Melody Butiu

Melody is thrilled to reprise her role as Sofia Flores in THE QUEEN OF VERSAILLES on Broadway, a new musical by Stephen Schwartz and Lindsey Ferrentino, and starring Kristin Chenoweth and F. Murray Abraham. The show had a wonderfully successful run at the Emerson Colonial Theatre in Boston and is now coming to Broadway's St. James Theatre. Directed by two-time Tony Award winner Michael Arden (Maybe Happy Ending, Parade), the musical tracks Jackie Siegel as she becomes the wife of David "Timeshare King" Siegel and mother to eight children as they endeavor to build the largest private home in the country in Orlando, Florida, only for the 2008 recession to dampen their dreams and lavish lifestyle. For tickets and more information, click here. Cast photo credit: Valerie Terranova.​​

 

Melody returned to the role of Estrella Cumpas for the Broadway production of HERE LIES LOVE. Here Lies Love is a groundbreaking musical about former Filipina First Lady Imelda Marcos’s astonishing rise to power and subsequent fall at the hands of the Philippine People Power Revolution. From the minds of David Byrne (Academy Award®, Grammy® Award, and Tony Award® winner) and Fatboy Slim (Grammy Award winner), Here Lies Love has been called “ingenious” by The New York Times and “an ecstatic and dynamic party” by Time Out New York. Choreographed by Annie-B Parson (Olivier Award nominee) and developed and directed by Alex Timbers (Tony Award winner), the theater was transformed into a dance club where the audience was immersed in the story.​

 

As part of the the 2023/2024 Broadway season, HERE LIES LOVE was honored with FOUR Tony Award nominations, including Best Original Score, Best Choreography, Best Scenic Design, and Best Sound Design. We received FOUR Outer Critics Circle Award nominations, including Outstanding Revival of a Musical, and THREE Drama League Award Nominations, including Outstanding Revival of a Musical and Outstanding Direction of a Musical.

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The cast included: Arielle Jacobs, Jose Llana, Conrad Ricamora, Lea Salonga, Melody Butiu, Moses Villarama, Jasmine Forsberg, Reanne Acasio, Jaygee Macapugay, Julia Abueva, Renee Albulario, Aaron Alcaraz, Carol Angeli, Nathan Angelo, Kristina Doucette, Roy Flores, Timothy Matthew Flores, Sarah Kay, Jeigh Madjus, Aaron "AJ" Mercado, Geena Quintos, Shea Renne, and Angelo Soriano.

 

 

Melody plays Tita Yvonne in Amblin/Universal Pictures and Rideback's feature, Easter Sunday. The movie is based on the life and experiences of comedian, Jo Koy. 

"...Easter Sunday is the culmination of a lifetime of dreaming and decades of hard work," said Koy. "It's especially meaningful that we've been able to assemble such an incredible group of diverse and talented filmmakers and comedians to bring this slice of Filipino culture to the world." The cast also includes Eva Noblezada, Brandon Wardell, Tia Cerrere, Eugene Cordero, Asif Ali, Lou Diamond Phillips, Lydia Gaston, Rodney To, Joey Guila, and Elena Juatco. Easter Sunday is available on DVD/Bluray, and on Prime and AppleTV Plus. 

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Melody is honored to be the main narrator for the audiobook of Mai Nardone's "Welcome Me to the Kingdom." From Penguin Random House: "NEW YORK TIMES EDITORS' CHOICE: An immersive debut set across the temples, slums, and gated estates of late-twentieth century Bangkok, telling the story of three families striving to control their destinies in a merciless, sometimes brutally violent, metropolis." Click here for the Audible link or find it wherever you get your audiobooks. The multi-narrator audiobook experience also includes Brian Sounalath, Rachanee Lumayno, Su Ling Chan, Sura Siu, Patrick Lawlor, and James Tang.