Manila, Philippines - It has been 12 years since Tony Award winner Lea Salonga last worked with Adrian Pang, one of Singapore’s most established actors, on They’re Playing Our Song.
They reunite on stage in Atlantis Productions and The Singapore Repertory Theatre’s staging of Yasmina Reza’s award winning comedy of bad manners God of Carnage.
God of Carnage won the Tony and Olivier Award for Best Play in 2009. It is about two pairs of parents, one of whose child has hurt the other at a public park, who meet to discuss the matter in a civilized manner. However, as the evening goes on, the parents become increasingly childish, resulting in the evening devolving into chaos. It was also recently turned into a film titled Carnage, directed by Roman Polanski and starring Jodie Foster, Kate Winslet, Cristoph Waltz and John C. Reilly.
It has been 10 years since Lea Salonga last appeared in a straight play. She says of returning to the stage “It’s been almost 10 years since I last did a play, so I come into God of Carnage with a lot of excitement and fear. Excitement that I get to do this Tony Award-winning dark comedy by Yasmina Reza, and fear for that exact same reason.”
Of reuniting with Adrian Pang, one of her favorite theatrical leading men after 12 years, she says, “It doesn’t feel like 12 years have passed. It’s as if we’re just picking up from wherever it was we left off. It’s so nice to have that kind of dynamic with someone. I’m so incredibly happy that I get to work with Adrian again for the Manila run, and then later this year for the Singapore run.”
For his part, Adrian says of working with Lea, “I learned a lot from her as a performer when we did They’re Playing Our Song. Working with her was one of the best working experiences I had. Lea is just so laid-back and easy-going, and she loves to have a laugh. I’m really looking forward to working with her again on God Of Carnage. I think it’s going to be a riot!”
Joining them are award-winning actors Menchu Lauchengco-Yulo and Art Acuña. Produced by Atlantis Productions and The Singapore Repertory Theatre, God of Carnage is directed by Bobby Garcia and runs from July 13 to 22 at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium followed by a run in Singapore in November.
For ticket inquiries, call Atlantis Productions at 892-7078.