rights. Early life and education Maria Lea Carmen Imutan Salonga was born on February 22, 1971, in the Ermita district of Manila, Philippines to Feliciano Genuino Salonga, a naval rear admiral and shipping company owner, and María Ligaya Alcántara, née Imutan of Pulupandan, Negros Occidental. She spent the first six years of her childhood in Angeles City before returning to Manila. As a child, Salonga sang at family parties before being encouraged by her cousin to audition for an upcoming production of The King and I, where she made her professional debut. While living in Angeles City, Salonga studied at the local O.B. Montessori Center campus. She later transferred to the campus in Greenhills, San Juan, Metro Manila to complete her secondary education, graduating as the class valedictorian in 1988. She later attended the University of the Philippines College of Music's extension program aimed at training musically talented children in music and stage movement. A college freshman studying biology at the Ateneo de Manila University when she auditioned for Miss Saigon, she intended to have a medical career. In the early 2000s, in between jobs in New York, she took two courses, Philosophy and European History, at Fordham University's Lincoln Center campus. Career 1971–1989: Career beginnings and Small Voice As a child, Salonga began singing at family parties. Her cousin, who was active with Repertory Philippines, encouraged her to audition for a production of The King and I, where she made her professional debut in 1978 at the age of seven. While performing with the company, she was trained by founders Baby Barredo and Zenaida “Bibot” Amador. She played the title role in Annie in 1980, later reprising the role in 1984, and appeared in other productions such as Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1978), Fiddler on the Roof (1978), The Sound of Music (1980), The Rose Tattoo (1980), The Goodbye Girl (1982), Paper Moon (1983), and The Fantasticks (1988). In 1981, Salonga released her first album, Small Voice, which was certified gold in the Philippines, and made her film debut in the comedy film Tropang Bulilit. As a young performer, Salonga received a Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences (FAMAS) award nomination for Best Child Actress and three Aliw Awards for best child performer in 1980, 1981, and 1982. From 1983 to 1985, she hosted her musical television show, Love, Lea, and was a member of the