Even the Darkest Night Will End

Graphics

2011-04-28T19:32:00.000+02:00

Made some graphics tonight. Please don't use them without permission.

West End Trailer

2011-04-27T21:21:00.003+02:00

Such a cool trailer for the West End production!

Killian Donnelly

2011-04-26T23:29:00.002+02:00

I saw Killian Donnelly as Enjolras in December 2010 and was really impressed!! One of the very few excellent Enjolrati I've ever seen! Sadly he will, after several years on the cast, be leaving the show in June. After looking around on youtube I found several great videos! It's extra fun that Killian not only played Enjolras, but as swing he's done several different part during his time on Les Miz! He's also done the biggest parts - Jean Valjean and Javert!

ENJOLRAS
One Day More

At the barricade (April 6, 2010)

JEAN VALJEAN

Bring Him Home (February 13, 2010)

One Day More(April 24, 2010)

JAVERT

Javert's Intervention / Stars (January 13, 2010)

MONTPARNASSE

Look Down / The Robbery (2008)

LOUDHAILER / NATIONAL GUARD

(February 6, 2010)

COURFEYRAC
Do You Hear The People Sing? (25th anniversary concert, October 2010)

25 vs 25

2011-04-26T19:28:00.002+02:00

The 25th anniversary DVD vs the 25th anniversary CD

Jean Valjean: dvd
Javert: cd
Fantine: dvd
Thenardier: dvd
Mme Thenardier: dvd
Eponine: cd
Cosette: same
Enjolras: cd
Marius: cd
Grantaire: dvd

And the winner is... : the dvd!

Movie Dreamcast?

2011-02-03T18:51:00.003+01:00

As the movie of the musical Les Misérables seems to finally be happening (rumor says in 2013), basically every Les Miz place is discussing who should play the part. Everybody has ideas and usually very strong opinions. And while I do have very strong opinions when it comes to this musical (lol), I think it's a really difficult question. Because to so many of us this movie is really important! No matter who they cast some people will be unhappy.

Personally I think this should not be a hollywood cast (although that would probably bring more money), and no "pop star" cast either. I would like to see REAL musical performers in the parts. So that's the focus I will have when listing MY favrourite/s for each part. So here we go...

Jean Valjean - Michael Maguire or David Shannon
Javert - Earl Carpenter or Michael McCarthy
Fantine - Lea Salonga
Thenardier - Alun Armstrong
Madame Thenardier - Jackie Marks
Enjolras - Killian Donnelly
Eponine - Nancy Sulllivan
Marius - Jon Lee (which goes against my "no pop star" rule, but he is SO great as Marius and not only pop star) or Alistair Brammer
Cosette - Gina Beck
Grantaire - Anthony Crivello or Jeff Nicholson

so...what is YOUR movie dreamcast?

10 vs 25

2011-01-16T23:15:00.003+01:00

The 10th Anniversary Concert DVD vs The 25th Anniversary Concert DVD

Valjean: 25
Javert: 25
Fantine: 25
Thenardier: 10
Madame Thenardier: 10
Eponine: 10
Cosette: 10
Enjolras: 10
Marius: 10
Grantaire: 10

Winner: 10th Anniversary Concert!

Recent London Favourites

2009-10-24T19:27:00.002+02:00

Since I've seen the West End production of Les Misérables three times now (so far!) I just thought it might be fun to compare them and try to come up with my personal favourites.... as always - these are just my personal thoughts - no offence intended! So here we go....my favourite in each part based on seeing the production in 2006, 2008 and 2009.

Valjean:
I really liked both Drew Sarich (2008) and David Shannon (2009) a lot. Both did an amazing job! If I had to pick only one it would probably be David though, since I saw him most recently and have also seen him in Sweeney Todd (where he also did a great job!). His Valjean was really memorable! (But I liked Drew too!)

Javert:
Earl Carpenter (2008 & 2009) is probably my favourite. I've seen him twice and he was SOO good as Javert. I'm not usually a Javert-fan, but he made me really understand the character - I even "got" Stars, which is a song that's always annoyed me before. (sorry!! It's a beautiful song, but before I heard Earl sing it this summer it made NO sense to me that Javert would be singing it).

Fantine:
Sophia Ragavelas (2006) is my favourite Fantine so far. I really liked her voice, and she made you really care about Fantine.

Thénardier:
Have to say I have yet to see a REALLY great Thénardier. Since I compare them with the amazing Alun Armstrong I'm not sure I ever will....

Madame Thénardier:
My favourite so far is Jackie Marks (2008). She was the perfect Madame Thénardier - not only was she SO funny, she also has a great singing voice !

