Journey to the West (4-Volume Boxed Set) [Paperback]

by Cheng'en Wu

This adaptation of a late sixteenth-century classic Chinese comic novel, Journey to the West, based on Anthony C. Yu’s translation, takes as its point of departure the true story of a seventh-century monk and his fabled pilgrimage from China to India in search of sacred texts. Mixing whimsy with spiritual weight, Zimmerman’s script combines comedy, adventure, and satire in a moving allegory of human perseverance.

Genres: Plays, Drama

Unknown Binding

First published January 1, 2004

Reviews

[Phillip · Rating 4 out of 5]

Zimmerman is a really good adapter of texts that are extremely difficult to adapt for the stage, like The Odyssey or Argonautika, and she's done the same with Wu Cheng'en's Journey to the West. Much of the actual action of Journey is abridged, handled through narration, or cut altogether, but the core elements of the story are there. It is a quest narrative balancing between the comic--especially figures like Monkey and Pig, who have enthusiasms that often lead them astray from virtue. The central objective of the quest is for Tripitaka, a virtuous monk, to journey from the Eastern (Tang) kingdom to the Western Heaven in order to retrieve Buddhist scrolls that will enlighten and redeem the sinful nature of the occupants of the Eastern kingdom. He is joined by the Monkey King (Sun Wukong), Pig/Pigsy (Zhu Bajie), and Sha Monk (Sha Wujing, though often translated as something like Friar Sand). Each has incurred the displeasure of heaven and needs to redeem themself and find merit. Pigsy and Sha Monk were immortals whose bad behavior had them sent down to earth in "monstrous" forms, while Monkey was the ruler of the monkeys on Flower Fruit Mountain, but his desire for immortality lead his to study Daoism, then when heaven punished him for impertinence, he converted to Buddhism and joined Tripitaka on his quest.
https://youtu.be/W8K3CLGGKRU

[Aili · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such a gorgeous, playful setting of _Journey to the West_. I love its imagination and its magic. Definitely want to direct this someday!

[Brittany Jackson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great play