Video: Lewis Francis, Sarah Morrison Talk MISS SAIGON

Singapore-- In a sit-down interview with “Miss Saigon” cast, Lewis Francis (John) and Sarah Morrison (Ellen) were asked: What’s the core message of ‘Miss Saigon’? They both answered unflinchingly: “There are no winners in war.”

“I'm sure everyone who comes and sees the show, there's something they will lock into. It's certainly the huge themes of war and its lasting effects,” Francis said.

“What's so complex? Everyone [every character in the show] is doing their best with what they have, and there are no real winners in war.”

Paralleling themes of love and war side by side Giacomo Puccini’s opera Madama Butterfly, Claude-Michel Schonberg and Alain Boublil’s “Miss Saigon” centers on the evolved character arc of its heroine, Kim, from being a naïve bar girl who falls in love with an American G.I. to an assertive woman who has a mind of her own, which contrasts that of Madama Butterfly’s female lead, Cio-Cio San.

While Madama Butterfly, set in early 20th-century Japan, is confined by the societal and political tensions between Japan and America, “Miss Saigon,” set during the Vietnam War, explores the themes of oppression, poverty, and conflict between nations Vietnam and America. In the war’s aftermath, among the living survivors are young children fathered by American soldiers, left in the streets, or with their Vietnamese mothers.

“[Miss Saigon] is [also] about the children, looking after the children--the innocent victims of war,” Francis said.

Watch our full interview:

A sung-through musical set against the backdrop of the Vietnam War, “Miss Saigon” features music by Claude-Michel Schonberg, lyrics by Richard Maltby Jr., and Alain Boublil, adapted from the original French lyrics by Boublil.  It also has additional new lyrics by Michael Mahler.

Its creative team includes Laurence Connor (direction), Bob Avian (musical staging), Geoffrey Garratt (additional choreography), Totie Driver and Matt Kinley (production design based on Adrian Vaux's original concept), Andreane Neofitou (costume design), Bruno Poet (lighting design), Luke Halls (projections), Mick Potter (sound design), William David Brohn (orchestrations), and Alfonso Casado Trigo and Guy Simpson (music supervision).

Besides Francis and Morrison, “Miss Saigon” stars Abigail Adriano (Kim), Louisa Vilinne (alternate Kim), Nigel Huckle (Chris), Seann Miley Moore (The Engineer), Laurence Mossman (Thuy), and Kiara Dario (Gigi). Aday Velasco, Annabelle Rosewarne, Asmara Soekotjo, Atsushi Okumura, Bailey Nathan-Park, Brad Veitch, Carlo Boumouglbay, Celine Cleveland, David Duketis, David Ouch, Ellie Chan, Emily Huynh, Gelina Enriquez, Hamish Johnston, Jack Connor Rowan, Jiho Hwang, Leyton Holmes, Louis Stockil, Michael Boyle, Mikaila Imaguchi, Natasha Dumlao, Nicholas Kong, Paloma Renouf, Patrick Jeremy, Robbie Mejica, Sam Ward, Sara Haruta, Shannon Cheong, Tamsyn Thomas, Tetsuya Okubo, Tony Oxybel, Trevor Santos, Vi Lamand, and Winchester Lopez.

“Miss Saigon” is presented in Singapore by Base Entertainment Asia in association with GWB Entertainment.

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