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[0:18] Will Armstrong: It's curtains up on another episode of West of Broadway, a celebration of musical theater in Los Angeles.

[0:24] Lara Scott: Our radio host and theater enthusiast Lara Scott, along with celebrity publicist and theater veteran Will Armstrong.

[0:30] Will Armstrong: Hey Lara.

[0:31] Lara Scott: Hey, hi Will.

[0:31] Will Armstrong: Who are we talking to today?

[0:32] Lara Scott: I'm super excited about today's show because we get to talk one-on-one with the star of Miss Saigon's National Tour, playing Kim, Emily Bautista.

[0:41] Will Armstrong: Let's welcome Emily Bautista to our birthday.

[0:46] Emily Bautista: Thank you guys for having me.

[0:48] Will Armstrong: Okay, you are just so happy and bubbly, but when we saw you on stage at the Pantages not too long ago, you ripped our hearts out.

[0:58] Emily Bautista: Thank you.

[0:59] Emily Bautista: It is an absolute honor.

[1:02] Emily Bautista: Every night.

[1:03] Lara Scott: No, it is such an honor to talk to you. And we'll just start with the big question. I mean, what is it like playing an iconic character like Kim in Miss Saigon?

[1:12] Emily Bautista: Oh my gosh. I mean, it's amazing. It's so many emotions all wrapped into one. There's so much pressure that comes along with it. But I think that pressure comes from the duty of portraying this character as honestly and as strong as I can. Especially following incredible actresses and singers like Lea Salonga and Eva Noblezada. But I actually did get to talk to the two of them and gain some advice. You know, they were so helpful and they cared so much about this character and making sure she was in good hands. I think that was a lot of the pressure of it that I put on myself to make sure I told this story as honestly and as powerfully as I could.

[1:54] Lara Scott: What was some of the advice, or maybe one piece of advice that you got from one of them as you were getting ready to take this on?

[2:00] Emily Bautista: Sure. So, you know, a big thing that I have to remind myself constantly is to take care of myself mentally and physically first because my body, my mental state, it all goes into telling the story. Sometimes, you know, as actors and actresses, we tend to overextend ourselves and push ourselves, which is a good thing, but also to remind ourselves to take a step back and practice self-care and self-compassion. I think that was one of the biggest things that they told me before I hit the road, and I've tried to adapt into my everyday life.

[2:40] Lara Scott: Sure. Absolutely. Like I, Emily, okay, I have two things. First, congratulations on landing such an iconic role. I mean, this is like a checklist of a musical theater performer, like that's one of the greats. So, I mean, good for you, and you did not let us down. You had me on the edge of my seat the entire performance. You had everyone I sat around, like everyone was just like they hung on your every word.

[3:07] Will Armstrong: But okay, so here's my question, it's a little in depth. But how do you feel about playing to a house like, I mean, I had a seven-year-old sitting behind me eating snacks? Like, is that weird that like it is such a serious heavy topic? How do you justify or how do you settle that in your head that you're performing this for the masses, like of all ages and all generations?

[3:33] Emily Bautista: Oh, you know, I think I, well, so I did the show back in New York on Broadway, and I was one of the bar girls. So I think to introduce myself into this world, I had to do that in front of my own father and my brother. So that's what buffered it. But I think on a serious note, you know, at the end of the day, I think it's such a powerful story that needs to be told for all ages to hear. It's a part of history that kind of gets shoved under the rug a little bit. I remember learning in history class about the Vietnam War and that was it. So I think there's something very important about our show that does, it is a lot for the younger kids. I think we recommend swallowing up, but yes, you're absolutely right, parents bring their children and it makes me kind of happy because these children are being introduced to a part of history and a part of society that a lot of our morals, a lot of the lessons in our show are still live and present today.

[4:39] Lara Scott: Oh my goodness, you make an amazing point because here we have a show that takes place in the seventies that originally was introduced to American theater in the nineties and now here we are in 2019, like traveling the nation telling a story that touches upon sex workers, it touches upon immigration, it touches upon war. These are all things that we are still steeped in, but we as a culture are facing, we have a different opinion of or the way that we deal with it. How has that affected your performance?

[5:17] Emily Bautista: Like in my heart and gratitude to be able to do it. I think one of the big messages in our show is that love exists in the most broken of places, that love exists where acceptance doesn't. I think today in our world, I remember when we were starting rehearsals, you turned on the news and it was children in cages. I mean, it's crazy, but it's happening today in a different setting, but the same tragedies.

