Chapter 8: Bones and Jones Summary

On Halloween, Wittman's play, The War of the Three Kingdoms, opens. It is an improvisation, only loosely based on Wittman's original treatment. He has cast Lance Kamiyama and the Yale Younger Poet as the Double Boys. They trade vaudeville jokes in mixed Carolina and Asian accents. Conforming to stereotype, the women in the play all have their names translated, like Jade Snow, while the men's names are untranslated, like Sung Chiang, whose name means Timely Rain. One of the players looks Mexican, and inquiries confirm that he is Mr. Sanchez of the Unemployment Office.

The show features elements from traditional Chinese theater, such as magic tricks and juggling. It also includes Chinese American elements, such as the trapeze artists the Flying Lings, and a distinctly American can-can performed by Ruby Long Legs and her geriatric dance troupe...