Lea Salonga Receives the Gold Legend Honor | Gold Gala 2023

Presented by Chloe Kim, Lisa Ling, and Jose Antonio Vargas. Lea Salonga is receiving the Gold Legend Honor for a lifetime of indelible contributions to the success and representation of the Asian Pacific community. Multiple award-winning actress and singer Lea Salonga is renowned across the world for her powerful voice and perfect pitch. She is best known for her Tony Award winning role in Miss Saigon. In addition to the Tony, she has won the Olivier, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Awards, in the field of musical theatre. She was also the first Asian to play Eponine in the musical Les Misérables on Broadway and returned to the beloved show as Fantine in the 2006 revival. Many fans of all ages recognize Lea as the singing voice of Princess Jasmine from Aladdin and Fa Mulan for Mulan and Mulan II. For her portrayal of the beloved princesses, the Walt Disney Company bestowed her with the honor of “Disney Legend”. Most recently, Lea starred in the critically acclaimed Sony musical-drama YELLOW ROSE and stars in the Netflix animated series CENTAURWORLD. She is currently filming the first season of Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin (a reboot of the popular series) for HBO Max. In August 2020, Lea released her single “Dream Again” and in November Lea Salonga: Live with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra from Sydney Opera House aired as part of Great Performances on PBS. A live album of the performance was subsequently released by Broadway Records. Lea’s 2019 The Human Heart Tour saw sold-out audiences and record-breaking sales across North America, the United Kingdom and Australia. On Broadway, Lea most recently starred in the 2018 Broadway revival of Once on This Island as the Goddess of Love, Erzulie. The show’s return to the Broadway stage earned a Tony Award for “Best Revival of a Musical” and also garnered Lea and the cast a Grammy nomination for “Best Musical Theater Album.” Lea has toured all over the world, performing sold out concerts in such locations as the Sydney Opera House, 02 Arena, Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, Singapore’s Esplanade , Kuala Lumpur Convention Center, Hong Kong Cultural Center ), Queen Sirikit Convention Center in Bangkok and Carnegie Hall in New York.She was also the first artist to sell out two shows at Brigham Young University’s deJong Concert Hall in Provo, Utah since The Kings Singers in 2009. An avid techie and gamer, Lea divides her time between Manila, Philippines with her family and the United States. Learn more about the A100 Honorees at a100list.com.