New York City - Singer Lea Salonga is back in the Big Apple, the city that made her a star.

The Tony award winning stage performer is back here for a short but busy visit. Salonga is preparing for a 3-day city tour with Patti Austin in April.

"I first came here when I was 19 going on 20, so I said goodbye to my teens in the city. Every time I come to New York it’s like, ‘I am so happy to be here!’” she said.

“When we worked together for the first time it was a big thrill for me because it was her,” Salonga said on working with Austin anew.

Austin refused to divulge any detail about their shows. “We’re not telling you anything because then why bother come if I tell you everything? You have to show up and be surprised.”

Meanwhile, Salonga celebrated her 39th birthday on February 22 with a show on Broadway.

She is one of the more than 50 Broadway stars who performed for “Broadway Backwards,” a show where women sing men song and men singing women with the original pronoun intact giving the song an entirely new meaning. -Report from Don Tagala, ABS-CBN North America News Bureau