Les Misérables

A 25^th Anniversary production of Les Misérables, informally called ‘Les Mis’, just closed in at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles.   My wife and I made the drive up from San Diego in July to see it.  Despite significant changes to the staging (more on that later), the old show is still as entertaining and emotionally satisfying as ever.  Playing continuously in London since 1985, it is the longest running musical in the world.  In January 2010, Les Mis had its 10,000^th London performance at Queen’s Theatre.  On Broadway, with 6,680 performances in sixteen years, it is the third-longest Broadway run of a musical, surpassed by only Cats and Phantom of the Opera.  It was nominated for twelve Tony Awards and won eight including Best Musical.  Let’s take a look at this tremendously successful musical and consider what makes it so good.

The Story

Emile Bayard's illustration of Cozette
for Victor Hugo's Les Miserables

Les Misérables is based on the 1862 novel by Victor Hugo.  The central event of the novel is the real-life June Rebellion of 1832 during which groups of students barricaded the narrow streets of Paris to protest the grim conditions of the poor at that time.  The two-day rebellion was crushed by the National Guard wounding or killing 800 people.  Hugo’s novel traces the lives of several people over 20 years leading up to the rebellion, in particular Jean Valjean, an ex-con who has broken his parole and Inspector Javert who doggedly pursues Valjean across the decades.  The novel is populated by ‘the miserable’: prisoners, factory workers, prostitutes, beggers, and street urchins.   The central themes of novel are the nature of the law, social justice, rebellion, and redemption.   The novel has had numerous stage, movie, and television adaptations over the years.

The Concept

Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg

Alain Boublil, a French lyricist, got the idea of making Les Misérables into a musical during a performance of Oliver! in London.  He took the idea to Claude-Michel Schönberg, a French composer.  They hammered out a scenario that could be told in two hours from the massive novel, created elaborate character studies, and began writing music.  The team produced a concept album in 1980 which sold 260,000 copies.  In September of 1980, Les Misérables opened at the Palais des Sports in Paris with many of the concept album performers.  Over half a million people attended the 100 performances.  Spurred by this success, Boublil and Schönberg teamed with lyricist Herbert Kretzmer to write an English version of Les Mis and take it to London.

The Production

The barricade will rise!

Cameron Mackintosh had already produced many musicals with mixed success when he hit it big producing Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Cats in 1981.  Fresh off its world-wide domination, Mackintosh produced the first English production of Les Misérables with directors Trevor Nunn and John Caird. The show opened October 8th, 1985 at the Barbican Arts Centre in London.  Key to the production was a giant turntable which rotated scenes in and out of view.  Two enormous towers created a decrepit, narrow Parisian street.  In Act II, these towers lowered to create the student’s barricade.  After the battle, the entire scene rotated to reveal the carnage on the other side.  Cameron Mackintosh took musical theatre to a new level of complexity and grandeur with the astounding sights of Cats, Les Mis, and Phantom of the Opera.  While some critics derided it as ‘theatre of the pneumatic’, the audience loved it.

The Music

Eponine's Death

Les Misérables is “sung through” (i.e. no spoken dialogue) and has 49 musical numbers (for comparison, Oklahoma! has 19 and The Music Man has 25).  While many of these use the same tunes, it’s still an unbelievable amount of music.  On top of that, many of the numbers are absolute show-stoppers including Fantine’s “I Had A Dream”, “Master of the House”, Javert’s “Stars”, “Do You Hear the People Sing?”, the Act I Finale “One Day More”, Eponine’s “On My Own”, Valjean’s “Bring Him Home”, and Marius’ “Empty Chairs at Empty Tables.”   They range from rich, deeply emotional ballads to inspirational marches and perfectly express the anguish and/or hope of the characters.  Some numbers provide momentary comic relief (e.g. “Master of the House” and its reprise).  Others provide a thrilling score for almost cinematic scenes (e.g. The Final Battle).  Songs from Les Mis have been covered by a variety of artists including Elaine Paige, Neil Diamond, Aretha Franklin, and Lea Michele.  Susan Boyle shocked the world with her YouTube rendition of “I Had a Dream.”  

The Legacy

In addition to the record-breaking, award-winning runs in London and on Broadway, Les Misérables has been translated into 21 languages and produced in 38 countries.   There have been 65 recordings of the show world-wide.  Les Mis has had several touring productions which have taken the show to hundreds of cities in the U.K. and the U.S.  Many concert productions have also been presented.  A Tenth Anniversary concert included 17 Valjeans from around the world singing “Do You Hear the People Sing?” in their own language.   A spectacular 25^th Anniversary concert at the O2 center in London had hundreds of performers.  At the end, the two current London casts and the original 1985 cast came on stage.  A new 25^th Anniversary touring production is now making its way around the country including the stop I saw in L.A.  This new production does not use the iconic turntable but instead has sets and scenery inspired by Victor Hugo himself.  The effect is much more cinematic and far less distracting, allowing the audience to enjoy the story, the characters, and the music without the set literally getting in the way.   Finally, a new school edition of Les Misérables has been written, allowing new generations take it on this most successful of musicals. Tomorrow comes!



Question of the Day: After the success of Les Mis, what did Boublil and Schonberg write next?