Lea Salonga

Stage Actress

Lea Salonga was born in Ermita, Manila, Philippines on February 22nd, 1971 and is the Stage Actress. At the age of 53, Lea Salonga biography, profession, age, height, weight, eye color, hair color, build, measurements, education, career, dating/affair, family, news updates, songs, movies, and networth are available.

  Report
Other Names / Nick Names
Maria Lea Carmen Imutan Salonga, Lei, Tata, Manang, Pride of the Philippines
Date of Birth
February 22, 1971
Nationality
Philippines
Place of Birth
Ermita, Manila, Philippines
Age
53 years old
Zodiac Sign
Pisces
Networth
$18 Million
Profession
Actor, Singer, Stage Actor, Voice Actor
Social Media
Lea Salonga Height, Weight, Eye Color and Hair Color

At 53 years old, Lea Salonga has this physical status:

Height
160cm
Weight
56kg
Hair Color
Dark Brown
Eye Color
Dark Brown
Build
Slim
Measurements
Not Available
Lea Salonga Religion, Education, and Hobbies
Religion
Not Available
Hobbies
Not Available
Education
Operation Brotherhood Montessori Center Incorporated, University of the Philippines, College of Music
Lea Salonga Spouse(s), Children, Affair, Parents, and Family
Spouse(s)
Robert Charles Chien
Children
1
Dating / Affair
Richie Grau, Michael K. Lee, Robert Charles Chien (2002-Present)
Parents
Feliciano Genuino Salonga, María Ligaya Alcantara
Siblings
Gerard Salonga (Younger Brother) (Orchestral Conductor, Musical Arranger, Music Director), Jeff Salonga (Brother) (Actor)
Other Family
Shiela Salonga (Adopted Sister), Feliciano Salonga y Peña (Paternal Grandfather), Florentina Pingul Genuino (Paternal Grandmother), Leocadio Villacosta Imutan (Maternal Grandfather), Carmen Malhabour Alcantara (Maternal Grandmother), Shay Mitchell (First Cousin, Once Removed) (Actress, Model, Entrepreneur), Divina Francisco (Sister-in-Law) (Violinist). She has a nephew and a niece.
Lea Salonga Life

Maria Lea Carmen Imutan Salonga (born February 22, 1971) is a Filipina singer and actress best known for her appearances in musical theatre, as well as as a recording artist and television performer. She appeared in Kim in the musical Miss Saigon, first on the West End and then on Broadway, winning the Olivier and Theatre World Awards and becoming the first Asian woman to win a Tony Award at age 18.

Salonga is the first Filipino artist to sign with an international record label (Atlantic Records in 1993). Salonga was the first Asian woman to perform Éponine and Fantine in Broadway's Les Misérables.

In the musical's 10th and 25th anniversary concerts in London, she also portrayed Éponine and Fantine.

Jasmine in Aladdin (1992) and Fa Mulan (1998), she performed the singing voices of two official Disney Princesses: Jasmine in Aladdin (1992) and Fa Mulan (1998).

In 2011, she was named a Disney Legend for her work with The Walt Disney Company.

In the 2002 Broadway version of Flower Drum Song, Salonga appeared as Mei-li.

She has appeared on many other stage, film, and television appearances in the United States, the Philippines, and elsewhere.

She has appeared in Cinderella's title role as well as as a concert artist.

She appeared in Allegiance from 2015 to 2019, and on Once on This Island from 2017 to 2019.

Personal life

Salonga is a huge fan of South Korean boy band BTS and television show RuPaul's Drag Race. She lives in the Philippines and the United States.

Salonga was in a friendship with Dennis Mendiola, an American entrepreneur and co-founder of Chikka, in the early 1990s.

Salonga began dating Richard Grau, a Filipino-American investment advisor who was visiting New York in 1995. Salonga is accused of breaking the friendship by email in August 1999.

Salonga began a friendship with Korean-American co-star Michael K. Lee after appearing in the 2000 Manila production of They're Playing Our Song. In mid-2001, the couple came to an end.