Eponine:
My favourite is Nancy Sullivan (2008 & 2009). I was a bit surprised, since she's the first blonde Eponine I've seen - but she is SO right for the part. She doesn't only play it - she IS Eponine. It seems to me that most Eponines seem to copy either Frances Rufelle's version or Lea Salonga's version - but Nancy really has her own style of playing Eponine, and it works brilliantly!

Cosette:
Cosette is a character that I personally have a bit of trouble liking as an adult. I adore young Cosette, but once she gets older the character just feels a bit "boring". Still, of the Cosettes I've seen I would say my favourite is Gina Beck (2006) - wonderful voice!

Marius:
My favourite Marius is probably Jon Lee (2006). He seemed like the perfect Marius!

Enjolras:
Since Enjolras is my favourite character I have very high demands on the poor guy who plays the part. Being compared with the amazingly talented Michael Maguire isn't easy - but I have to say Simon Bailey (2006) did a really great job! I wish I could have seen him as Enjolras more than once (but have since then seen him as Raoul in Phantom of the Opera - also great!)

Grantaire:
Jeff Nicholson (2006 & 2009) would be my favourite! Really funny, and great singer!

(I'm not picking favourites among the children - they have all been really great!!)

Gavroche

2008-01-19T19:40:00.000+01:00

Gavroche on Broadway 2003 (Andrew Hoeft?).

Little Gavroche makes one pretty interesting character. I was especially impressed after seeing him in a live production (London), where Gavroche almost works at the narrator. This little boy, who seems to be living on the street all on his own, is very much at home there, keeps an eye out for everything, and seems to know everything that's going on.

It's obvious that he looks up to Enjolras, and would do anything to be part of the revolution. He seems convinced that he can be just as good as any of the other students, and that he can be of help. Of course he really is - especially when he reveals Javert's identity to the others.

His family is rather unknown to me. I've read several websites where people claim he is the little brother of Eponine (and son of the Thénardiers), but I just find that very hard to believe. I haven't read the book since I was little, so I really don't remember if that's true or not. If he really was Eponine's brother, wouldn't she be more responsible for him? Send him home, instead of letting him hang out on the barricade? If Eponine is Gavroche's sister, why doesn't he say that? (He does tell us who Eponine is ("That's Eponine, she knows her way about") so it would make sense if he pointed out that's his sister). I remember from the book that Eponine has a younger sister (Azelma), but I don't remember any mentioning of a little brother. I will have to make sure to read the book again really soon.

Also - in the original French version of the musical (1980) Gavroche clearly states that he doesn't have a mother or a father. So as far as I'm concerned that means he's not the son of the Thénardiers. (Plus if he was, Thénardier would for sure be using him as a little thief - which they don't seem to be doing).

It's really amazing how a little boy who must have had a really hard life seems to have such a strong spirit! As far as he's concerned he's the king of his world!

There have been so many talented Gavroches, but my favourite is probably Ian Tucker (Original London Cast, 1985), who's just perfect! He also gets to sing a much greater version of the song Little People. The boy I saw in London in 2006 (Jordan Grehs?) was also really great; what a talented little actor! I also really like both French Gavroches - Fabrice Benard (1980) and Alexis Tomassian (1991). Although I think pretty much all the Gavroches I've seen/heard have been great!

It's very difficult to pick a favourite Gavroche-scene. I really just like how he always is up to something! His announcement that Javert is a liar is wonderful! And of course the death scene is among the saddest theatre moments ever.

Empty Chairs

2007-05-11T18:58:00.000+02:00

Michael Ball as Marius in the original London Production (1985)

"Empty Chairs at Empty Tables" is in my opinion possibly the very saddest of the songs from Les Misérables, but also very powerful. While I've always thought it was a great song (especially if the performer is great), it wasn't until I saw a live performance of Les Miz (last summer), that I really felt I "got" the song. The effect of seeing the dead students appear in the shadows behind the grieving (and singing) Marius...and then see them fade back into the shadow is really memorable.

It's rather ironic that Marius, who was the student who seemed least interested in the rebellion, is the only student to survive. He watched his friends dream of a better tomorrow, and really give everything they had to make a difference, yet Marius seemed to have doubts for a really long time, before finally deciding to join it.

But although he seems very grateful to have been saved (by Valjean), and to be back together with Cosette, he still of course has a lot of saddness. It's a very dark moment when we see Marius back at the now empty ABC Café... and hear him sing about how he misses all his friends.

Oh my friends, my friends, forgive me

That I live and you are gone.

There's a grief that can't be spoken

There's a pain goes on and on.

There has been A LOT of great "Mariuses" ... some of my biggest favourites would be: Niklas Andersson, Mike Sterling, Michael Ball & Jon Lee - all amazing singers who were perfect for the part!

