If you have never seen Miss Saigon before, then this is the perfect cast and production for your introduction to this absolute master class in musical theatre. If you are like me and have seen it multiple times, you won’t regret your return in the slightest.
The stage is transformed into Saigon by a beautifully designed set and lighting that offers a constant dull red glow. You can almost feel the hot and humid night air as the ladies battle it out to be crowned Miss Saigon and grab themselves an American soldier for the night. The heat is on in Saigon and you are sure to feel it.
This is the love story of a soldier called Chris wanting to save an innocent young woman Kimfrom the endless pain of working for the eccentric Engineer in a war torn country. We travel through years of survival for not just Kim,as she lives a life of poverty, but for Chris who, once back home in America, lives the after effects of war on both his mind and his heart.
This is a tale of how a Mother will do anything to give their child the best chance in life and you will have eyes full of tears by the end.
The music of Miss Saigon is one of my all time favourite soundtracks and is written by the geniuses that are Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil with lyrics by Boublil and Richard Maltby Jr. They wrote this shortly after their success with Les Miserable and you will be taken on a journey through song that will tickle all your emotions right from the start. With songs like I’d Give My Life For You and Sun and Moon, you will easily fall in love with Saigon.
The original cast was full of huge musical theatre names including Lea Salonga and Jon Jon Briones, but this cast is as near to the originals as you will ever see. I have seen this musical four times now and this was by far my favourite cast ever!
Julianne Pundan plays the role of Kim to perfection. Her tone and delivery are everything you could ever dream of and she embodies the strong yet vulnerable character of this “Virgin Princess” like none have done before since Salonga left the role. I closed my eyes for a few seconds here and there just to soak in every flawless note that she sang.
Chris is played brilliantly by Jack Kane and his performance is massively enhanced by the brilliant talent of Dominic Hartley-Harris playing his GI buddy John. They bring a chemistry to the roles that I haven’t seen before and it was awesome.
Now the Engineer is a role that takes someone extremely special to pull off properly and boy have they found the perfect person for the job. Seann Miley Moore has really upped the game when it comes to getting the perfect level of flamboyance, pervy and masterful. The American Dream has never looked or sounded as good and it is worth going just to see him take this moment to educate us all in how it is done.
For any die hard fans, like myself, I will say that the helicopter scene isn’t staged quite the same as usual and though I enjoyed the men being winched up and out of the stage, I wasn’t as in love with the helicopter itself. I also wasn’t too sure about the staging of I Still Believeas losing the beautiful juxtaposition of Ellen’s crisp, white, bedroom over Kim’s dingy, dirty, home was a shame and the change didn’t make as much sense to the lyrics anymore in my opinion, but go and see how they have done it and let me know what you think.
I am so glad I took one more trip to Saigon and if there was ever a masterclass in all things musical theatre, then this show is it.
Grab yourself tickets now at https://www.wmc.org.uk/en/whats-on/2026/miss-saigon