Salonga met Robert "Rob" Chien, an American entrepreneur of Chinese and Japanese origins, while performing at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles. Robert's cousin, Christine Yasunoga, who was part of the troupe, introduced them to each other. Chien proposed to Salonga, California, on July 28, 2002.

The Our Lady of the Angels Cathedral in Salonga and Chien married on January 10, 2004. Monique Lhuillier, a Filipino-French celebrity fashion designer, conceived Salonga's wedding and reception dresses. Salonga performed "Two Words," written by Louie Ocampo and Freddie Santos, and she was given as a young wedding gift at the wedding reception. On ABS-CBN in late January 2004, the wedding was broadcast as a two-hour TV special directed by Bobby Garcia and hosted by Boy Abunda.

Nicole Beverly Chien (born May 16, 2006) and her one daughter Nicole Beverly Chien (born May 16, 2006).

Salonga has many relatives around the world, including Filipino musician and arranger Gerard Salonga (half-brother), Filipina Barredo (first cousin), Filipino artist Gabriel Barredo (first cousin), Filipino actress Gabriel Barredo (first cousin), and Canadian actress and model Shay Mitchell (first cousin) who appeared in the original version of the Pretty Little Liars franchise.

Source

Lea Salonga Career

Life and career

Maria Lea Carmen Imutan Salonga was born in Ermita, Philippines, on February 22, 1971, a naval rear admiral and shipping company owner (1929-1991), and Marjo Alcántara, née Imutan of Pulupandan, Negros Occidental. She spent the first six years of her childhood in Angeles City before returning to Manila.

In 1978, she made her professional debut in the musical The King and I with Repertory Philippines at the age of seven. She appeared in Annie in 1980, Fiddler on the Roof (1978), and The Fantasticks (1988).

Small Voice, her first album, was released in the Philippines in 1981, and she received a gold medal. In 1985, she and her brother were competing in the eighth Metro Manila Popular Music Festival as interpreters for the song entry, "Musika, Lata, Sipol at La La La La La La," which was composed by Tess Concepcion.

Salonga appeared on television shows as a child actor during the 1980s. She appeared on her own musical television show Love, Lea, from 1983 to 1985, and appeared on German Moreno's teen variety show That's Entertainment. She appeared in films including Tropang Bulilit, Like Father, Like Son, Ninja Kids, Captain Barbell, and Pik Pak Boom. Salonga's best child actor and three Aliw Awards for best child actor in 1980, 1981, and 1982 were awarded by the Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) for outstanding young performer. In 1988, she released Lea, her second album.

She opened for, and appeared with, international artists such as Menudo and Stevie Wonder in their Manila concerts in 1985 and 1988, respectively. She reportedly heard "boos and hissing" from female fans on stage at the aforementioned Menudo festival.

She completed her secondary school at the O.C. in 1988. In Greenhills, San Juan, Metro Manila, the B. Montessori Center is located. She also attended the University of the Philippines College of Music's extension program, which aimed at developing musically gifted children in music and stage movement. When she auditioned for Miss Saigon, she decided she wanted to pursue medicine. She later took two courses at Fordham University's Lincoln Center campus, moving between jobs in New York.

Salonga debuted Kim in 1989 in London's first performance of the musical Miss Saigon. The producers scouted many nations for the lead after failing to find a strong enough East Asian actress/singer in the United Kingdom. The then 17-year-old Salonga chose to perform Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg's "On My Own" from Les Misérables for her first Manila audition in 1988. Salonga has also credited the album as the start of her international career. She was asked if she had arranged another song for her performance after her appearance. Although she had not planned another song for the audition, she performed "The Greatest Love of All" instead. She had intended to perform a cappella, but when she walked across the room, she discovered that a previous auditionee left behind sheet music for the song, and this was in her key. Salonga was asked to perform "Sun and Moon" and "The Movie in My Mind" at her first callback audition. Salonga appeared before the panel at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in London in December 1988 to perform "I'd Give My Life For You" and "Too Much For One Heart."

