Original Miss Saigon star Jonathan Pryce spoke from the Broadway Theatre's stage at the 4,000 performance of the musical. The casting of Pryce, a Caucasian, in the role of a Eurasian, created a controversy in the Asian American community that almost prevented Miss Saigon and Pryce from appearing on Broadway. At left, lyricist Richard Maltby, Jr., composer Claude-Michel Schonberg, Pryce and producer Cameron Mackintosh. Miss Saigon, the Madame Butterfly-based love story between a Vietnamese girl and her American G.I., opened on Broadway April 11, 1991 and became an international sensation. Saigon, originally set to close Dec. 31, 2000, has now extended through January with the return of the musical's original Tony-winning star, Lea Salonga. Mackintosh, the show's producer, made the announcement from the stage of the Broadway Theatre at the 4,000 performance.