14-7-2023 (NEW YORK) Lea Salonga, the renowned Filipino musical legend, is back on Broadway in a groundbreaking production that celebrates Filipino culture. For the first time in her career, Salonga is playing a Filipino character in “Here Lies Love,” surrounded by an all-Filipino cast and a team of mostly Filipino producers, including singer HER, comedian Jo Koy, and Black Eyed Peas’ Apl.de.Ap. The show opens on 20 July, a decade after its off-Broadway run. The production chronicles the dictatorship of President Ferdinand Marcos in the 1970s and ‘80s and the pro-democracy People Power Revolution movement.
Despite her success in previous all-Asian Broadway casts, Salonga never imagined being part of a Filipino-dominated production. “There’s absolutely no ‘effing way that I would have seen this happening. Ever,” Salonga said in an interview with The Associated Press. The anticipation of playing a Filipino character for the first time is shared by the entire cast. However, the production has faced criticism, mainly from Filipinos, who believe that the Marcos regime should not be musical fodder. Salonga, who plays the role of Ninoy Aquino’s mother, Aurora, believes the show is more about the sacrifices made by anti-Marcos leaders.
Salonga has vivid memories of watching news reports with her parents at home in the Philippines as the anti-Marcos People Power Revolution instigated a government overthrow. She also had friends who were out there in the chaos. So she understands why some people may have reservations about the show. But Here Lies Love is a tribute to the anti-Marcos movement and the sacrifices made, she argues.
Salonga is considered a first lady of pop culture in the Philippines and a Broadway icon. In Here Lies Love, she is venturing into a whole new world of producing. The show is adding to several Filipino American entertainment “firsts” that have made a splash in the past year. Koy starred in Easter Sunday, the first all-Filipino major studio movie. Sesame Street introduced TJ, the first Filipino Muppet. Several Filipino American chefs were recognised last month at the James Beard Awards. All of this happening now seems simultaneously “synergistic and serendipitous,” Salonga said.
