Lea’s absence makes the public’s heart grow fonder

In Bob Thomas' compulsively-readable biography on the legendary Hollywood star Joan Crawford, he writes about the grave risk the actress took in absenting herself from the big screen in the early ’40s. Crawford, the biographer reveals, sat out two years – "an eternity in the life of a star" – as she waited for the perfect comeback vehicle following her unceremonious dismissal from Metro Goldywn Mayer, then the most formidable company in Hollywood.

While Joan’s patience spectacularly paid off – she won the 1946 Oscar Best Actress award for Mildred Pierce, her comeback movie – there can be no diminishing the possible unfortunate consequences of non-visibility in a star’s life. So many players in the entertainment scene have bitterly realized that the truism "absence makes the heart grow fonder" does not always hold true in real life and especially in show business.

A star who succeeds in maintaining – and even increasing – her audience can only be regarded as rara avis, and among these rarities is Lea Salonga. Even if she is out of the country for most of the year as she determinedly aims to establish a presence in the acting community in the US following her success in Broadway, this lovely young woman never fails to be warmly received whenever she flies back to Manila to either attend to some professional obligations or simply touch base with family and friends.

Indeed, fresh from her sold-out month-long turn in Bobby Garcia’s production of the multi-awarded play, Proof by David Auburn, Lea goes onstage at the PICC Plenary Hall tonight for Lea Salonga: Broadway Concert – the tickets to which, I’ve been told, have been selling like proverbial hotcakes! Lea will perform an all-Broadway musical repertoire with the San Miguel Pops Orchestra under the baton of musical director Gerard Salonga and the overall direction of Bobby Garcia. Choreography is by Andy Alviz while script is by Uro dela Cruz. She will have as special guest performers Michael de Mesa, Calvin Millado and Carlo Orosa.

"Of course, I feel very fortunate that my public has stuck by me even though I’m not in Manila most of the time," Lea said in an interview. "I would like to think this is because they understand and appreciate my wanting to continuously test and challenge myself so I could be at my best in whatever project I choose to do, be it here or in LA where I’m based."

Many of her admirers will no doubt concur with her. Perhaps this explains why they continue to turn out whenever she comes home to share her art with them. As an actress, Lea showcased in Proof a courageous willingness to play against the type her audience respond to. As a singer, she has provided many musical moments with the crystalline purity of her voice and the emotional textures she brings to her renditions.

"Having done a lot of musical theater, naturally I feel quite comfortable in the format of this concert," says Lea. "I’ve always loved Broadway musicals and the songs in the repertoire are among my favorites." Included are Maybe from Annie, the musical that first launched her to stardom in Philippine theater; As Long As He Needs Me from Oliver; Fallin’ from They’re Playing Our Song, the recent successful Manila revival of which Lea also headlined; Maybe This Time from Cabaret, On My Own from Les Miserables and a medley of Andrew Lloyd Webber hits that include Jesus Christ Superstar and Evita.

"Yes, I’ll be doing a song from Miss Saigon (Too Much For One Heart)," adds Lea with a radiant smile, "because I know people expect that from me. But I chose to do only one song from the musical because I really try to avoid going back there as much as possible. Believe me, I am grateful for everything the show has done for me but I’ve done that for so long that I feel I have got to move on. You have to step away from it at some point and do other things because I can’t be doing that for the rest of my life. There would definitely be no challenge in that."

True enough, it is this dedication to challenging herself that has made Lea Salonga a consistently interesting and exciting artist – so much so that in her case and as far as the Filipino public is concerned, "absence does make the heart grow fonder."

Lea Salonga: The Broadway Concert is a project of Bayo.