When I was in high school, I had an English class that everyone knew about. You would be reading the Victor Hugo book, Les Misérables and discuss it for the whole semester. Most students did not like this class or the teacher and tried not to get roped into this class. I had to take it; I had no way out. So instead of doing my assignment and reading the book, I did not and faked the class. I avoided being called out in class but had to write a few essays with the book as the subject matter. I somehow muddled through and got a B in the class. The first time I saw the musical was in San Francisco, soon after graduating from High School and living in The City by The Bay. I was so disgusted with myself; I just couldn’t believe that I had missed a chance to be delighted and enlightened by Victor Hugo’s wonderful work. The simplest analogy, a man goes to prison for stealing a loaf of bread and it sets the tone for all his life’s lessons going forward. A simple yet beautiful story with so much to learn about love, life, giving back, and righting wrongs. So, I guess it’s my own coming of age story. My cheating my high school education as well as myself. This is why I have seen this show 6 times. It helps me with my guilty conscious and realization that you really can’t be a fraud, and you have to do the work, it’s only hurting yourself.
Now I have seen a total of 6 productions of this spectacular show. Les Misérables – The world’s most popular musical. San Francisco, London, twice in New York, and twice in Los Angeles. This new touring production was astounding. From the sets to the arrangements, the costumes, the talent, all being fresh and spectacular. But for me it’s the music that tugs at my heartstrings. I listened to the music before I went and cried. That tells you something, so of course during the live show my tears started early on in Act One. I even warned my guest that there would be tears and brought Kleenex with me in my purse. The story of sacrifice and redemption is all you will ever need to know about Les Misérables.
Nick Cartell hits it out of the park, his voice is so smooth and heartfelt, all I can say is – wow! The other cast members were also amazing, Preston Truman Boyd – Javert, Hayley Dortch – Fontaine, Addie Morales – Cossette, and the rest, but for me – Nick is the star of this show.
| About the show: Cameron Mackintosh’s acclaimed production of Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg’s Tony Award-winning musical phenomenon, LES MISÉRABLES, will play six weeks in Los Angeles at the Hollywood Pantages Theatre from August 1 – September 10, 2023, with tickets available at www.BroadwayInHollywood.com and www.Ticketmaster.com, or by phone at (800) 982-2787. The show will then play two weeks in Costa Mesa at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts from September 19 -October 1, 2023, with tickets available at www.scfta.org and by phone at 1-714-556-2787. Cameron Mackintosh said, “The phenomenon of Les Misérables never fails to astound me. No show in history has been able to continually reinvent itself and remain a contemporary musical attracting new generations of brilliant new talent, many of whom go on to international stardom. No show in the world has ever demonstrated the survival of the human spirit better than Les Miz, and it’s time to let the people sing again. We are all thrilled to be Bringing Her Home to you.” The Los Angeles cast, celebrated tour alums Nick Cartell and Preston Truman Boyd return to the barricades to portray the fugitive ‘Jean Valjean’ and ‘Inspector Javert,’ respectively. They are joined by Matt Crowle as ‘Thénardier,’ Christina Rose Hall as ‘Madame Thénardier,’ Haley Dortch as ‘Fantine,’ Devin Archer as ‘Enjolras,’ Christine Heesun Hwang as ‘Éponine,’ Gregory Lee Rodriguez as ‘Marius’ and Addie Morales as ‘Cosette.’ Vivian Atencio and Cora Jane Messer alternate in the role of ‘Little Cosette/Young Éponine.’ Henry Kirk and Milo Maharlika alternate in the role of ‘Gavroche.’ The touring ensemble includes Kyle Adams, Daniel Gerard Bittner, Ciaran Bowling, Jenna Burns, Julie Cardia, Ben Cherington, Steve Czarnecki, Kelsey Denae, Arianne DiCerbo, Genevieve Ellis, David Young Fernandez, Michelle Beth Herman, Randy Jeter, Daelynn Carter Jorif, Olivia J. Lu, Eden Mau, Andrew Marks Maughan, Benjamin H. Moore, Nicole Morris, Ashley Dawn Mortensen, Sofie Nesanelis, Tim Quartier, Julia Ellen Richardson, Ethan Rogers, Christopher Robin Sapp, Emily Somé, Christopher James Tamayo, Kyle Timson, Hazel Vogel and J.T. Wood. The Costa Mesa cast will be announced at a later date. ★★★★★ “This reborn dream of a production looks and sounds fresher than ever. Sends shivers of excitement racing down the spine – You emerge feeling stirred and exhilarated.” – Daily Telegraph “One of the greatest musicals ever created.” – Chicago Tribune “The defining musical of the last 50 years.” – Broadway World ★★★★★ “The mighty Les Mis is still revolutionary.” – Daily Mail “Les Mis for the 21st Century.” – The Huffington Post |
| Set against the backdrop of 19th century France, LES MISÉRABLES tells an enthralling story of broken dreams and unrequited love, passion, sacrifice, and redemption – a timeless testament to the survival of the human spirit. This epic and uplifting story has become one of the most celebrated musicals in theatrical history. Boublil & Schönberg’s magnificent score of LES MISÉRABLES includes the classic songs “I Dreamed a Dream,” “On My Own,” “Bring Him Home,” “Do You Hear The People Sing?,” “One Day More,” “Master of the House” and many more. Seen by over 130 million people worldwide in 53 countries, 438 cities and 22 languages, LES MISÉRABLES is undisputedly still one of the world’s most popular musicals. To date, LES MISÉRABLES remains the 6th longest-running Broadway production of all time. Since Cameron Mackintosh first conceived this acclaimed new production of LES MISÉRABLES in 2009 to celebrate the show’s 25th anniversary, it has taken the world by storm continuing to enjoy record-breaking runs in countries including North America, Australia, Japan, Korea, France and Spain. It is currently on stage in London’s West End and on tour in The Netherlands and Belgium with a new tour of Japan in 2024. The most recent North American production toured from 2017 to March 2020, playing 94 engagements until the production was halted due to the global pandemic. Cameron Mackintosh’s production of LES MISÉRABLES is written by Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg and is based on the novel by Victor Hugo. It has music by Claude-Michel Schönberg, lyrics by Herbert Kretzmer and original French text by Alain Boublil and Jean-Marc Natel, additional material by James Fenton and adaptation by Trevor Nunn and John Caird. Orchestrations are by Stephen Metcalfe, Christopher Jahnke and Stephen Brooker with original orchestrations by John Cameron. The production is directed by James Powell and Laurence Connor, designed by Matt Kinley inspired by the paintings of Victor Hugo, with costumes by Andreane Neofitou, additional costume designs by Christine Rowland and Paul Wills, lighting by Paule Constable, sound by Mick Potter, projections realized by Finn Ross, Jonathon Lyle and Fifty Nine Productions, musical staging by Geoffrey Garratt, music supervision by Stephen Brooker and James Moore, and casting by Tara Rubin Casting. The LES MISÉRABLES tour stage management team is led by Ryan W. Gardner with Claire Farrokh, Reed Jones and Tiffanie Lane. The LES MISÉRABLES associate director is Corey Agnew, musical staging associate is Jesse Robb, resident director is Richard Barth and music direction is by Brian Eads. The company management team is Chris Danner and Elle Aghabala. Besides being a phenomenon, this show deserves all of the love and respect, and should be seen as much as possible. In its various incarnations, the music lives on, and the story is so iconic, it’s a great example of how a show can survive through many years of celebrating it. Run, don’t walk to see this show, you too will leave with a whole new outlook on this perfect story. Broadway in Hollywood The Hollywood Pantages Theater 6233 Hollywood Blvd. Hollywood, CA. 90028 *Note some content was taken off of their website. |
