The Chosen and the Beautiful

Nghi Vo's "The Chosen and the Beautiful" reimagines F. Scott Fitzgerald's iconic Jazz Age classic through the eyes of Jordan Baker, an enigmatic socialite navigating the glittering yet prejudiced world of 1920s America. As an adopted Vietnamese queer woman, Jordan moves through the rarefied circles of wealth and privilege, an exotic curiosity to some, but always an outsider to the most exclusive inner sanctums. Beyond the lavish parties and roaring twenties revelry, Jordan possesses a secret power: she is a magician, capable of infernal pacts, dazzling illusions, and elemental mastery – literally able to burn a cut paper heart out of a man. This exquisite retelling delves into themes of identity, belonging, and the intoxicating allure of power, weaving a tapestry of magic and mystery into the familiar narrative of love, illusion, and tragedy. It is a coming-of-age story set against a backdrop of shimmering excess, where Jordan must learn to harness her unique abilities and carve out her own destiny in a world that seeks to define her.