Why Clive Owen Chose M. Butterfly for His Broadway Return | Playbill

Broadway News Why Clive Owen Chose M. Butterfly for His Broadway Return The Oscar-nominated actor explains why on Live With Kelly and Ryan.

On October 17, Golden Globe-winning and Oscar-nominated actor Clive Owen stopped by Live With Kelly and Ryan in anticipation of his opening on Broadway.

Owen was last seen on Broadway in 2015 in Roundabout Theatre Company’s Old Times, which marked his Main Stem debut. This time, it’s the compelling story of M. Butterfly that wooed Owen back to the stage.

“It’s a really, really incredible story, one of the most amazing stories about a relationship I’ve ever read,” Owen told the daytime hosts. “There’s betrayal and intrigue, and I can’t give away some of the stuff because it will ruin the play.”

A limited synopsis, so as not to spill secrets—the play follows a French diplomat who falls in love with a Chinese opera singer based on a true story. When playwright David Henry Hwang initially wrote the play in the ’80s, all he had to go off of was a New York Times article. “Since then the real story has been mined, and it’s even more incredible, and David Henry Hwang has gone back to the play and put some of the real stuff into it.”

And while Hwang has been hard at work, so has Tony-winning director Julie Taymor. “It’s been super-imaginatively staged,” says Owen, “so it just keeps changing the whole time.”

Taymor spoke to Playbill in depth about her vision for the first revival of the Tony-winning play, now in previews at the Cort Theatre, in an exclusive interview. Read it here.

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