Salonga was given the lead role after three days of intensive work sessions in London, although her childhood friend and fellow Repertory Philippines actress Monique Wilson was given the understudy and stage as the bar girl Mimi. Salonga told Seth Rudetsky and his partner, producer James Wesley, that she discovered she was officially cast while reading the Daily Mail's Sunday supplement.

Salonga received the 1990 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical, making her one of the youngest recipients of the competition. When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, she reprised her role as Kim, winning the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, and Theatre World Awards and becoming the first Asian descent actress to win a Tony Award. She appeared on Broadway in 1993 and 1996. In 1999, she was invited back to London to close the West End show, and, in 2001, at the age of 29, and after ending the musical's run in Manila, Salonga returned to Broadway to close the show.

Salonga appeared in A Miss Called Lea, a homecoming concert in Manila, in 1990. President Corazon Aquino also gave her a Merit Award of Merit. She was named as one of People magazine's Top 50 Most Beautiful People in 1991. In 1992, she appeared in Disney's animated film Aladdin as Princess Jasmine.

Salonga appeared in Éponine in Les Misérables' Broadway production in 1993, becoming the first Asian actress to perform the role on Broadway. Brad Kane's song "A Whole New World" appeared at the 65th Annual Academy Awards in Los Angeles, where the song gained an Oscar after already winning the Golden Globe Award. She also released her self-titled international debut album with Atlantic Records in the same year. Salonga appeared in numerous musical theatre performances in the Philippines and Singapore, including Sandy in Grease, Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady, and the Witch in Into the Woods.

In the 1995 film Redwood Curtain, which starred John Lithgow and Jeff Daniels, Salonga played Geri Riordan, an 18-year-old Vietnamese American child. She returned to the Philippines to appear in Aga Muhlach, a Filipino matinée actress, for her second Filipino Academy of Film Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) award nomination, this time for Best Actress. In the tenth anniversary of Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert at London's Royal Albert Hall, she appeared as Éponine.

Salonga appeared in Les Misérables as Éponine in the West End production of the musical in 1996. In September of that year, she continued to perform at the Neal S. Blaisdell Concert Hall in Honolulu, Hawaii, during the musical's national tour.

Salonga was a representative of the Philippines at ONE: The WTO Show, the closing ceremony of the inaugural World Trade Organization (WTO) ministerial conference held at the Suntec Singapore Convention and Exhibition Centre in December 1996.

Salonga performed recordings and concerts in the Philippines, as well as another in London, in comparison to a few returns to Miss Saigon in London and on Broadway. I'd Like to Teach The World To Sing, a 1997 Sing woman (recordings from her childhood) has risen to gold sales in the Philippines. Lea... followed him on the recording. In Love in 1998 and By Heart in 2000, both albums earning multiple platinum status in the Philippines. She lent her voice to a major Disney animated film in 1998, singing the title role in Mulan, as well as providing the character's singing voice in the 2004 sequel, Mulan II. Salonga, 28, migrated to New York City, where she now lives in at least 2013 and has a large apartment. She appeared in "Hey Mr. Producer: Cameron Mackintosh's Musical World," where she appeared on several of his musicals, and she appeared in the 1998 tribute concert to Sir Cameron Mackintosh in London. Salonga appeared on an international jury, alongside Iain Glen, Nicole Kidman, and Anna Manahan for episode 277 of the American Theatre Wing's documentary film Working in the Theatre, in December 1998. She appeared in the Philippines in 1999 and again in 2000 in They're Playing Our Song. She has appeared in four concerts, including The Homecoming Concert, The Best of Manila, and Songs from the Screen – the last two being benefit shows. Salonga returned to Manila in Miss Saigon, which was on display at the Cultural Center of the Philippines at the end of 2000.

Salonga revived Lien Hughes' role in Miss Saigon's closing on Broadway in 2001, as the World Turns. She was asked to return to the position in 2003 after finishing her internship that year. She appeared on Russell Watson's The Voice concert, narrated for the television documentary My America: A Poetry Atlas of the United States, and appeared on the Season 8 Christmas special on the TV medical drama ER as a patient with lymphoma.

