Golden Child

ACT ONE

It is late, past midnight in Andrew Kwong’s Manhattan apartment. His pregnant wife Elizabeth is asleep next to him, and he is suddenly woken up by the presence of his mother Ahn, an 80-year-old Chinese woman who speaks in broken English. Andrew admits to her that he never wanted the pregnancy, worried about the past tragedies of the family. But the Ghosts of the past appear, asking for remembrance. Ahn begins to tell a story of her childhood, and takes them back to the winter of 1918, to a small village in China. Ahn becomes a 10-year-old girl, and Andrew transforms into Tieng-Bin, Ahn’s father.

At Tieng-Bin’s home, his three wives are preparing for his arrival after three years in the Philippines. First Wife Siu-Yong calls for her daughter Ahn, while Second Wife Luan and Third Wife Eling argue over which of them has the authority to order servants around. Siu-Yong steps in: “Listen--our Husband has been away three years and he will return to find his wives filled with love