Will Chase is my favorite Chris. 2nd is David Campbell... but my only Kim is Lea.. no one can replace her.. not even the Kim on the revival in west end.
Amazing how she hits both the high and low registers with ease and perfection. In my dreams, I can sing like her. No one compares. I love Will Chase's voice and his work on Smash.
Just watching Simon Bowman/Lea Salonga's 'Sun and Moon' and this rendition of 'Sun and Moon' makes me awe at how a character, and even a relationship, can be interpreted. In Simon Bowman's version, I felt their relationship to be a true, deep and gentle love. This rendition however magically captures the excitement, innocence and wonder of young love. I love them both!
Reading your comment in 2022, but I just wanted to say how much I agree with you. I think this is why I'm partial to the Simon/Lea pairing. He was so protective of her, as if he was truly treasuring her.
This is the most passionate rendition of this song I have ever seen. These two have really great chemistry, and if you didn't know any better, you'd think they were actually madly and deeply in love with each other. I love Will Chase (I'm a major RENT-head) and Lea is just so cute!
The quality of lea's voice is incredible she combines her singing and acting on the stage very magnificently and I can tell you .. Shes not quacking like most of the other girls doing Kim.
I don't know if any revival can work after Lea in this role. Hard to tour and say "this will be the second best version of Miss Saigon". Don't get me wrong, I totally support local and touring theatre but I would always cringe if it is not Lea's voice in the lead. Great play, don't know how the next tour will overcome this.
That is so true. I just listened to a preview of the 2014 West End Cast recording and when I listened to Sun and Moon, the voice of the one casted as Kim just did not cut it for me. I still long for Lea's voice.
Saw MISS SAIGON's West End revival in late 2015 and saw the first preview at the Broadway Theatre on Wednesday, March 1, 2017. Lea Salonga and Will Chase are still the Kim and Chris to beat. Makes me appreciate and so glad that these performances have been preserved online. Salonga and Chase are such a phenomenal onstage pairing.
After watching Will Chase in these performances, I have to say he's an excellent Chris. Very passionate in his role, depicting exactly how an American GI would behave. He even looks the part......His body build, hair etc. It was a fantastic pairing up of these two very strong characters with superb singing and acting abilities. Lea's age at that time 17yrs, but was very talented and still much a baby and in her innocent years which gave her the edge over all the actresses now vying for that same part of Kim. Lea, set the bar so high with her intepretation of Kim and her singing and acting ability. I do know the new Productions and casts will never be able to surpass the original castings and production. Lea played Kim for about 11 years both in London and New York and stepped down at 29 years of age. Won a Tony for her role as Kim in Miss Saigon.
Lea was 18 when she first played Kim in London. She did it for a year and 3 months. Lea was 20 when she started on Broadway and played Kim for about a year. She didn't go back to the Broadway show until 1999 - I believe for the first 5 months of the year (so she was 27 turning 28 during that time). Then she did a production in Manila at the end of 2000 and went back to Broadway for the closing in Jan 2001 - all age 29. (Lea's birthday is 2/22/71.) Will Chase played Chris during her 5-month return to Broadway in 1999 and the Manila production in 2000. And I'm pretty sure he also went into the final month on Broadway with Lea. Obviously they had very good chemistry. I believe Simon Bowman was Chris for Lea's entire run in London and Willy Falk was Chris when Miss Saigon opened on Broadway. I haven't seen much footage of Willy Falk, but Lea also had great chemistry with Simon Bowman.
For me and the world to know, LEA SALONGA is the legacy of Philippines NO ONE can be like her in singing in the Philippines. Only LEA can be to perfection with her voice and her talent in movies and theatre she is one of a kind
You are sunlight and i moon Joined by the gods of fortune Midnight and high noon Sharing the sky We have been blessed, you and i You are here like a mystery I'm from a world that's so different From all that you are How in the light of one night Did we come so far? Outside day starts to dawn Your moon still floats on high The birds awake The stars shine too My hands still shake I reach for you And we meet in the sky! You are sunlight and i moon Joined here Bright'ning the sky With the flame Of love Made of Sunlight Moonlight Tomorrow will be the full moon I can bring friends to bless our room With paper unicorns and perfume If you want me to
i agree. i think Simon Bowman, being the original Chris from WestEnd has interpreted the song as one true passionate love that is powerful yet tragic. Will Chase's version is like from Animated Disney musical. :)
Out of the different actor "Chris" pairings with Lea (who is hands down the best Kim), I have to say that Will Chase's voice sounds the best with Lea's. His exuberant acting in this clip is also commendable. I would really love to see this whole production with Lea and Will Chase. I also wish there were more Broadway shows released on DVD, after their current run of course.
Gorgeous. I love Lea Salonga's purity, she is so beautiful. Will Chase is also fab, I first came across him in 2009 when I was in a local production of RENT in which I played Angel- the Angel in the RENT 10 production was phenomenal but it was WIll Chase who stole it for me. His voice is amazing and hearing this shows just how versatile he is. A match made in MT heaven.
Beautiful..So moving and passionate. My daughters just got the part of Kim in her college show so I was looking up the show because i had never seen it. Wow it's amazing!!
Thank you for this video! How fun to watch these clips! I wore out the soundtrack years ago and always dreamed of seeing the play, especially with Lea! This is the next best thing :)
I was watching madame butterfly out of curiousity but I couldn't leave RU-vid and continue studying without watching miss Lea and now I'm stuck watching and listening to her .. HELP !!
Where can I find the full show of Miss Saigon with Lea Salonga? Especially in this kind of quality! I was born to late and deprived from her performance. Please? anyone? HELP!!!
Oh, you are so right! Lea has set the eternal Kim standard (along w Eponine and Fantine in Les Mis). I just saw Lea at Pahchanga...magnificent! Surely one of a kind.
