MANILA, Philippines – Netizens came to the defense of Lea Salonga after a fan claimed they had been treated rudely by the Broadway Diva while in the vicinity of her dressing room.“Gusto ko lang po ipost, bahala na po kayo humusga (I just want to post this. Judge it for yourself),” Facebook user Christopher Retokelly Carpila posted on Saturday, July 15.

In the two-minute video, the singer-actress is visibly surprised when she notices some fans trying to enter her dressing room for the Broadway musical Here Lies Love to request a picture with her.

“Who are you? I’m so sorry. I don’t know you,” Salonga was heard saying in the video, to which an unidentified woman replied: “I’m just a fan.”

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Salonga then explains to those gathered by her dressing room that if they are not on the guest list, they are not allowed in that area.

“You have to go to the door, I’m sorry. But if I allow this now, other people are going to take advantage of this,” Salonga said.

Meanwhile, another woman started approaching Salonga, disclosing that she is acquainted with the show’s co-producer G Tongi.

Salonga then asks them to stay outside the door, reiterating that she will not be entertaining people who are not on the guest list for security purposes.

Carpila added in his Facebook post that they had undergone similar incidents, but that this recent one was worse.

“Mas malala pa kasi para kaming mga basurang pinagtabuyan sa harap ng taong andoon (It was worse because it felt like we were trash being thrown out in front of all the people there),” he wrote.

Carpila also directly addressed Salonga in his post, saying that, as a fellow Filipino, she could’ve treated them better.

“Siguro naman bilang kapwa Pilipino at mga fans eh mabigyan ng kahit konting respeto. At kahit hindi na yakapin or ibeso ay mapagbigyan na kahit sandaling magpa-picture,” he said.

(As a fellow Filipino and as your fans, we hoped you could have given us some respect. Even if you didn’t hug or kiss us on the cheek, you could have at least granted our request to take a photo.)

The video quickly circulated online, with several netizens reprimanding these fans for invading the actress’ privacy.

“Lea Salonga was not wrong to insist on respecting her personal space in this instance. These ‘fans’ are beyond entitled and rude,” one wrote.

“If you think Lea Salonga was rude here, going inside her dressing room without her permission is even more rude,” another said.

In response, Salonga posted on Monday, July 17: “Just a reminder. I have boundaries. Do not cross them.”

https://twitter.com/MsLeaSalonga/status/1680790065071489024
“That attitude of entitlement gets a ‘fuck that shit’ from me,” she wrote in another tweet.

https://twitter.com/MsLeaSalonga/status/1680794279382339584
The actress also clarified that one of the fan’s claims that they were acquainted with the co-producer wasn’t true.

https://twitter.com/MsLeaSalonga/status/1680794765598547971
Salonga also reminded viewers of proper etiquette.

“The money you pay for a theater/concert ticket does not mean all-access. You pay for that performer’s art, and that’s where it stops,” she said. – Rappler.com

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