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Arts and entertainment reports from The Times, national and international news services and the nation's press

Alternate ‘Miss Saigon’: Kam Cheng, a 21-year-old student, will be the alternate for Lea Salonga in Broadway’s “Miss Saigon,” doing some of the performances in order to give Salonga respite from the physical demands of the show’s title role. Cheng’s performance schedule will be announced later--producer Cameron Mackintosh “has to see her do the role in a rehearsal first,” said a spokesman. The casting of Salonga, a Filipina, had been challenged by Actors’ Equity on the grounds that such a role should go to an Asian American, but an arbitrator agreed with Mackintosh’s claim that Salonga provided “unique services.” Cheng was born in Hong Kong and became an American citizen in 1978.

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