The King and I

The King and I is a musical by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, with a script based on Anna and the King of Siam by Margaret Landon. The plot comes from the autobiographical story of Anna Leonowens, who became governess to the children of King Mongkut of Siam in the early 1860s.

Thai attitudes

All the filmed versions of The King and I are banned in Thailand, and the stage version has never been produced there. The Thai government regards the story as historically inaccurate (which it certainly is), and as an insult to the memory of King Mongkut, and thus offensive to all Thais. King Mongkut was a highly educated and effective ruler. Since the films have never been shown in Thailand, however, it is hard to know how many Thais would really be offended by them.

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In 1997 the Thai Ambassador to the United States, Nitya Pibulsonggram, wrote to the Boston Herald: "The Thai people find The King and I in its movie and Broadway play forms offensive because it caricatures His Majesty King Mongkut in such a denigrating and condescending manner... It is stunning to sit through a performance of The King and I and to see not only the King, but all the Thai people, portrayed... as childlike, simple, and hopelessly unable to cope with the arrival of westerners. The British, however, are portrayed as superior beings, gently trying to uplift their naïve hosts. The wonderful music and the visual treats of the production camouflage the real insult that lies at the core of the play."

Related Topics:
1997 - United States - Nitya Pibulsonggram - Boston Herald - Broadway

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