in the london production of "miss saigon", lea salonga originally starred as kim, with jonathan pryce as the engineer. when the production transferred from london to new york city, the actors' equity association (aea) refused to allow pryce, a white actor, to recreate the role of the eurasian pimp in america. as alan eisenberg, executive secretary of actors' equity explained, "the casting of a caucasian actor made up to appear asian is an affront to the asian community. the casting choice is especially disturbing when the casting of an asian actor, in the role, would be an important and significant opportunity to break the usual pattern of casting asians in minor roles." this ruling led to criticism from many, including the british equity, citing violations of the principles of artistic integrity and freedom. producer cameron mackintosh threatened to cancel the show, despite massive advance ticket sales.