Broadway singer and actor Lea Salonga, who is the singing voice of Princess Jasmine from “Aladdin” and Fa Mulan for “Mulan” and “Mulan II,” will be the guest artist for the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square’s Christmas concert, choir officials announced Friday, Oct. 21, on Doug Wright’s “The Movie Show” and on ChurchofJesusChrist.org.
After two years of pandemic-related precautions, the concert will be open to the public this year, as the concert in 2020 was canceled and the 2021 concert had a limited audience.
“We are delighted to have Lea Salonga with us as we welcome the community back to the Conference Center for our Christmas concerts,” said Mack Wilberg, the choir director. “Her compelling voice will bring the holiday spirit to the hearts of our audiences with joy, peace, light and love.”
Salonga won a Tony Award for her role in “Miss Saigon.” She has also won the Olivier, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World awards. For her portrayal of the Disney princesses, the Walt Disney Company bestowed her with the honor of “Disney Legend.”
Salonga’s 2022 Dream Again Tour and her 2019 The Human Heart Tour saw sold-out audiences and record-breaking sales across North America and the United Kingdom. She currently stars in the HBO Max series “Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin.” An avid techie and gamer, Salonga divides her time between the United States and Manila, Philippines.
Salonga said during the announcement that it’s her first time performing with the Tabernacle Choir and it’s an experience she’s looking forward to.
“The sound that everybody makes — and in harmony — is just just stunning,” she said of the choir. “So this is going to be a treat for my ears.”
A guest narrator will be announced later.
Tickets
The concert — with the 360-voice choir, 85 Orchestra at Temple Square instrumentalists and 32 bell ringers from Bells at Temple Square — will be in the Conference Center at Temple Square.
Tickets are free but required for the concert, which is Thursday, Dec. 15, to Saturday, Dec. 17. Tickets are not required for the “Music & the Spoken Word” broadcast on Sunday, Dec. 18.
Tickets are distributed through a random selection process and limited to two per household. The registration opens on Friday, Oct. 21, at noon and runs through Sunday, Oct. 30, at 11:59 p.m. MST. Full details can be found at tabchoir.org/Christmastickets.
Admission will be open to those ages 8 and older. As was the case for the recent general conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the number of tickets distributed will be limited due to the construction in and around Temple Square, according to the announcement.
Christmas concerts
In 2020, the live concert was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Choir and orchestra officials worked with BYUtv to produce the “20 Years of Christmas With the Tabernacle Choir” special with Tony Award-winner Brian Stokes Mitchell that aired in 2021.
In 2021, the concert had a limited audience. Broadway star Megan Hilty and actor Neal McDonough joined the choir, the Orchestra and the Bells at Temple Square and the Gabriel Trumpet Ensemble for a performance that was recorded for airing this year. The concert, “O Holy Night,” will be broadcast on PBS on Tuesday, Dec. 13, at 8 p.m. EST and on BYUtv on Sunday, Dec. 18, at 8 p.m. EST.
The first Tabernacle Choir Christmas concert was in 2000 with soul singer Gladys Knight and “Touched By An Angel” actor Roma Downey. In 2001, “Murder, She Wrote” actor and “Beauty and the Beast” singer Angela Lansbury joined the choir and orchestra.
PBS began broadcasting a 60-minute recording of the previous year’s concert in 2004. Since 2017, BYUtv joined with the choir to produce the broadcast specials.
For more information, visit TheTabernacleChoir.org.
