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| Lea Salonga with daughter Nicole and mother Ligaya during the book launch of "Princess Lea." Photo: ABS-CBN News |
MANILA – Tony winner Lea Salonga's life story has been turned into a book which traces her roots before making it big in the international scene.
Titled “Princess Lea,” the children’s book narrates Salonga’s story back when she first auditioned for a role in “The King and I” at age 6.
Written by Yvette Fernandez, the book aims to inspire kids who also aspire to reach their dreams, just like what happened to Salonga.
As early as 7, Salonga already had professional stints in the local theater scene. Ten years and several film and stage roles later, she landed the dream role of Kim in the West End musical "Miss Saigon," which introduced her to an international audience.
Salonga's performance as Kim won her acting trophies from the prestigious Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre or the Tony Awards, as well as the Laurence Olivier Awards.
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| The cover of "Princess Lea." Photo: ABS-CBN News |
During the book launch in Makati on Sunday, Salonga’s daughter Nicole played a special role as she read two pages from the book.
“My daughter is enjoying this very much. She’s like, ‘Is it weird? There’s a book about you?’ I said, ‘No, it’s not weird. It’s fine.’ She’s in a very unique position that her mom has a book about her,” she said.
Salonga added her daughter was also delighted to see herself in the book.
“She was very excited to see herself in the book too. She’s 7, I think she’ll enjoy everything. She’s not going to be overly critical of anything at this point,” she said.
Nicole is Salonga’s only child with her husband, Robert Chien.