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#51

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/9/06 at 3:23pm

yeah... i have the DVD of The Heat is On... there's tons of it on Ebay for cheap... i love watching Lea Salonga sing sun and moon for the first time and their reaction to her... beautiful...

as for I Still Believe... i love that song because it's just two women singing about one man that they both love but neither knows each other exists and they are bothing longing for him but in different ways... i love how it's staged!
#52

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/9/06 at 4:15pm

You know what's the most dramatic sequence for me..."Kim's Nightmare", track 7, disc. 2, CSR...on stage, this was when Kim was haunted by Thuy's ghost and the audience was transferred back to the time when they got separated, the fall of Saigon, and the evacuation scene with the helicopter. Kim singing a duet with Chris while he was whisked away by the plane. Scene ends with the helicopter flying overhead then a seamless transition to present time where Kim awakes from her nightmare, prepares to reunite with Chris and sings "Sun and Moon Reprise" while changing into her old wedding gown she wore when she married Chris.
"I love acting. It is so much more real than life." Oscar Wilde
"After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music." Aldous Huxley
#53

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/9/06 at 4:41pm

ugggh... and then the engineer comes in and tells her where Chris' hotel is... she goes only to find... Ellen... i love hearing people gasp when both Ellen AND Kim finally learn the truth... so so so sad....
#54

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/9/06 at 4:46pm

The only soap opera that worked for me! :)
Oy, the drama and feeling verklempt when Kim sings "I still taste your kisses, your voice sings in my head...." and at the same time, you see Chris kissing Ellen after deciding they will take Tam and leave Kim behind.

"I love acting. It is so much more real than life." Oscar Wilde
"After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music." Aldous Huxley
#55

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/10/06 at 3:59pm

I liked "Kim's Nightmare/the Fall of Saigon" on the CSR too. Charles Azulay sounds scary(in a good way) as Thuy's ghost. He is one of the reasons I wish I could have seen the Toronto cast; the other being Ma-Anne Dionisio(I would have loved to have seen them work together). What I liked about about the OLC "Fall of Saigon" is the way both Lea Salonga and Simon Bowman showed emotion in their voices. Especailly, I liked the way Lea shouted "Please let me through!"
#56

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/10/06 at 4:30pm

the 2NT tour ensemble was one of the best ensembles i had ever seen for a musical... at the end of the helciopter sequence when they are left all alone onstage, it was just heartwrenching seeing them cry in despiar knowing that the last US helicopter left them in Vietnam... so powerful...
#57

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/10/06 at 4:54pm

i agree with you.. aside from 'sun and moon' my fave song is 'please'...
#58

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/10/06 at 4:58pm

I loooooove the video "The Heat Is On.. The Making Of Miss Saigon"! It has wonderful film footage of Lea's audition (as posted above), also of the show itself. Alan Boubil and Claude Michael-Schonberg(sp?) along with Cameron Macintosh all look stunned as she sings for them at the piano for the first time. It's an amazing moment. They're all unable to speak for a moment, then they just say, "Ok, Go in the middle and sing it... NOW!". She also asks them to sign a Les Mis poster or something of that nature and I think it's funny to see how she ended up being the "Dream Version's" Eponine!

Also, you can see some of Ruthie Henshall rehearsing in the ensemble numbers. I believe later in the film, they show her running to a quick change backstage and she mutters "This show is a Blockbuster and I'm in it!!"; obviously excited at how opening night was going.

Miss Saigon is a great show. I'll always love it.
"All I want is the truth, just give me some truth!"- J. Lennon
#59

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/10/06 at 5:07pm

Wasn't Ruthie the one who was injured when there was an accident during the Dreamland sequence? It had something to do with falling off of the moving set piece, if I recall.

SAIGON is my favorite of the Big 3 Poperas imported from London. I just wish they had a Broadway cast recording because there was such a remarkable difference in Lea Salonga's singing from when she opened in London (and as heard in the OLC prior to her getting some solid vocal training) and by the time she opened (and closed, for that matter) in New York.
#60

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/10/06 at 7:00pm

yeah... i hated the reasoning was that the OLC version existed and it was pointless to regard another... but Lea's voice changed and plus only Lea and Jonathan Pryce recreated their roles as well as the ending was changed... how cool would it be to have ALL three endings recorded on CD... oh well...

GOOO MISS SAIGON!
#61

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/10/06 at 7:26pm

Yes, it was Ruthie (in black wig) who was injured in the Making video. The truck (set) that was rolling towards the stage didn't stop on cue and hit Ruthie and a G.I. on the heel.

Has anyone seen Joan Almedilla played Kim? I personally think she was the second best to Lea on Broadway in the role. Her acting was more emotional than Lea's and her belting was amazing. I distinctly remember her Sun and Moon Reprise. The audience was bawling at that scene. I didn't see Monique Wilson who replaced Lea in London. I heard she was good as well.

