Most musical theater actresses that played the role of Kim in “Miss Saigon” were Filipinas and Maya Barredo is included in that list as one of the talented Filipinas that bagged the role. It says a lot about how our “kababayans” made it big in the West End. And I am proud to have her as my cousin.

Having appeared on stage as early as age 9, she performed alongside the legendary Baby Barredo on Repertory Philippines’ “Shirt Tales. The early exposure to the performing arts gave her a solid foundation to establish a long lasting career in theater. It then led her to a role in “El Filibusterismo”, produced by De La Salle University. Years later, she played as Kim in the Drury Lane run of Boubil and Schonberg’s “Miss Saigon”.

To those who haven’ seen “Miss Saigon” yet, it is a loose adaptation of Giacomo Puccini’s opera entitled “Madame Butterfly” where the same trope of an Asian maiden falling in love with an American GI. While in “Madame Butterfly”, the love story is between an American soldier and a Japanese geisha, “Miss Saigon” is the story of an American soldier and a Vietnamese bar girl. War serves as a backdrop and the union bears fruit.

While the role of Kim is Vietnamese, various Asian musical theater actresses consist mostly of Filipinas that made the cut. Maya Barredo was one of them that became “resident” performers on Theater Royal Drury Lane. The number of years that the run lasted served as proof of the successful run that they experienced. It spanned between 1989 and 1999. And some of those years included her.

When “Miss Saigon” got revived on the West End, she was one of the former “Kims” that attended the gala night on Prince Edward theater. The “Miss Saigon” reunion included members of the original cast like Mr. Jonathan Pryce (the original Engineer) and Ms. Lea Salonga (the original Kim).

Now happily married as Maya Barredo-Duffy, she is now part of the group “West End Mamas” that regularly perform hits from West End and Broadway. Their upcoming shows can be viewed by clicking here. For more updates about them, you can subscribe to their mailing list by clicking here. You can also like them on their official Facebook page and follow them on Twitter.

Will we get to share the stage one night for a West End themed performance? She will be accompanied by her fellow West End Mamas for sure. To see when that would happen, just keep yourself updated by clicking “Like” on my official Facebook page, Kuya Manzano Fan Club, and by following me on Twitter @kuyamanzano. Gracias!