London Revival of Miss Saigon has its Kim — Page 2

^Laurence Connor

In 1989 Lea Salonga was not then equipped to handle extended runs because Repertory Philippines did not stage open ended productions so Salonga was not prepared for that. Kim is a full two octave singing role - no one has ever come close to Salonga's low E in the reprise of SUN AND MOON - and for someone who had very little formal vocal training, it caught up to Salonga. Thankfully she saved her voice and career and still sings beautifully. Even better now when she was 17. The first time I saw the show in 1991, it was very jarring to hear how resonant Salonga's voice had become compared to how she sounded in the OLC where she was singing way too much in her throat and hadn't yet found the right way to place her voice in a way that really worked for her.

ETA: I'm almost positive that Monique Wilson was originally credited as a Kim understudy but performed more when Salonga was out of commission because of her voice problems. After Salonga returned, I think that's when the show began alternating Kims.

The new Kim sounds like she should be able to sing more than 4x a week. Won't that affect her being considered for the Olivier?

Updated On: 11/22/13 at 10:42 PM

Monique was credited as a Kim alternate, not understudy. Jenine Desiderio was first understudy

The lead went to my daugher's HS (NorthWest School Of The Arts) in Charlotte NC. The school also had a former student (Charles Osborne) who recently was understudy this year for the Off-Broadway Show "Forbidden Broadway". This young man also was in the Barry Manilow show "harmony" in Atlanta.

I think it's a tough role, sure. She's got a lot of big numbers, but she doesn't have any big sustained notes a la Wicked or Evita. It's more of an acting role than anything. I think you could cute some of the notes, etc, for the emotion of the scene. But moments like when Kim and Ellen meet, and Kim is screaming, that's tough to do. It's tough to scream in a healthy way, and I would imagine at 17 you don't quite understand your voice, etc.

And if this is a rehash of a touring production, then who cares anyway? It's not a totally new production. It's just another revival done on the cheap to make some money for the producers. The new Les Miz was totally by-the-numbers and I expect the review to reflect that on Broadway.

Even if Kim doesn't sing as many high notes as Elphaba, which at this point is just a riffing role, and Eva, the sustained and legato singing for Kim is still taxing to perform 8x a week. I disagree that Kim is more of an acting role. It's definitely a singing one just by the very nature of the musical being sung through. I've seen Kims who could emote but sang subpar and they really ruined the show.

Compared to Elphaba it def is an acting role. Evita is tough, though. But there's a reason 17 year olds aren't playing that role.

I would assume that once she starts doing the role 4x a week, she'll start to lose her voice. She doesn't sound like she's got the best training, but I also trust that the producers will get her a great voice coach, etc.

Sounds like they're going for a pretty bland cast/look for the show. Oh well.

Just no pleasing you people sometimes, is there?

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"I was pleased with Saigon, Phantom, and Les Mis once upon a time. =)"

Well excuse me for having my own opinion and not considering these productions a "downgrade".

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Ditto. I want a non-projection helicopter. I'm fine with everything else.
I actually liked the revised Les Mis a lot. I did miss the turntable but I felt that the new production told the story better. Haven't seen the new Phantom yet but as long as the chandelier crashes again, I'd be fine with it.

the non equity tour is the only production i've seen use a projection... almost every regional and even high school productions I have seen used a helicopter!

anyway... i really hope this production truly isn't just a rehash of the current UK tour (and US non equity tour)... it would seem such a shame... while i didn't truly hate the production (in fact I quite enjoyed it and it proved that this show is really good) I just felt some of the direction was just ridiculous... turning Sun and Moon into some West Side Story balcony scene and then singing on a trash can... ugh... having Kim not wear Chris' tshirt for the rest of Act 1 which I felt just truly shows her belief that they will reunite and her love for him... the addition of Fifi, which I think I just hated that because Fifi sounds like they just had no interest in coming up with a name for the character... Tam's reveal of him hiding in some box, I mean it just seems weird the soldiers mess up that room and that little kid doesn't get scared or they miss him.. odd... the decision to make John and douche in Act 2... yet despite these, the whole was better then the sum of its parts.. I'm just hoping this is a newer and fresher take on it but I ain't holding my breath...

Yes, it's especially demanding when a stage actress is required to act. That's asking too much. They should hire different actresses for each scene, so the others have time for mental and physical therapy and plenty of rest.

And if she acts AND sings a high C, she should get six weeks off for her troubles.

Just did a spit-take. Thanks a lot.