Marking Miss Saigon as their homecoming, Sean Miley Moore, Kiara Dario, and Abigail Adriano fully embrace their Filipino selves through their characters
It is utterly impossible not to talk about Filipino talent in the subject of Miss Saigon. From the impact of 17-year-old Lea Salonga playing the heroine Kim to the moving interpretation of Rachelle Ann Go as Gigi, the musical did not only shed light on its original themes and tropes but gave a platform for Filipino talent to be globally recognized. The 34-year-old show has been a familiar experience for Filipino artists and audiences combined, almost like a homecoming.
And indeed it is one for the Filipinos of the Australian tour who are stepping unto the stage together. Homecoming has its arrays of meanings, but each is an experience worth telling. With that, here are the stories of Miss Saigon’s Seann Miley Moore, Kiara Dario, and Abigail Adriano.
Related: Miss Saigon Returns to Manila With Love and Lessons That Resonate With the Filipino Soul
The Filipino roots across time and history
Filipino-Australian Abigail Adriano is Kim both in the Sydney and Manila—the lands that are bounded in her blood. “It’s definitely such an overwhelming, emotional homecoming for me. I haven’t been in the Philippines for 14 years,” she remarks.
“Kim, as a mother, is empowered. Choosing to be a mother is empowerment, it’s feminism.”
– Abigail Adriano
Like any character, Kim has complexities further established by conflicts between fate, people, and even with herself. But for the 19-year-old, the role’s feminist perspective is worth the discourse. “I think an empowered woman is not necessarily what we see [in other views] where it was about no longer being in the kitchen. Kim, as a mother, is empowered. Choosing to be a mother is empowerment, it’s feminism.”
As the Kim of this generation, Abigail hopes that her own take of the role will inspire audiences, especially the youth. “The best part of playing Kim is representing people. It’s special having girls like me to watch the show and inspire the new generation.”
A mother and child land
Cameron Macintosh’s Australian production of the Tony and Olivier musical places an importance of representation and diversity in its casting, with Seann Miley Moore at the forefront as the engineer. No, scratch that. “Enginqueer” as they would with full energy and ownership. We give credit to where credit is due for their love for music and queer assertion, but these things are also part of the Filipino culture that resonate with Moore’s bloodline.
“I am grateful to be here and to star in Miss Saigon which has so much significance for Filipino theater and Filipino talent. So I’m ready to give you all of me as I perform.”
– Seann Miley Moore on the honor of performing in Philippines
“I’ve definitely felt a separation from my Filipino heritage been living in Australia. I think it’s a full circle moment for me to really [be] back in motherland because I have Pinoy blood and to really experience my home that is part of me. All I can say is I am grateful to be here and to star in Miss Saigon which has so much significance for Filipino theater and Filipino talent. So I’m ready to give you all of me as I perform,” they open up.
Before their eight-week run begins, Sean and their mother have been making the most out of their Philippine stop. How? Kicking things off with a short vacation in Boracay.
“I got the Boracay tan, baby!” they say proudly with a laugh. “I saw my mother in her element! She grew up here. She lived here. Just to see here converse, walk the walk, talk the talk, was just a beautiful thing. Boracay was beautiful. I felt like a Pinoy Princess!” Moores shares that they had Calamansi shake every day, devoured spamsilog for breakfast and tinola for dinner.
To Sean, this was not just a full circle moment for himself, but also for their mother who raised them.
Coming home to womanhood
For Kiara Dario, playing Gigi is a form of liberation for her own womanhood. Knowing what the role entailed, she understood the commitment it would take to play the role. She says, “I warned my whole family, especially my friends who have never experienced watching the show before. This is what I’m going to wear. This is what I’m going to do.”
Sharing her own interpretation of her character, she explains, “People think of it [playing the role of Gigi] as a controversial thing. But for me, it’s just that they’re women who have bodies. The sexualization of the show shouldn’t be seen as a dirty thing.”
This isn’t the first time Kiara has showed true Filipino talent on stage. Outside of theater, she is also part of a P-pop group composed of four talented young Filipinas called Daydream. Despite the rules and expectations that normally comes with being a female “idol”, Kiara is making it known that she is following her own path. “It’s an amazing, liberating feeling coming into this because growing up in a very modest and conservative upbringing, it’s amazing to be able to break those conditioning that I’ve experienced as a woman in the Philippines,” she shares.
“I think Gigi really shows that there’s no one type of way to be a woman.”
– Kiara Dario
“Gigi is angry. Gigi is aggressive. She can be mean. She’s very proud of her sexuality and she likes the attention and she feeds off of it. She likes money! I think Gigi really shows that there’s no one type of way to be a woman,” she concludes, affirming her deep connection with the role.
Filipinos at Miss Saigon
The portrayal of Abigail, Kiara, and Seann comes with consciousness of how the show, and even the art of theater itself, is more than for its own sake.
Moore says, “The power of theater is to make you wake up, look at your life, and do something about it. That’s what we’re doing. We’re telling real stories and that’s a privilege and also, it means so much more because they’re real stories.”
Adriano seconds, “We still live in a world where the political climate is so just as intense as it is. The plight of immigrants is still there. Even after 50 years, we’re still repeating the same mistakes. The power of theater is to make sure people listen to our story and it doesn’t continue.”
Miss Saigon runs from March 23 – May 12, 2024 at The Theatre At Solaire. To book tickets, click here.
Photography DOOKIE DUCAY. Art Direction ANDREW ENCAPAS. Fashion Direction SEAN CASTELO. Beauty Direction MIA CASTRO. Styling ROKO ARCEO, assisted by GISELLE BARNACHEA. Sittings Editor MIA CASTRO. Makeup GERY PENASO (Seann), JAPETH MIKE PUROG (Kiara) and MILA GULFAN (Abigail) for ESTÉE LAUDER. Hair JAARON GO (Abigail and Kiara) and MYRENE SANTOS (Seann). Shoot Coordination JOANA FERNANDO and MELISSA TAN. Shot on Location at SOLAIRE RESORT ENTERTAINMENT CITY. Special thanks to GMG PRODUCTIONS
