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Greater Love
Jun. 12, 2006
Les Miserables
Les Miserables!
Yesterday, I had the oppourtunity to go see Les Miserables, the
professional producton, at the Pantages Theater in Hollywood. I went
with Ruth and Roberta, and the fact that we were there at all was
really nothing short of a miracle. We'd been planning this trip with
Roberta's French class for ages, but several times we were sure it
wasn't going to work out for different reasons. Well, it did, and it
was fantastic.
Left to right: Roberta, me, and Ruth
You know you like Les Miz too much when you see this and burst out laughing. 
The
play itself was fabulous, dispite the fact that our seats were in the
second to last row of the balcony. Which wern't bad seats by all means,
but Ruth and Roberta had a problem with tall people sitting in front of
them and blocking their view, so they ended up moving down a few seats.
I stayed where I was.  I had a very nice view of the stage,
although since I was on the right side of the theater, I could see into
the left wings. Ah well!
When the Prolouge music started, I just
had this huge grin on my face..wow, I'd been waiting to see this for
ages and eons. Although I have to say, I was so confused at the
beginning. Before the show started a white movie screen had covered the
stage, and it had been used to display the starting title. Okay, fine.
But then the Chain Gang started marching across the screen, and I was
thinking, "Why on EARTH are they showing us a MOVIE of this part of the
play when we came to see a live preformance?!?!?!?!"
And then the
screen started to rise and I realized that the so-called 'movie' had
been the actors marching behind the screen. Very tricky; them people. 
I
liked all the actors and actresses who sang the parts of the cast but
the one I did not like was Fantine, played by Joan Almadilla. She
enunciates very oddly, and I thought she had too much vibritto. But she
was a fantastic actress. :)
Jean valjean, played by Randal
Keith, was very, very awesome. He is a very powerful singer, and
although he yelled at wierd places, he got the emotion across. Also,
anyone who could lug Marius across the stage like he did has got to be
commended.
Javert,
played by Robert Hunt, was terrific as well...no complaints here. The
young Cosette was played by Meg Guzulescu, and she was really sweet and
adorable.
The Thenardier's...ah, the Thenardiers. Talk about
scene stealers! Jennifer Butt (Mme. T.) was the original Broadway Mme.
T., and was extremely awesome dispite the fact that she's skinny.
(I'm partial to my portly Mme's, if you know what I mean! ) Mr.
T. was played by Norman Large, and was the perfect accompaniant to
Jennifer. I laughed SO hard during Beggars of the Feast when they're
trying to exit gracefully, and then suddenly all this stolen silverware
came rolling out of the Mrs. dress. Oy dear.
Anyway...lol.
Leslie
Henstock, who was the Cosette for this production, wasn't there for the
showing we went to and was replaced by Suzanna Neeley Bridges. I
thought she did a fabulous job, considering the small character she was
working with. Really, I could count all of Cosette's appearances in the
musical on one hand.
Enjolras was played by Victor Wallace and
Marius by Daniel Bogart, and they were both fabulous but I guess I'm
just spoiled from the TAC (I can't see how any Marius could be better
then the love-sick puppy Michael Ball, or any Enjolras better than the
fighting and passionate Michael Maguire).
Eponine (Melissa
Lyons) was IMO one of the cleanest singers there that day...she didn't
sing technical, just strong. I loved how Eponine was so chummy with
Gavroche...nothing really obvious, but really sweet to anyone who knew
that Eponine and Gavroche were actually siblings (it's never said in
the musical).
Gavroche...ah, Gavroche. The smallest little scene-stealer you ever saw. He was played by Austyn Myers, who did a terrific
job. Sometimes he sounded a little too American, but who cares?
He got the spirited part of Gavroche down pat.
My
favorite part of the whole musical was during A Little Fall of Rain,
and the people of the barricade start wondering what's going on halfway
through the song. Gavroche started to run twords Eponine with his arm
outstreached, as if he wanted to go to her, but was held back by
Grantaire. *sniff* Aww...
The part when Gavroche climed down the
barricade to collect ammunition was really tense...the whole theater
was silent except him singing his Little People song softly, and then a
gun went off (which was a live charge, btw, and REALLY loud).
There was a collective gasp in the crowd..I think they had all fallen
in love with the wee rascal. I know I was gripping the armrest of
the chair like crazy...partly because the scene was really sad and
partly because I was all tensed up for the gunshots, which were really
loud and was really startling the first time they fired them (I think
everyone jumped about two feet, lol!).
So yeah...I had a fantastic time at Les Miz. 
It was a lot funnier then I had initially expected (I mean, how funny
can a play about miserable people be?). I loved the part when
Enjolras tells all the women and children at the barricade to leave,
and one of the students picks up Gavroche by force and carts him off
stage. . Or when Marius was singing "I'm doing everything all
wrong!" and ran frantically back to the gate and attemped to climb back
over it...L.O.L.
So yes..I enjoyed myself quite a bit!
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Posted by
Jun. 15, 2006 - Another world.....
Yay!
I'm glad you had a great time!
Love you!
Can't wait for you-know-what and you-know-what-else!
:D