Oliver Oliveros - Page 51

Being named new UN goodwill ambassador in action against hunger may probably be Tony winner Lea Salonga's biggest role so far in her more than 30 year illustrious career in theatre, film and recording.

BroadwayWorld Philippines correspondent Bing Shimizu was in the midst of the huge crowd that gathered during the two live concert performances celebrating epic musical LES MISÉRABLES 25th anniversary at the O2 Arena, Greenwich, South-East London on Sunday, October 3, 2010. Ms. Shimizu, a loyal supporter of the Pride of the Philippines and Tony winner Lea Salonga, shares her own photographs of some of the concert's highlights to avid BroadwayWorld.com readers.

Filipino actor, playwright and director Joel Trinidad's 'Crush Hour', a two-character play that's less than ten minutes, recently received its Off-Off-Broadway premiere at the Roy Arias Studios, 300 West 43rd Street, New York City. It was performed, alongside five other short plays, through producer and playwright John Chatterton's regular series of 'The Short Play Lab'.

It's Manila's turn to greet musical theatre legend Stephen Sondheim a happy 80th birthday. Two Sondheim musicals are opening this month of October: one of which is prolific theatre company Atlantis Productions Inc.'s touring production of 'A Little Night Music', starring Philippine cinema's multi-award-winning actress Dawn Zulueta as Desirée Armfeldt; the other one is community theatre company Theater Down South's (TDS) production of 'A Funny Thing Happened On the Way to the Forum', featuring young thespians Chino Veguillas as Pseudolus, Jacob Kliatchko Gayanelo as Hero, and Carla Gonzalez as Philia.

Korean American playwright Lloyd Suh's Off-Broadway play 'American Hwangap' holds its Asian premiere in Manila through a co-production arrangement between the Cultural Center of the Philippines' (CCP) resident theatre company Tanghalang Pilipino, and New York-based Lark Play Development Center. Top billed by the Philippines' most respected actors on stage, television and film - Mario O' Hara, Celeste Legaspi, Gina Pareño and Bembol Roco - 'American Hwangap' is presented in its original English form, and in a Filipino translation written by Philippine literature professor and writer Joi Barrios-Leblanc. The play runs until Sunday, October 3, 2010 at the CCP Little Theatre.

Broadway-bound musical 'Allegiance' has just released a promotional video clip that shows Tony award-winning actress Lea Salonga ('Miss Saigon', 'Les Miserables') singing the musical's opening and closing song titled 'Second Chances'. Its beautiful and infectious melody, penned by the musical's composer and lyricist Jay Kuo ('World's Apart', 'Insignificant Others'), has been getting favorable first impressions.

Together with Tony winner Lea Salonga, husband Rob Chien, and Joanna Ampil's manager Girlie Rodis, BroadwayWorld Philippines attended Ms. Ampil's second solo concert in Manila Saturday evening, September 18, 2010 at Onstage, Greenbelt 1, Ayala Malls, Makati City.

Featuring international Filipino child actor Martin Delos Santos, stage luminaries Jojo Atienza, Bembol Roco, Bodjie Pascua, and the world-renowned Loboc Children's Choir, the Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA) has just presented a Filipino adaptation of Indian poet and playwright Rabindranath Tagore's 'The Post Office' at the PETA Center Theatre in New Manila, Quezon City.

London-based musical theatre actress Joanna Ampil ('Miss Saigon', 'Les Miserables') is back in Manila for 'Joanna Ampil: West End Girl', a one-night musical theatre/pop hybrid concert at Onstage, 2/F Greenbelt 1, Ayala Center, Makati City on Saturday, September 18, 2010 at 8 p.m. Ambient Media's FILharmoniKA orchestra, under the baton of Gerard Salonga, will accompany the singer and actress. Sony Music Philippines' balladeer Ariel Rivera is her special guest artist.

Base Entertainment Asia ('Jersey Boys', 'Defending the Caveman') and Singapore Repertory Theatre ('Golden Child', 'Into the Woods') are holding auditions for Filipino young talents, ages 8 to 13, to fill the roles of young cubs Simba and Nala in the Southeast Asian premiere of Disney Theatrical Group's 'The Lion King'. Auditions will be held on Saturday, September 18, 2010 from 12 noon to 6 p.m., and Sunday, September 19, 2010 from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Arts in Taguig City, FVR Park, 26th Street, Bonifacio Arts Center, The Fort, Taguig City (www.artsintaguigcity.com). Singing and dancing experience is required.

London-based musical theatre actress Joanna Ampil ('Miss Saigon', 'Les Miserables') is back in Manila for 'Joanna Ampil: West End Girl', a one-night musical theatre/pop hybrid concert at Onstage, 2/F Greenbelt 1, Ayala Center, Makati City on Saturday, September 18, 2010 at 8 p.m. Ambient Media's FILharmoniKA orchestra, under the baton of Gerard Salonga, will accompany the singer and actress. Sony Music Philippines' balladeer Ariel Rivera is her special guest artist.

Moonlight Stage Productions (MSP) fills the Brengle Terrace Park in Vista, California - not just with local residents and tourists on a picnic but also with a giant statue of Vietnamese communist revolutionary Ho Chi Minh, and a US military helicopter falling from the sky on Wednesday through Sunday - as MSP concludes its 2010 summer season with a grand presentation of Tony award-winning musical 'Miss Saigon' at the Moonlight Amphitheatre running until Saturday, September 25, 2010 at 7:30 p.m. 'Miss Saigon' alums Filipino-American stage actress Jennifer Paz (Kim) and Johann Michael Camat (The Engineer) reunite onstage in this lavish open air production.

Amal, a 10-year-old ailing child in Indian poet and dramatist Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore's (1861-1941) symbolic play 'Dak Ghar' or 'The Post Office', is now named Abel in Philippine Educational Theater Association's (PETA) contextualized adaptation 'Ang Post Office'. Featuring Filipino child actor Martin delos Santos and stage luminaries Bembol Roco and Bodjie Pascua, with live vocal score from multi-award winning children's choirs - the Kilyawan Choir and the Loboc Children's Choir - Abel's moving story premieres on August 6, 2010 and will run through September 12, 2010 at the PETA Center Theatre in New Manila, Quezon City.

International pop singer from the Philippines Charice walked the red carpet at GLEE's Season 2 premiere party held Tuesday evening, September 7, 2010 at the Paramount Studios in Hollywood, California.

Base Entertainment Asia ('Jersey Boys', 'Defending the Caveman') and Singapore Repertory Theatre ('Golden Child', 'Into the Woods') are holding auditions for Filipino young talents, ages 8 to 13, to fill the roles of young cubs Simba and Nala in the Southeast Asian premiere of Disney Theatrical Group's 'The Lion King'. Auditions will be held on Saturday, September 18, 2010 from 12 noon to 6 p.m., and Sunday, September 19, 2010 from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Arts in Taguig City, FVR Park, 26th Street, Bonifacio Arts Center, The Fort, Taguig City (www.artsintaguigcity.com). Singing and dancing experience is required.