The Darkest Night

2007-02-25T18:45:00.000+01:00

The original Broadway cast (1987) during the Finale.

I thought it might be a good idea to explain the name I use here - The Darkest Night, a name I seem to be using more and more online. It will probably be pretty obvious to most Les Miz fans anyway, but I still want to use this blog entry for the topic of The Darkest Night.

I picked it out a while back from my favourite Les Misérables quote - Even the darkest night will end and the sun will rise. I really love the hopeful meaning of it, and how true it really is. Just like the sun will always rise in the morning, replacing the darkness of the night, we can trust that no matter how bad things are, they will get better. The sun will rise!

The quote is from the Finale of Les Misérables, sung by the entire ensemble, and usually VERY powerful. This part (which is the last part of the song), is a version of Do You Hear the People Sing? (I love that song btw - you can be sure it will be mentioned again here), and it is sung when the dead students join the rest of the ensemble on stage. I personally think it’s extremely sad when they are shot, but through this little song they get to live on.

Do you hear the people sing
Lost in the valley of the night?
It is the music of a people
Who are climbing to the light.
For the wretched of the earth
There is a flame that never dies.
Even the darkest night will end
And the sun will rise.

There is such power in this song, and a wonderful message of hope! The last few songs of the musical are really sad (with the exception of Beggars at the Feast), so I really like that they use this song to end on a more hopeful note. Even though the students were all killed (except Marius), the people haven’t given up.

The rest of the song continues on the same theme of hope and power, with amazing lines like They will live again in freedom in the garden of the Lord and Somewhere beyond the barricade is there a world you long to see?.

This song is among my big favourites in Les Misérables, and an amazing way to end a wonderful musical.

On My Own

2007-02-10T22:53:00.000+01:00

Lea Salonga as Eponine (Tenth Anniversary Concert, London, 1995) during On My Own

While I had read the book a couple of years earlier, the song On My Own was the first thing I ever heard from - or about - the musical production of Les Misérables. So I thought it would be suitable to start with an entry about that song!

I remember watching a science program on TV (maybe in 1989?) and they talked about the special effects used in the London musicals - including the boat and the candle sticks in The Phantom of the Opera. They also talked about sound effects, and when doing that they showed Eponine singing On My Own. I loved the song right away!

A year or so later it became quite popular, although I’m not sure what brought that one really - it seemed everyone (at least in my generation) was very familiar with this song, although most of us had never seen the musical. I can only guess that it was the Swedish production of Les Misérables that brought on the interest here as well (even for the English version).
There are a couple of interesting facts concerning this song. First of all, when the musical was translated from English to French, they did some major changes. One of them being that the song L’Air de la Misere sung by Fantine, became Eponine’s On My Own, with completely new lyrics!

Also, the beginning of the English version was changed when it moved to Broadway.

From:
And now I’m all alone again
Nowhere to turn, no one to go to
I did not want your money, sir,
I came out here ‘cos I was told to

To:
And now I’m all alone again
Nowhere to turn, no one to go to
Without a home, without a friend
Without a face to say hello to

The big difference here is that the first version connects to Eponine’s meeting with Jean Valjean (when she’s been sent to give a letter to Cosette from Marius), while the second version makes the song work completely on it’s own. You can hear it, and know nothing of Les Misérables, and still completely understand the song.

The first version adds a bit of extra understanding to Eponine’s anger and disappointment, as she‘s not only upset about Marius preferring Cosette to her, but the fact that although she‘s chosen to risk her life being on the barricade (for him), he has simply sent her off to as a messenger to Cosette. Obviously, even though she does go to deliver the letter, she finds the whole thing very embarrassing, especially when she is caught by Jean Valjean, and made to give the letter to him instead. She didn’t come as a beggar - she came to give Cosette a letter!

The second version possibly adds some more sadness to the song though, as this is the only time we hear Eponine state she doesn’t have a home anymore. Apparently, by socializing with Marius, and then ruining her father’s attempt to rob Jean Valjean, Eponine is no longer welcomed at her parents’ house. She gave up everything for Marius, and this song truly shows how lonely Eponine is. (Yet it’s contains many other emotions as well).

Apart from those two lines that were changed, the two versions are pretty much identical. I think I prefer the first one, because I really LIKED those lines they changed, but as a separate song it works so much better without them, so I can understand why they changed them. Like I said, it does also slightly sense the theme of the song a bit.

But no matter what version, I think this is a really wonderful song - one of my big favourites from Les Misérables! For sure one of the most beauitful ballads ever written!

Welcome!

2007-02-04T13:00:00.000+01:00

Welcome to this blog, where I will be sharing my thoughts and opinions - as well as pictures and information about things related to the wonderful musical Les Misérables! :)

Be sure to comment the posts - I love reading other people's opinions!