MUST READ! Lea Salonga thrilled to see musical theater emerging as ‘hip art form’

MAGAZINE
Published February 17,2017
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More than three years ago, Lea Salonga decided to let her hair down and showed a different side of her in a well-received concert series dubbed as “Playlist.” The concert featured a repertoire of pop songs, or in her own words, “music that I enjoy singing when no one is looking.”

This time, Lea is going back to the show tunes that have by and large defined her storied career. The Tony award-winning performer headlines the post-Valentine concert, “Songs from the Stage” happening February 17 and 18 at the Plenary Hall of the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay City.

“It has been quite a while since we’ve done a musical theater only show, the last was way back in 2002 when I did ‘The Broadway Concert’ so we thought it’s about time we do another one,” Lea told InterAksyon and other media during the recent press conference to promote the shows.

 

lea Salonga

Incidentally, “The Broadway Concert” also took place at the PICC. Although “Songs from the Stage” follow a similar concept. Lea stresses that it will be a lot different since a lot more musicals have successfully opened since 2002, including Stephen Schwartz’s widely popular “Wicked” now playing in Manila and Lin-Manuel Miranda’s game-changing “Hamilton: An American Musical.”

“It would be a cool idea to feature songs from these newer musicals along with six songs from the tried-and-true shows that we’ve all come to love over the years,” she pointed out.

In addition to Miranda, Lea also revealed that her repertoire for “Songs from the Stage” will also include music by Stephen Sondheim of “Sweeney Todd” and “West Side Story” fame, Andrew Lloyd Webber best known for “Phantom of the Opera,” “Cats” and “Evita,” Ryan Cayabyab and Jose Javier Reyes who collaborated on “Katy” and Claude Michel Schonberg and Alain Boublil, the tandem responsible for “Les Miserables” and Lea’s greatest hit, “Miss Saigon.”

Now 45, Lea still performs with the same wide-eyed enthusiasm that captured the public’s imagination when she portrayed the title role of “Annie” when she was only 9. Since then, Lea practically grew up in the public eye and no one was surprised when she bagged the title role of Kim in the inaugural London production of “Miss Saigon” nine years later.

Although musical theater has always been a popular art form, Lea said it has become more hip in recent years especially after the phenomenal success of “Hamilton,” which was largely attributed to its edgy, hip-hop flavor.

“[Musical theater] was not always considered as a hip art form, at least not until ‘Hamilton’ came along. I thought that was an enjoyable and exciting way to learn one’s history and culture, and to be a practitioner of it,” she pointed out.

Aside from songs directly written for the stage, Lea will also feature songs that “originated elsewhere but somehow found their way in musicals.”

Although she did not elaborate, Lea may be talking about recent musicals like “Mamma Mia,” “Saturday Night Fever,” “Rock of Ages,” and even “Rak of Aegis” that are based on popular hit songs that people are already familiar with.

Directed by Bobby Garcia and with musical direction by Lea’s brother, Gerard Salonga, who will conduct the ABS-CBN Philharmonic Orchestra, “Songs from the Stage” will also feature a guest performance by Lea’s daughter, Nicole Beverly Chien.

“My daughter is obsessed with musical theater with ‘Phantom of the Opera’ being her favorite. I think this show will be a good fit for her and will further increase her enjoyment of this art form since I work in it,” enthused the proud mom.

[source]
For ticket information, visit www.ticketworld.com.ph.