Salonga returned to Broadway in 2002 to play Wu Mei-Li, a Chinese immigrant in a revival of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Flower Drum Song opposite Jose Llana. This was after the reimagined musical appeared at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles in 2001, with Salonga playing the lead actor and winning Lead Actress in a Musical from the Los Angeles theatre Ovation Awards in 2002. The Broadway revival cast album, directed by Salonga, was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album in 2004. Theatre critics in New York applauded Salonga's work, and the Drama League named her Distinguished Performance in New York, among other awards. She appeared in the Theatre for the second time in September 2002, as well as John Cullum, Edie Falco, Stanley Tucci, Marissa Jaspert Winokur, and Charlayne Woodard. For the first time she appeared in a non-musical theatrical performance in Los Angeles during 2001-2002, she appeared in a non-musical theatrical performance as Catherine in the stage play Proof in Manila. The Broadway Concert at the Philippine International Convention Center was followed by a major performance, The Broadway Concert. In a number paying tribute to Richard Rodgers, she appeared at the 56th Tony Awards, alongside Harry Connick, Jr., Peter Gallagher, and Michele Lee.

Salonga's first "all-Filipino" concerts in Manila in 2003 and 2004, which later earned her an Aliw Award as Entertainer of the Year. She appeared in several concerts at the Mohegan Sun hotel in Connecticut in 2003. A Christmas concert in the Philippines, called Home for Christmas, was followed by a performance at the Lenape Regional Performing Arts Center in Marlton, New Jersey, in 2004. Lizzie appeared in the Manila production of the musical Baby in 2004, earning her another award from the Aliw Awards later this year.

Salonga gave her first US concert tour in 2005. She appeared on November 7 at Carnegie Hall for the benefit of Diverse City Theatre Company later this year. She received the Golden Artist Award at the 53rd FAMAS Awards in recognition of her international accomplishments and performed during the grand opening of Hong Kong's Disneyland, recording two songs on Daniel Rodriguez's album In the Presence. She also did voice work for Disney's English dub of Hayao Miyazaki's My Neighbor Totoro as Yasuko Kusakabe. In 2005, Salonga wrote the foreword to Linda Marquart's "The Right Way to Sing." Salonga concluded the closing ceremony with the song "Triumph of the One" at the Khalifa Stadium in 2006.

Salonga's first studio album in seven years, Inspired, which was rated platinum in the Philippines, was awarded the Order of Lakandula by Philippine President Arroyo for using her skills to benefit Philippine society and promote cultural exchange in 2007. The House of Representatives of the Philippines has also awarded her the Congressional Medal of Achievement.

Salonga returned to Broadway in March 2007 for another stint in Les Misérables, this time as Fantine. Her return to the stage raised the musical's ticket sales. President Arroyo watched Salonga as Cosette, alongside Filipino Americans Adam Jacobs as Marius and Ali Ewoldt. Salonga received rave reviews and made it to the short list of Broadway.com's Top Replacement candidates for Best Replacement. During her Broadway appearances and appearances on Broadway, she appeared on Broadway, sang of Broadway, appeared on Broadway, starred on the Broadway show Lesson Bears, appeared on Broadway's 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, and was a member of The Actors Fund's women's health campaign. She appeared in two venues, first at the US Military Academy Band's concert in West Point, where she performed four songs and an encore, as well as in her own concert at the Tarrytown Music Hall in New York. She was also busy with other concerts and musical performances, including a Christmas one in Manila.

Salonga performed in the Philippines, California, Hawaii, Hong Kong, and Guam in 2008, and she appeared in Broadway Asia Entertainment's international tour of Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella.

Salonga's column "Backstory" in the Philippine Daily Inquirer on July 3rd, 2008 ("Entertainment section): "Intainment: Lea Salonga, writer," "introduces Lea Salonga, author." Since then, she has written a number of columns for the Inquirer. On July 11, 2008, she appeared in "Global Pop" at the Music Center. The Blue Ribbon, a charity established by Dorothy Chandler in 1968, received it. On July 11, Salonga held a concert at Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles. She received a special award from the Awit Awards the same year.

