Normally this blog is all about Disney and while Disney is fabulous it really isn’t my #1 love. My #1 love is musicals! My parents took me to see Les Miserables for the first time when I was really young. I can’t remember exactly remember. It played in Chicago from ’87 to ’91. So I was between 2 and 6 when I first saw it and we saw it more than once. I also recently found a Playbill for 1994. It made a huge impact on me. After that I would dance around the living room and “play” every role in the cast. My favorite was Eponine. From Les Miserables I went to dancing to the Nutcracker (which we saw every Christmas) and moved on from there. Now I find few things in life more enjoyable than sitting in a dark theater, eyes closed, and listening to breathtaking music. It makes me cry, it makes me feel amazing, and nothing in the entire world makes me feel the same.
As to how I got to this post tonight I went to see the Les Miserable 25th Anniversary Concert movie. One of my local theaters shows operas, musicals, and all sorts of other unusual things. The cast was good. The girl who played Young & Older Cosette, Eponine, Gavroche, and the Thénardiers were all really great. Young Cosette and Gavroche were easily the best I’ve ever seen. Both of the Cosettes had amazing voices. Nick Jonas played Marius. When he sang alone he was very good but when he sang with the others he was left in the dust. He doesn’t have a strong enough voice to actually pull it off. Jean Valijean had more of an opera voice but was incredibly talented. The concert part was good but the last 20-30 minutes of the movie were worth the price of admission. After the cast took their bows the original 1985 cast came out. They are who I picture when I think of the characters. We have a VHS of a concert they did and I’ve watched it frequently over the years. So the original cast comes out to HUGE applause. In celebration of the 25th anniversary Les Miserables is playing in 2 theaters plus the concert. So the 2 other casts joined the rest on stage. The 4 Jean Valijeans sang Bring Him Home and then the entire original cast, the concert cast, plus the 2 casts that are currently playing in London sand “One day More” together. It was awesome. Then Cameron Mackintosh spoke about his time with Les Mis and how it has changed his life. The writers and composer was there. At the end Cameron Mackintosh spoke again about Les Mis the School Edition. He had students from around the world come out in costume and all 4 casts and the students sang, “Do you Hear the People Sing” together. Overall it was an amazing experience. It makes me very excited for January so I can see Les Miserables in person again!
Here is my complete list of shows I’ve seen:
Les Miserables – 4 Times
Phantom of the Opera – 3 Times
In the Heights – 2 Times
The Addams Family
The Lion King
Beauty and the Beast
The Nutcracker - 5 Times
Wicked - 2 Times
A Chorus Line
Jersey Boys
Rent
Complete Works of Shakespeare Abridged
Mama Mia
Miss Saigon
A Christmas Carol
La Nouba (not really a musical but kinda)
West Side Story
Blue Man Group (again not really a musical but stage show)
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
