Filipina actress Kiara Dario joins Manila staging of 'Miss Saigon' as Gigi

Kiara Dario has been announced to play Gigi Van Tranh in the Manila staging of "Miss Saigon."

The Filipino actress joins Filipino-Australian lead Abigail Adriano, who plays Kim in the Sydney run, as well as the upcoming Manila run.

“The cat’s out of the bag! I’m so honored to play Gigi in the New Asian Tour of Miss Saigon!” said Kiara Dario in her latest Instagram post.

Dario shared that she first encountered the music of “Miss Saigon” at three years old.

“I still remember growing up singing ‘a song played on a solo sexy phone' (because I didn’t know what a saxophone was) and forcing my sister to be my Ellen for ‘I Still Believe’. It was a musical that changed my life when I auditioned (and didn’t make it) in 2016, because it got me out of my theatre hiatus and made me realize that theatre is truly my life’s passion,” she wrote.

“’Miss Saigon’ is truly the musical that champions so many Asian actors, especially Filipinos, many of whom became my teachers, directors, and legends in the local industry. It’s truly a full circle moment,” she added. “What a treat it is to open this tour in my hometown. Handa ka na ba, Manila?”

Adriano commented on the post, saying: “Let’s live the movie in our minds!”

Dario was the lead in Repertory Philippines’ “Snow White and the Prince,” wherein she was nominated as “Best Performer in a Musical for the BroadwayWorld Philippines Awards.”  

She was also a member of the ensemble in the now-iconic “Ang Huling El Bimbo” the musical. “Miss Saigon” marks Dario’s first international production.

Previously, the role of Gigi Van Tranh, the show girl in Dreamland bar, was played by other Filipino thespians. Isay Alvarez pioneered the role in 1989 for the original West End production, in which Lea Salonga played Kim. Rachelle Ann Go played Gigi in the West End revival in 2014, while Kapuso star Aicelle Santos did the same in the UK Tour in 2018.

The rest of the cast has also been announced. Besides Dario and Adriano, there’s also Filipino-Australian Seann Miley Moore, who will play the Engineer. Like Adriano, he’s been a cast member of the Australian run.

“This show is Asian excellence and this cast is giving Slay-Asian pride!” Moore said.

“Miss Saigon is a story that resonates with so many of us and our families so seeing all of us together, ready to tell this story, is really empowering. The spotlight is now on our community, and we are going to own the stage and tell our truth,” he added.

Also playing lead characters are Nigel Huckle as Chris, Sarah Morrison as Ellen, Lewis Francis as John and Laurence Mossman as Thuy.

The are a total of 42 performers in the cast: Michael Boyle, Carlo Boumouglbay, Ellie Chan, Shannon Cheong, Celine Cleveland, David Duketis, Natasha Dumlao, Gelina Enriquez, Sara Haruta, Leyton Holmes, Jiho Hwang, Emily Huynh, Mikaila Imaguchi, Patrick Jeremy, Hamish Johnston, Nicholas Kong, Vi Lam, Winchester Lopez, Robbie Mejica, Bailey Nathan-Park, Tetsuya Okubo, Atsushi Okumura, David Ouch, Tony Oxybel, Paloma Renouf, Annabelle Rosewarne, Jack Connor Rowan, Trevor Santos, Louis Stockil, Asmara Soekotjo, Tamsyn Thomas, Brad Veitch, Aday Velasco, Louisa Vilinne and Sam Ward.

GMG Productions CEO Carlos Candal said that they are "incredibly excited" to bring "Miss Saigon" to Manila.

"Filipinos will undoubtedly be treated to the exceptional artistry and performances this company of world-class performers can deliver.”

The Manila tour begins in Manila on March 23 and will run until May 5 at The Theatre in Solaire.

Tickets are on sale via TicketWorld. —JCB, GMA Integrated News