Salonga appeared in Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, which premiered in Manila, from late July 2008 to mid-2009. Salonga appeared at a number of concerts in North America in 2009 and was also asked to dance the Filipino novelty dances "Ocho-ocho" and "Spaghetti" in North America. Salonga also sold Avon Products anti-aging skin care products in the Philippines this year. She appeared at the 95th Anniversary Special of the Iglesia ni Cristo in June 2009. At the Requiem Mass for former President Corazon Aquino at the Manila Cathedral, Salonga performed the Patriotic song "Bayan Ko." Miss Saigon's 20th birthday was commemorated in Salonga's "Lea Salonga" festival. On December 11, 2009, a performance of Your Songs" at the Philippine International Convention Center Plenary Hall. Gerard, her brother, was the musical director. Salonga received the Gusi Peace Prize in November 2009 in the same venue.

Salonga played Grizabella in the Manila run of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats' Asia-Pacific tour from July to August 2010. She appeared in Fantine's 25th Anniversary Concert of Les Misérables in October, fifteen years after appearing in the 10th Anniversary as Eponine. She appeared as a celebrity judge for Avon Voices, Avon's first international singing talent competition for both men and women, the same year.

On August 19, 2011, Salonga was named as a Disney Legend. On September 12, she was one of the judges in the 60th Miss Universe 2011 Beauty Pageant in Sao Paulo, Brazil. On October 24, 2011, Salonga and Darren Criss performed "A Whole New World" to its composer, Alan Menken, as Menken was named the winner of the 2011 Maestro Award at the Billboard/Hollywood Reporter Film & TV Music Conference.

In 2012, Salonga appeared in a six-concert series titled "The Magic of Broadway and Disney Favorites" titled "The Magic of Broadway and Disney Favorites." She appeared in Allegiance's first production at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego from September to October 2012. Salonga appeared in the Philippine production of God of Carnage from July 2012 at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza, Manila. In November 2012, she took on the same role at the DBS Arts Centre in Singapore. On December 14, Salonga appeared at Epcot in Walt Disney World as the narrator, accompanied by a 50-piece orchestra and a mass choir, retelling the Christmas tale.

Salonga appeared on the 2013 edition of Lincoln Center's American Songbook concert series at the Allen Room in January 2013. Salonga performed Mother in a concert performance of Ragtime in the Philippines in February. She wrote the theme song for TV5's reality singing competition Kanta Pilipinas, and along with Tyne Daly and Norm Lewis, she appeared as Mother in a concert performance of Ragtime at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall. In Tokyo, Osaka, the headlined a concert series "4 Stars One World of Broadway Musicals," with Ramin Karimloo, Sierra Boggess, and Yu Shirota. She was one of the four coaches on the ABS-CBN initiative, Together with apl.de.ap, Sarah Geronimo, and Bamboo Maalac, which premiered in June 2013. Salonga's "Lea Salonga: Playlist" a 35-year presence in the Philippines began in December 2013. The concert series was extended to January 2014. Salonga wrote a book titled Playlist: A Celebration of 35 Years, which she used as a souvenir for the concerts.

She appeared on The Voice of the Philippines in its second season in 2014 and also appeared in the new Philippine version of The Voice Kids, on which she has appeared for three seasons. "Wished That I Could Call You," Salonga's charity compilation album Children In Need, was released in March 2014. Il Divo toured Asia and North America with Il Divo in 2014-15. She headlined her own concert series in Australasia in mid-2015. In the 2015–16 Broadway production of Allegiance, Salonga resurrects her role as Kei Kimura. In The New York Times, Charles Isherwood wrote about her appearance: "Her voice maintains its plush appearance, and her concluding first act solo, 'Higher,' is perhaps the show's musical highlight." "One Indescribable Instant" is Salonga's climactic Disney princess parody song on the episode's finale of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, a former Star Search contestant, who is in town for a wedding.

Helen Bechdel appeared in the international premiere of Fun Home in Manila in November 2016. According to a ABS-CBN News article, she "delivers a finely tuned appearance," bringing the cold and dark shadings to first-time peppy scenes with her subtle stares and held emotions. [In] "Days By Days" she finally lets go of all the resentment and repressed indignation of a woman trapped in a marriage based on a lie. Nonetheless, there is a dignity in her demise... Salonga pulls it off with such poise, both musically and emotionally, that it is impossible not to be moved."

