Lea Salonga

Our very own national treasure and internationally renowned star Lea Salonga is playing a cat in her latest stage musical outing and she said she is immensely challenged by the role. Lea is Grizabella, the glamorous (but disliked) feline in “CATS Now and Forever,” which will premiere tonight at the CCP Main Theater for the benefit of Asian Hospital Charities, the charity arm of the Asian Hospital and Medical Center. Regular run of the musical – being presented in the Philippines by Lunchbox Theatrical Productions, David Atkins Enterprises and Concertus in association with The Really Useful Company Asia Pacific – starts on July 24 and ends on Aug. 15, 2010.

“This is really a big challenge for me,” Lea told us during a recent one-on-one interview at the Dusit Thai Hotel. “I saw ‘CATS’ for the first time when I was 17 when I auditioned for ‘Miss Saigon’ in London. It was a role that never entered my mind. I thought of playing ‘Mary Magdalene’ and Eponine in ‘Les Miserables,’ but not Grizabella. So when it was offered to me, I told them ‘Are you sure? Sigurado ba kayo? But of course, it is a very interesting role to play. I saw ‘CATS’ three times during my rehearsal in Sydney. The first time was for work, more of mentally mapping out what Grizabella was doing… I have to be a cat and so I have to study Grizabella’s movements… how she reacts to those who hate her, and when attacked. Would she fight back? There was really a lot to learn… how to walk as a cat, how to do this and that…”

Lea added that what really makes Grizabella a big challenge is that “she lives in fragmented memories, in bits and pieces in the past… and it all happens in her head. This is what I have to show. It’s really tiring but really a big challenge…”

“Cats” is the imaginative tale of a tribe of Jellicle Cats as they gather together for the annual Jellicle Ball, and one by one tell their stories for the entertainment of Old Deuteronomy, who must choose one of the Cats to journey to the Heavyside Layer to be “reborn” into a new life.

After “Cats,” Lea has concerts in the US, after which she will go to London for the 25th anniversary of “Les Miserables” on Oct. 3 (she’ll do two shows, she said).

It’s a show she’d like her daughter Nicole to see. “I’m not romancing a guy here and it’s a concert so she could watch with her dad…” she laughed. Because of her heavy schedule this year, there’s no way she and hubby Robert Chien could try having another baby. “No, not this time…”

Her daughter is already four years old, but unlike her when she was her age, she’s not showing any indication she’d be following in her mom’s footsteps. “Although she sings a little, her inclination is towards the arts. She has an incredible eye for style, which I didn’t have when I was young (she depended on her mom Ligaya in this regard). She picks her own clothes and matching shoes… she has a good taste of what’s nice and not nice to wear… her inclination is more visual.”

Lea said if this inclination continues, her daughter could be studying painting, graphic design, architecture or maybe communications when she grows up.

Going back to “CATS,” it boasts of an international entourage of 54 people including cast, crew and a live band, which plays offstage throughout the two-and-a-half hour performance. The musical has been presented in 10 languages in 300 cities over 26 countries.

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Nico Salva, No. 1 trending topic on Yahoo Philippines

The Ateneo Blue Eagles’ 6’4” Power Forward, Hardcourt Hunk, and not to mention Megan Young’s boyfriend Nico Salva has been the talk of the town. He is UAAP Season 73’s player to look out for and it’s about time that people are taking notice. His good looks, basketball skill, and strong following of fans make him a crowd favorite at games. Last July 17, he placed No.1 on the Yahoo Philippines’ trending topics – even surpassing the number of searches for big local celebrities. Is it because he’s dating a local celebrity himself? Watch out for more of him in his upcoming games in the UAAP.

Nico Salva’s Official Fanpage: http://www.facebook.com/nicosalvaofficial.

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Tidbits: Happy b-day greetings on July 23 go to former OWW Administrator Wilhelm Soriano, JCI Senator Jose B. Jimenez III, former actor Joseph Siytangco, singer Pol Toledo, Suzie Lazo, Walter Bucher, Pinichi Tanopo Lim, showbiz columnist Cristy Fermin, actor Rayver Cruz and MB’s External Affairs head Barbie Atienza. The 102-year-old Civic Charitable Women’s Board of St. Luke’s Medical Center will hold a fund-raising dinner-dance on July 24, 2010 at 7 p.m. Manila Polo Club, McKinley Forbes Park. The theme is “LUAU,” so come in your tropical attire. Raffle prizes which include an Executive Check-Up at the St. Luke’s Global City, await patrons. Proceeds of the benefit dance will go to the funding of medical procedures like chemotherapy, dialysis, implants, of the underprivileged patients of St. Luke’s Medical Center.