I dreamed a dream…oh no wait…it really happened.  It has been a long time coming.  As you can see from the photo…it showed over 10,000 performances before I went and saw it and yet Les Mis seemed like a completely fresh musical to me.  Although I knew the classics like On My Own, Do You Hear The People Sing, I Dreamed A Dream and Castle On A Cloud, I had no idea of the story and how they fitted together.  What a surprise it would be!

I also knew that Kerry Ellis had appeared in the role of Fantine.  I was, however, unaware of how small a role this was in the grand scheme of things.  Fantine only appears for about 15 minutes total of the 3 hour long production.  I will try not to give away too much of the story as I know how grateful I was that I went into this production ignorant of the themes it would address.  The show covered every emotion from loss and sorry, through love and hate to forgiveness and hope.  I don’t think I could pinpoint an exact highlight of the show (like Defying Gravity is to Wicked) however there was one clear star of the show.  In both her singing and acting, Nancy Sullivan’s (pictured) talent was obvious from her first line on stage.  Although, rather ironically, she didn’t make it through to appear as Nancy in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s TV programme, I’ll Do Anything,  Nancy has made a name for herself on stage.

The actors and actresses appearing in the roles of Corsette and Marius were easy to watch but were not as relaxed or emotionally connecting to their roles as Nancy appeared to be.  She drove the show with her heart rendering version of On My Own.  I was only aware of that song as it appeared on the hit US TV show Glee, Rachel sang it in one of the very first episodes.  I fell in love with it then and couldn’t wait to hear it on stage.  I knew nothing of the plot and so the lyrics were almost meaningless, however when Nancy sang it mid-performance, it suddenly took on a whole new meaning.

Valjean’s story was one that contained elements of many genres.  His journey had echoes of the Odyssey, not only did he move forward geographically but his emotionals also went through many transitions.  For this reason, the production required the most intricate set I’ve ever seen.  Huge mechanical baracades and wooden structures were wheeled on and off of the stage almost unnoticeably.

Special mention must appear here for the costumes.  Firstly, what a job! There were so many costumes, with members of the ensemble appearing in different costumes almost every scene! Secondly, not only did these costumes need making beautifully, they required some very technical ‘distressing’! It all looked unbelievably authentic which looking extremely impressive.

While Les Misérables did not leave me with the incredible ‘feel good’ feeling that Wicked does, i would definitely buy tickets to see this in an instance.  It is such a feast for the eyes that watching this production just the one time does not allow you to fully appreciate its relevance and beauty.  Next time, perhaps Gareth Gates will be playing the role of Marius!!! One can dream!

MiniHobo xXx