Joan Marcus photo
"Miss Saigon" cast and crew members from Hawaii are:
top, left to right, Johnny Fernandez, Niall M. Yoshizumi, Cliffton
Hall, Matt Biltgen, Peter Lawrence, Mahlon Kruse and Don
Nahaku. Bottom, from left, Bonifacio Deoso Jr., Kimberly
Balmilero, Jewl Anguay and Michael Bright.

Locals named to
‘Saigon’ cast

By Tim Ryan
Star-Bulletin

Hawaii actor Johnny Fernandez has captured a major role in the national touring production of "Miss Saigon" which opens at the Blaisdell Concert Hall next month through Nov. 17, the show's producers have announced.

Fernandez, who will play the role of "Thuy," began his career at age 5, when he made his television debut on a show called "The Happy Hour." Since then, he's been performing throughout the Pacific, including the Philippines and Hawaii, and has appeared in several television and motion pictures, including "One West Waikiki," "Mistah," "Blade" and "The Longest Shadow."

Joseph Anthony Foronda will head the company in the starring role as "The Engineer" with Mika Nishida as "Kim," the young Vietnamese girl who falls in love with "Chris," the American soldier played by Greg Stone.

Foronda recently appeared on Broadway as The Engineer and was an original cast member of "Miss Saigon's" first national tour. Nishida formerly played the role of Gigi. She was born in Kanagawa Ken, Japan. Also featured will be Eugene Barry-Hill as "John," Jacquelyn Piro as "Ellen." (At certain performances, Michelle Nigalan will play the role of "Kim.")

Hawaii actors joining Fernandez in "Miss Saigon" are: Jewl Anguay (ensemble); Kimberly Jonelle Balmilero (ensemble and "Kim" understudy); Jade Bright (ensemble); Michael Bright (ensemble); Amado Cacho (ensemble); Bonifacio Deoso Jr. (ensemble and "Thuy" understudy); Cliffton Hall (ensemble and "Chris" understudy); Don Nahaku (ensemble and Engineer understudy); Matthew Pedersen (ensemble).

"Miss Saigon" is a musical produced by Cameron Mackintosh and written by Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schonberg, the creators of "Les Miserables." It's a story of love between a young Vietnamese girl and an American G.I. during the 1975 fall of Saigon.

Tickets are on sale at the Blaisdell box office, TicketPlus (808) 526-4400, or online at http://www.ticketslive.com. Tickets range in price from $29 to $88.

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