"I love acting. It is so much more real than life." Oscar Wilde
"After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music." Aldous Huxley

Updated On: 3/10/06 at 07:26 PM

#62

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/10/06 at 7:32pm

no one beats LEA!! haha..

so like i said i love miss saigon and i have heard almost EVERY single actress sing the role... i think you probably know how... HA! and i've heard Joan Almedilla and there was something about her voice that i absolutely loved as KIM... not as powerful as Lea's but there was a maturity in it that i loved and her I'd Give My Life for You was heartwrenching to hear...
#63

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/10/06 at 8:02pm

Wow, eatlasagna, you're a big Saigon fan then. I'm sure you have seen the last US tour with the different set. What do you think of that tour?
"I love acting. It is so much more real than life." Oscar Wilde
"After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music." Aldous Huxley
#64

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/10/06 at 8:55pm

i personally loved the new tour... saw it like 6 or 7 times... i felt the show missed in some parts but all in all i felt the new tour really brought out what was great about the show... the love story.. there was no huge sets or helicopters... so all you really could finally focus on was the love story between these two people... i took people to see the show and they loved it... it was a top notch cast and they did justice to the show, IMO... i know there are a few people out here who didn't care for it... but i enjoyed every second of it
#65

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/10/06 at 9:28pm

I'm glad we have a few out there still supporting the show. 6-7x, wow. I have seen the last tour with Jojo Cerna as the Engineer and Jen Paz as Kim. The key elements for a successful Saigon are to have a good seedy Engineer and the chemistry between Kim and Chris should be right on. The actors I've mentioned had all of those and I was quite impressed with the tour. The helicopter effect was also not bad and the Thailand set was pretty good. I guess that's why Cam mac got the same set for the UK tour. The only thing that bothered me was "Sun and Moon" sequence. Why did they have to sing the most beautiful song on the stairs? Why not sing it in the bedroom on the second floor? The actors were good but it looked uncomfortable kissing on those metal stairs.
"I love acting. It is so much more real than life." Oscar Wilde
"After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music." Aldous Huxley
#66

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/10/06 at 10:18pm

did no one see deedee lynn magno as kim??...SHE was MAYBE second to Lea although she really held her own. i think they were equal. what a talent that girl is. she did it on the road for almost 2 years...the engineer company with thom sesma, matt bogart, anastasia barzee, mike lee, sala iwamatzu and cc brown.
it was a really, really good cast. eventually will chase took over for matt as chris and will and deedee had an amazing connection. will has a great connection with everyone he is on stage with though, i must say..he is very giving on stage.
yeah..saigon is a show i ADORE.
#67

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/10/06 at 10:46pm

I saw Deedee Lynn Magno as Kim on Broadway opposite Matt Bogart. Both were very good. Unfortunately, Deedee was not very good in hiding mistakes. In one show, she chuckled while singing when the bedroom set she was in was not working properly. :)
"I love acting. It is so much more real than life." Oscar Wilde
"After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music." Aldous Huxley
#68

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/11/06 at 1:55am

i actually like deedee's voice very much... not strong but it's very delicate and can be powerful...she's not good at hitting the high notes.... i read in an interview that Will Chase said that DeeDee's acting in the role was phenomonal... i've heard others say she was the best actress to do the role... to go from timid teenager to a passionate woman to a mother with courage...

and as for the tour... Sun and Moon is actually what i was talking about with production missing something... that song was HORRIBLE to watch... it's like they were going for west side story... uggh... and i hated, HATED how Kim wore that bed sheet... i absolutely loved how in the original version she wore Chris's t-shirt and then three years later she's STILL wearing it... uggh... oh well
#69

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/11/06 at 8:13am

Disagree w/ respect to Magno: her straight tones and lack of vibrato bothered me to no end. Her singing is nowhere near the league of others who played Kim, namely, Salonga and several of Salonga's successors including Emy Baysic, Leila Florentino, and Joan Almedilla.

Did not see Joanna Ampil in the role, but I saw her in the West End revival of Jesus Christ Superstar and she was a spectacular Mary Magdalene. She does a good job on the CSR, especially with the sustained belted notes.

Updated On: 3/11/06 at 08:13 AM

#70

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/11/06 at 1:52pm

Check this out....promotional video clip of Miss Saigon tour in the UK. The set is the same as the last US tour.

http://www.the-mayflower.com/event.asp?show=SAIG06&info=video
"I love acting. It is so much more real than life." Oscar Wilde
"After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music." Aldous Huxley
#71

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/11/06 at 2:01pm

Just incase it hasn't been shown already, there is a small Miss Saigon trailer here http://www.the-mayflower.com/event.asp?show=SAIG06&info=video well, small is a bit of a lie. It's 20 something MB! It is the current tour in the UK, which I'm seeing in a couple of weeks (can't wait!)

Enjoy!

edit: Haha, someone beat me to showing you all this link!

Updated On: 3/11/06 at 02:01 PM

#72

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/11/06 at 3:03pm

if you guys go to youtube.com they have a trailer for the finland production of miss saigon i believe... the set pieces look interesting and the actors look all white (or heck maybe they are)
#73

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/11/06 at 3:34pm

Yeah, I saw that. I don't know if I like the set. But, there is a "Fall of Saigon" in there with Lea and Will. They do own the roles!
"I love acting. It is so much more real than life." Oscar Wilde
"After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music." Aldous Huxley
#74

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/11/06 at 5:38pm

musical theater.. what did you think of the new tour? did you see it?
#75

re: Miss Saigon...

Posted: 3/11/06 at 7:35pm

eatlasagna - yes, I saw the last tour with the modified set. Jen Paz played Kim and Jojo Cerna played the Engineer. It was good except for the "Sun and Moon" was sung uncomfortably on the metal stairs. You were right about the costume. She was wearing the bed sheet. The costume and staging ruined that song.
"I love acting. It is so much more real than life." Oscar Wilde
"After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music." Aldous Huxley

Updated On: 3/12/06 at 07:35 PM

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