[5:50] Will Armstrong: Right. Well, Lara and I, like it seems like every time we do one of these shows and we talk about a classic Broadway show, it still rings true and you can still find a narrative that speaks to exactly what's going on right now and lessons that we can learn that are set to music and set to beautiful stories with incredible artists telling those tales. It's just really amazing and mind-blowing.

[6:13] Emily Bautista: Thank you. Yeah, you know, I think there's a lot of relevance in our show that lives on today, and hopefully audience members will come and maybe leave with a different mindset or a more open heart.

[6:25] Will Armstrong: And within the show, there's so many iconic songs and we heard people around us singing. Do you have your favorite song?

[6:33] Emily Bautista: Well, I can always see his face like when somebody's doing it. Do you have a favorite song that you get to sing every night when you do the show?

[6:40] Emily Bautista: Oh, I love the, because sometimes we do on stage hear people singing along and it makes my whole heart smile to see. But I think my favorite song, it's a song and a scene, the nightmare scene. I just love the orchestration behind it. I remember being on the school bus in high school and listening to that particular song over and over again and having to quiet my mouth so I didn't sing along. But it's just such an intense and epic scene where the orchestra, the cast, the crew come together and display the final evacuation out of Saigon. The music written by Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil to underscore it and tell that story is just, it's so epic. It's so iconic.

[7:24] Will Armstrong: Absolutely. I feel like we had a very similar high school experience because that was me as well.

[7:32] Emily Bautista: I love it. I love it.

[7:33] Emily Bautista: But yeah, no, one of the other things that I walked away with was the talent that was in your cast. They just seem so incredibly talented and beautiful. Are they as amazing backstage? Like is this family that you get to travel the country with?

[7:52] Emily Bautista: Absolutely. I mean, it was just, I think there's a lot of pressure going into a tour just because of the lifestyle we live. We eat, we work, we live in the same place as everyone we work with. This kind of becomes our own world. But the first day of rehearsals, the amount of hugs, the amount of smiles around that room has lasted all twelve months that we've been on the road. So it's just been incredible and a completely supportive cast, and I think this show wouldn't survive without that positivity and that support.

[8:26] Lara Scott: We're so excited to come. We start Tuesday with you guys in Costa Mesa, so we are so excited. I've had a lot of friends play it and they're just so excited.

[8:36] Will Armstrong: That's fantastic. I hope you get a chance to go to Disneyland. Are you gonna get to do any of the fun local things while you're here, maybe?

[8:42] Emily Bautista: I think so. We have what we call a golden day, which is the day we have off because I'm totally gonna only travel on that day off. But since we're with you guys, I think for two weeks, we get that Monday, so I think we're gonna hit Disneyland, which will be a lot of fun.

[8:57] Lara Scott: Please post to Instagram so we can live vicariously.

[9:01] Emily Bautista: You got it.

[9:03] Will Armstrong: That's awesome. And Emily, where can everyone keep up with you?

[9:07] Emily Bautista: Sure. So I think my most used social media outlet is Instagram, and I am at EM underscore B-A-U-T-I-S-T-A.

[9:16] Will Armstrong: Perfect. Wonderful. Well, we're excited to welcome you and the entire cast and crew, the orchestra, everybody of Miss Saigon to Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa. This is a show not to be missed. Emily, I mean, I have goosebumps just thinking about seeing you on stage as Kim. Thank you for what you give every night, and we appreciate you so much. Thank you for joining us on West of Broadway.

[9:38] Emily Bautista: Yay!

[9:39] Emily Bautista: Well, thank you.

[9:40] Emily Bautista: Thank you guys for having me. I'd love this.

[9:43] Lara Scott: Oh my goodness. You're wonderful and enjoy your time here. And thank you so much. Hopefully, we'll get to talk to you again.

[9:49] Emily Bautista: Yes, I would love that. Thank you.

[9:51] Will Armstrong: Thanks, Emily. Take care.

[9:52] Emily Bautista: Bye.

[9:53] Will Armstrong: Bye.

[9:54] Lara Scott: And obviously, Will and I love the shows that we talk about on West of Broadway. Otherwise, we wouldn't be talking about them. But this one, Miss Saigon is one. Do not miss it here in Orange County or wherever you're listening to this, check and see if it's gonna be playing somewhere near you soon. And you can always reach us. I'm on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook at Lariscott Media.

[10:13] Will Armstrong: And I'm Will Armstrong PR on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

[10:16] Lara Scott: And if you're looking for us, you can find us just west of Broadway.