Tony Award Winner Lea Salonga and Telly Leung to Star in Upcoming New Broadway Musical “Allegiance”
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Rick Miramontez / Pete Sanders/ Scott Braun
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, PLEASE
TONY AWARD® WINNER LEA SALONGA
AND TELLY LEUNG JOIN GEORGE TAKEI
IN
ALLEGIANCE
A NEW AMERICAN MUSICAL
MARCHING TO BROADWAY THIS FALL
PREVIEWS TO BEGIN ON OCTOBER 6th
OPENING NIGHT SET FOR NOVEMBER 8TH
AT THE LONGACRE THEATRE
New York, NY (March 13, 2015) – Producers Lorenzo Thione and Andrew Treagus announced today that Tony Award® winner Lea Salonga and Telly Leung will co-star with George Takei in Allegiance, a new American musical, set to open on Broadway next season at the Longacre Theatre (220 West 48th Street). Previews are set to begin on Tuesday, October 6, 2015 with opening night set for Sunday, November 8, 2015. As previously announced, Television and film star George Takei will star in the new musical which had its world premiere in a record-breaking engagement at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego. Allegiance has a book by Marc Acito with music and lyrics by Jay Kuo. Helming the production is Olivier Award nominee Stafford Arima (London’s Ragtime, Off-Broadway’s Bare, Carrie, Altar Boyz).
Allegiance is inspired by Takei’s true childhood experiences. Traversing the lush California heartland, the windswept prairies of Wyoming and the battlefields of war-torn Europe, Allegiance tells the epic multi-generational tale of deep family loyalty, romance, humor, optimism and unparalleled heroism in the face of fear and prejudice against Japanese-Americans during World War II and beyond.
George Takei, the original and beloved Mr. Sulu from “Star Trek”, film and television star, activist and social media icon, will make his Broadway debut in the production.
Lea Salonga is a singer and actress who is best known for her Tony Award winning role in Miss Saigon. In addition to the Tony, she has won the Olivier, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards. She was also the first Asian to play Eponine in Les Misérables on Broadway and returned to the show as Fantine in the 2006 revival. Lea most recently wrapped touring with Il Divo for the group’s worldwide “A Musical Affair” tour. When not on tour, Lea is a coach on the Philippine version of the hit “The Voice”. Prior to that, Lea garnered a Craig Noel nomination for Outstanding Featured Performance in the musical Allegiance at the Old Globe Theater is San Diego. She was also seen in God of Carnage in Manila, Philippines and Singapore. Fans of all ages recognize Lea as the singing voice of Princess Jasmine from Aladdin and Fa Mulan for Mulan and Mulan II. For her portrayal of the beloved princesses, the Walt Disney Company bestowed her with the honor of “Disney Legend” in August of 2011. In 2010, she participated in the 25th Anniversary Concert of Les Misérables to sold- out crowds at the UK’s O2 arena and dazzled as the hauntingly tragic Grizabella in a limited run of CATS in Manila. Honored with an appointment as a United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization Goodwill Ambassador in October of 2010, Lea vowed to act as an advocate for the Youth and United Nations Global Alliance initiative led by the FAO. In her 30-year career, Lea has performed for six Philippine presidents (from Ferdinand Marcos to Begnino Aquino, III.), three American Presidents (George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush), and for Diana, Princess of Wales and Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. In 2002, she took on the role of a Chinese immigrant in a reinterpretation of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Flower Drum Song, on Broadway, opposite Jose Llana. The Salonga-led Broadway revival cast album was also a top contender at the 2003 Grammy Awards for Best Musical Show Album. An avid techie and gamer, Lea divides her time between Manila, Philippines with her family and the United States.
Telly Leung’s Broadway and national touring credits include Flower Drum Song, Pacific Overtures, Wicked (Boq, original Chicago company), Rent (final Broadway company) and Godspell. Off-Broadway, he was featured in Manhattan Theatre Club's The World of Extreme Happiness. Regionally, some of his favorite roles include Sammy in the world-premiere of Allegiance (the Old Globe, with George Takei and Lea Salonga), Song in M. Butterfly (Philadelphia Theater Company), Angel in Rent at the Hollywood Bowl (directed by Neil Patrick Harris), Harold Bride in Titanic (The Muny), Teen Angel in Grease (Paper Mill Playhouse), Simon in Jesus Christ Superstar (Sacramento Music Circus) and Thuy in Miss Saigon (Pittsburgh CLO). Television audiences will recognize his work on Fox's “Glee,” (Wes, the Warbler), “Law and Order: CI,” and Hulu's “Deadbeat.” He has performed all over the world at venues like Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center, the London Hippodrome, New York's 54 Below, San Francisco's Feinstein's at the Nikko and the Hollywood Bowl. His debut album, {i'll cover you}, was released on The Yellow Sound Label in 2012. Telly holds a BFA from Carnegie Mellon University, and has taught as an adjunct professor at NYU's New Studio on Broadway. Telly can also be seen coaching the next generation of Broadway performers on the PBS documentary, “Broadway or Bust”. Producing credits include Grind (a musical short film starring Anthony Rapp and Claire Coffee) and Seasons of Broadway (a concert series that celebrates the diversity of the Great White Way).
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