Filipino-American stage actress Eva Noblezada is set to star in Cameron Mackintosh’s Broadway revival of Miss Saigon.
Noblezada reprises her award-winning role as Miss Saigon’s Kim, the same iconic role that launched Lea Salonga to international acclaim in the musical’s original staging.
The Fil-Am actress first played Kim in London’s West End revival of the musical in 2014, after being cast when she was spotted at the Jimmy Awards at 17 years old. The high school student went up to perform on stage as a finalist for the National High School Musical Theatre Award–she was named runner-up but caught a bigger recognition when she was eyed for the Miss Saigon casting call.
Noblezada’s performance won her the Best Actress in a Musical at the 15th What’s On Stage Awards, and the Broadway World UK/ West End Awards along with fellow Filipino cast members Rachelle Ann Go and Jonjon Briones.
Miss Saigon tells the story of Kim, a young girl forced to work as a bar dancer during the Vietnam War who meets and falls in love with a young American soldier.
Noblezada shared in interviews that she felt a strong connection with and gained confidence while playing the character. She also said that she wanted to take on the role that was previously played by Lea Salonga differently- she wanted to add her own take on the iconic role. Salonga gave her the best advice about playing the role.
“She's just full of wisdom. When I did meet her for the first time in London, she was very encouraging and was fully aware that every woman who does Kim makes it her own. She's a lovely woman, she really is. She gets the job done but she's also real, which I really respect. I have had other Kims, like my auntie [Annette Calud], who was a Kim [on Broadway], and Joanna Ampil [in London and Sydney], send me wonderful advice. It's just been great to have that support. You can meet someone who's been in Miss Saigon in a country you've never been to and you immediately feel like you're part of the family,” Noblezada said in an interview with TheatreMania.
Also starring alongside Eva on the New York staging is Filipino Rachelle Ann Go who will also make her Broadway debut as Gigi, and Jonjon Briones as the Engineer. Miss Saigon is set to open at the Broadway Theatre in New York City on March 1, 2017.
