Review: MISS SAIGON Doesn't Look Its Age at the Sands Theatre

Singapore--After its critically acclaimed and phenomenal run in Australia, the Philippines, and Taiwan, “the show which is like dancing on a razor blade with a powerful and poignant story that you cannot do anything gratifying,” as producer Cameron Mackintosh described, returns to Singapore after 23 years.

Base Entertainment Asia, in association with GWB Entertainment, presents Mackintosh’s new, stunning production of Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg’s award-winning musical “Miss Saigon.”

At the 2,000-seater Sands Theatre, the production is more thrilling than ever and runs approximately 160 minutes with 20 minutes of intermission. It features a moving score and soaring hits, including “The Heat is On in Saigon,” “The Movie in My Mind,” “The Last Night of the World” and “The American Dream.”

Based on Giacomo Puccini’s 1904 opera in three acts Madama Butterfly, “Miss Saigon” is a musical in two acts by Boublil and Schönberg, with lyrics by Boublil and Richard Maltby Jr. For Boublil and Schönberg, the perfect representation for unfolding the dramatic characters in Puccini’s opera was an emotional photograph at Saigon airport. A Vietnamese little girl who was parting from her Vietnamese mother to join her ex-GI father living in the United States.

The tear-jerking, heartbreaking love story of Kim and Chris against the backdrop of the American-Vietnam War has turned Boublil and Schönberg’s work into a beloved musical. For over 35 years, “Miss Saigon” has continued a fantastic journey, highlighting brilliant spectacles and performers.

One of the greatest Mackintosh’s musicals, this reimagined production adapts and evolves as a reflection of the changing world of political conflicts, poverty, and exploitation, which has never been more relevant.

Many layers of skeletal and heavy textiles are added to create a scenic effect. As the skeletal Huey helicopter ascends during the desperate flashback nightmarish scene of the fall of Saigon, it delivers the tragic breaking apart of Kim and Chris in a more intimate, intense scene. It also creates a stunning visual spectacle during Act 2.

The added projections blend with lights and sounds, and some scenes bring out a newly staged environment, which breathes life into its universal tragic story. It explores storytelling possibilities, which were, technologically speaking, non-existent during the original West End production.

This production has assembled an exceptional multiracial and biracial cast from the Asia Pacific region who will perform until Sunday, Sept. 29.

Kiara Dario (Gigi) as Dreamland’s stripper and “sex toy of Hanoi” is “The Movie in My Mind” upon seeing her in Manila and now in Singapore. Dario has transformed and matured as a promising actor onstage. Laurence Mossman (Thuy) is a pleasant surprise with his vocal rendition in “Thuy’s Intervention” and “You Will Not Touch Him.”

With so much perfection and intonation, Lewis Francis (John) opens Act 2 with “Bui Doi.” Francis’ moving rendition and rousing interpretation of his only soliloquy is unforgettable eargasm. Sarah Morrison (Ellen) has a beautiful face and voice.  In “Room 317” and “Maybe,” Morrison, who is thrilled to join “Miss Saigon,” is perfect as a loving, caring, and understanding wife.

Nigel Huckle (Chris) is consistent from “Why God Why?” to “The Confrontation.” Huckle is just pure perfection in acting and intonation in singing from start to end.

Abigail Adriano (Kim) is the “17-year-old virgin from the untouched and unchartered country,” whom she shares with Indonesia-born, Singapore-raised Louisa Villine as an alternate at certain performances. Adriano is a big revelation that first-timers and theatergoers will applaud for her tenacity and consistency in one of the most demanding female roles onstage.  From her soliloquies in “I’d Give My Life For You,” “Sun and Moon (Reprise),” and “Little God of My Heart,” and her duets with Huckle in “Sun and Moon” and “The Last Night of the World,” there’s magic and chemistry.

The Big “SlayAsian Energy” of the night that no one gives a buzz goes to the EnginQUEER Seann Miley Moore (The Engineer). Moore is the star of the show who delivers effortlessly and acts beautifully during Act 1’s “If You Want to Die in Bed” and Act 2’s two eleven o’clock musical numbers “What a Waste” and “The American Dream.”

In hindsight, “Miss Saigon” did not fall apart in the West End’s Royal Drury Lane when it opened 35 years ago. It has always been a contemporary musical contrary to a period piece, although the musical is set in the mid-1970s. In 2014, stage designer Totie Driver transformed the prior touring concepts of the late scenic designer Adrian Vaux. Driver created the refugee camp and Kim’s dressing room and adorned the set with Elvis postcards and an ornament of the Statue of Liberty. Set designer Matt Kinley rebuilt new elements and options for two iconic musical sequences in the show.

In 2024, this new acclaimed production of “Miss Saigon” makes Singapore the last stop of its International Asian Tour. Now more than ever, “Miss Saigon” is a timeless musical masterpiece for first-timers and theatergoers alike. 

Photos: Daniel Boud

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