Salonga received two more Aliw Awards in 2016, one for Best Major Concert in a Foreign Venue and her second Entertainer of the Year award. Salonga was one of the Voice Teens' coaches for the following year. Bahaghari: Lea Salonga Sings Traditional Songs of the Philippines was released in 2017 and sang in many languages spoken in the Philippines. In the 2017 Broadway revival of Once on This Island at Circle in the Square Theatre, where she received critical praise for her vocal appearance. She appeared on stage for the final performances in December 2018 and January 2019. Once on this Island, she was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.

In the melographic film Yellow Rose, which premiered at the 2019 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, Salonga appeared alongside Eva Noblezada, Dale Watson, and Princess Punzalan as a Philippine immigrant, Aunt Gail. She has also visited North America and the United Kingdom this year. In a revival of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in Manila and then Singapore later this year, she played Mrs. Lovett. Critics lauded her "crystalline tones" that turned her numbers, particularly 'By the Sea,' into unexpected show-stoppers. [S]he transforms into this ferocious devil woman. This is by far the best musical theater out of Salonga, post-Miss Saigon, and the long wait was well worth it," as she introduced her role as "a delirious storm of deviousness and devilry sprinkled with lust... one of the year's most memorable stage performances... a career high for the actress. Pangan [as Todd] simmers; Salonga is the explosive fire beneath; In November, she appeared in Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane during these two short runs.

Salonga's 2020 North American tour will be postponed due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, just after performing in Dubai. In May 2020, she announced that the tour would be postponed to Fall 2021, but that dates were later confirmed once more. Salonga appeared at several virtual global fundraising activities and concerts during the pandemic. "Dream Again," a song of hope and perseverance, was released in August 2020. On November 27, PBS series Great Performances broadcast her 2019 concert at the Sydney Opera House, which was performed with the renowned Sydney Symphony Orchestra.

In 2021, Salonga first described the Mysterious Woman in the Netflix series Centaurworld's Centaurworld. She unveiled her Dream Again Tour in September of the same year, the first year she was conceived. She revealed in a month that she would also be touring the United States and Canada. Salonga performed a Christmas concert at the Dubai Exhibition Centre on December 25, 2021.

Salonga began her Dream Again Tour in the United States and Canada on April 6, 2022. Following the conclusion of this tour, she performed the song "The Prayer" at the 2022 National Memorial Day Concert in Washington, D.C., which was broadcast on PBS. On June 18, she began her tour in the United Kingdom. Salonga's In September 2022, the first musical The Song of Bernadette in Manhattan, portraying Mama Soubirous in the Indie Theatrical Workshop. "She was lauded by TIME magazine in the same month for her role as a "life-long role model for children of color" in the TIME100 Impact Awards.

Elodie Honrada, a recurring character in the critically acclaimed HBO Max film Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin, has been revived for a second season, according to Salonga. Salonga will appear as the featured guest artist at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City, Utah, on December 16, 16, 19, 2022, and 2022.

Source

Following rude conduct against Miranda Lambert and Bebe Rexha, Lea Salonga has pleaded for audiences to BEHAVE

www.dailymail.co.uk, July 18, 2023
There has been some very disruptive conduct at concerts hosted by celebrities. At Bebe Rexha, a cell phone was thrown, audience members erupted and posed at a Miranda Lambert performance, and a man ran rushed the stage when Bryan Adams was on stage. Lea Salonga, a well-known stage actress who has turned 52, has been pushing for an end to the trend. The renowned actress had a personal encounter. Fans allegedly snuck into her dressing room unannounced while appearing in Here Lies Love on Broadway. Salonga also posted a video of the unwelcomed step in which she confronted the strangers. 'Who are you? 'I'm so sorry, I don't know who you are; unless you're on the guest list, we won't have you back here,' she said. 'You'll have to go to the door.'
Lea Salonga Tweets