Lea Salonga shares she was concerned about being called a 'bold star' for 'Miss Saigon' role

Lea Salonga shared that she was concerned about being called a "bold star" when she was offered the role of Kim in "Miss Saigon."

In a clip from Season 11 of PBS's "Finding Your Roots" hosted by Henry Louis Gates, Jr., the Tony Award winner and Disney Legend recalled that her career up until that moment was "very wholesome."

"I was a child entertainer, performer, and I was about to turn the page in a really big way because back home, actors and especially actresses you were either really wholesome or really not. There was no gray area," she said.

Henry asked her, "Were you afraid that there would be no coming back?"

"Yeah. Am I gonna be what they called a 'bold star?' Am I gonna be branded as that? A bold star, that's what they were called and then I realized in the West, the gray area was where a lot of actors resided."

Despite her concerns, Lea decided to take on the lead role in "Miss Saigon" and the rest is history.

The musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil brought her from the West End to Broadway, earning her the Olivier Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Musical in 1990 and the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical in 1991 — the first Filipino to do so.

Lea continues to delight her fans and supporters, as she released a new holiday album, staged a concert in Manila, and starred in the "Request sa Radyo" play alongside BAFTA nominee Dolly De Leon all in 2024.

— CDC, GMA Integrated News