The Engineer, who owns the club, introduces them to a new girl, Kim, a 17-year-old orphan who has fled the countryside after seeing her family destroyed. Afraid that the enemy forces of the Viet Cong will kill them if they are left behind when Saigon falls, the bar-girls are eager to connect with an American G.I. who can get them out of the country. The Engineer wants to get his hands on a visa so that he can escape when the Americans pull out. He sends the girls on-stage for a sham beauty contest to select a "Miss Saigon." A group of Marines enters the bar singing "The Heat Is On In Saigon." Among them are two friends, Chris and John. Although Chris is reluctant, John insists that a night at the club is what they need to escape the increasing sense of danger from the approaching enemy, the Viet Cong.

Chris is astounded by Kim's innocence when the Engineer pushes her forward to solicit the crowd. While the other girls offer provocative invitations, she speaks of a "heart like the sea" and "a million dreams are in me." Gigi, one of the experienced bar-girls, is chosen "Miss Saigon." She is "won" by a Marine and begins to dance with him. The scene freezes as Gigi sings "The Movie In My Mind," describing the dream of a new life in America she envisions each time she is in the arms of a G.I. Kim sings of the movie in her mind - a dream of a man who will not kill and will keep her safe.

Sensing that Chris is interested in Kim, John bargains with the Engineer to secure her for his friend. Kim and Chris dance as a Marine plays the saxophone. Chris takes Kim to a tiny room overlooking the moonlit city. Chris, deeply touched by what he has shared with Kim, quietly leaves the room while she is sleeping. Walking through the street, he sings "Why God Why?" questioning why he has had this profound experience when he is about to leave Saigon. He is drawn back to the room and tries to give Kim money. Kim refuses to take it and tells him that she has seen her parents die in flames. She was betrothed to a man she didn't love before her village was destroyed. Now she has no future except to sell herself at Dreamland.

Chris asks her to live with him and they express their love for each other ("Sun and Moon"). As they part, she says that she will bring friends to bless their room with paper unicorns and perfume in keeping with her traditions.

Chris calls John at the Embassy, where they both work, to tell him that he needs time to spend with Kim. John says that Saigon is falling apart and urges him to come to the Embassy right away. Chris bargains with the Engineer for another night with Kim. Gigi and the other bar-girls are helping Kim move in with Chris. They set up a small shrine with photos of Kim's parents. Kim leads "Dju Vui Vai," a song which she tells Chris is traditionally sung at weddings.

In the midst of their celebration, the door flies open and Thuy, Kim's fiancee, appears. He has come to claim Kim and save her from the shame of being a bar-girl. When he sees Chris and the shrine to her parents, he is outraged. Kim tells him that her parents' promises died with them. Kim refuses to go with Thuy. He leaves, saying that she is his until she dies. He predicts that "Saigon will fall and so will your G.I."

Chris tells Kim that he has decided to bring her with him to America. They sing "The Last Night of the World," recalling the saxophone that was played at their first meeting. Its lonely sound is now a "cry that tells us love goes on and on." Kim and Chris promise each other that their "lives will change when tomorrow comes."

Three years have passed during which the Viet Cong have taken over Saigon ("The Morning of the Dragon"). The Engineer is brought in by two soldiers. We learn that he was taken prisoner by the Viet Cong and has been forced to work in rice fields. Although his captors attempted to brainwash him, they have been unsuccessful. He is led before Thuy, who is now a Commissar. Thuy demands the Engineer's assistance in finding Kim and gives him 48 hours to accomplish this deed. Kim is living in a small room which she shares with a group of Vietnamese. She sings "I Still Believe," remembering her nights with Chris. In America, at the same time, Ellen, who is now married to Chris, sits beside her sleeping husband on their bed, singing the same song. Ellen knows that Chris is tormented by secrets that he cannot share with her, but she vows to be his wife for life. A world away, Kim, alone in a room full of strangers, makes the same vow. The Engineer appears with Thuy. Thuy wants to forget Kim's transgression and marry her as their parents decreed. She says she is still bound to Chris. Thuy calls her a fool and summons his men into the room, where they threaten Kim and the Engineer. Thuy again demands that Kim agree to his wishes. The Engineer is sent out of the room and Kim reveals her secret to Thuy: her two-year-old son, Tam. Thuy says she can't keep the child since he intends to marry her. He calls the child his enemy and draws out his knife to kill the little boy. Kim pulls out a gun and threatens to shoot him. He will not relent. She kills him.

Kim is horrified by her action, but decides that she and Tam must find a way to reach Chris in America. The Engineer is making his way through the city ("If You Want To Die In Bed"). He finds his way to the remains of Dreamland and opens a trap door. There he finds a box of counterfeit watches he had hidden. Planning to sell them in Bangkok and then travel to the United States, he is about to leave when Kim appears. She begs for his help, and he realizes that the baby is their passport to America. He leaves to buy their passage on a boat to Bangkok. Kim consoles Tam and promises him that she will risk anything for him ("I'd Give My Life For You"). The Engineer, Kim, and Tam join a group of Vietnamese boat people who sing "No place, no home. No life, no hope. No chance, no change. No regret, no return, no good-bye."


Go to Act II


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