ALW & Les Mis

[RentBoy86]

Posted: 1/23/06 at 11:00pm

I was reading "From Assassians to West Side Story" by Scott Miller and he mentions in the section about Les Miz that ALW didn't like the show. Does anyone have any quotes from ALW or do any of you know why he didn't like it? Seems like Les Mis was written in the same style as most ALW shows.

[Color and Light]

Posted: 1/23/06 at 11:04pm

"Do you hear the people sing all of the new songs from Les Miz? Even the great Andrew Lloyd Webber wished the songs were really his!"

But in all seriousness, I can't help you out on that one.

Updated On: 1/23/06 at 11:04 PM

[Kringas]

Posted: 1/23/06 at 11:05pm

I was never here.

Updated On: 1/23/06 at 11:05 PM

[My Strongest Suit]

Posted: 1/24/06 at 12:09am

I don't understand how anyone could NOT like Les Mis! ALW is crazy at times. Don't anyone get offended please - I like Phantom.

[RentBoy86]

Posted: 1/24/06 at 12:46am

Color & Light - I know you were joking - but I really think that might have something to do with it. I mean up to that point Webber had the "big shows" that were wraking in a profit, but then came Les Mis and suddenly all the audition was redirected to this new show.

[Roninjoey]

Posted: 1/24/06 at 1:34am

Maybe he was jealous. I don't think he's ever really had a critical hit and I believe Les Mis was one, and they were essentially ripping off his style (which he had, in turn, ripped of :P). Either way overrated show.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 1/24/06 at 1:57am

The thing about Les Miz is that although it has its flaws (what show doesn't) and it is one of those much criticized British spectacles, it has a heart, and it manages to touch on many themes unlike Andrew Lloyd Webber shows. It doesn't limit itself to a romantic triangle, although the one in Les Miserables is one of the most touching romantic triangles, especially since the authors manage to make us love the person outside the relationship, Eponine. There are so many characters and the plot is so big and it manages to work, something that Lloyd Webber hasn't quite figured out. I don't think he knows how to compose for complex characters. Phantom is a Gothic novel marked by stereotypical figures, Cats is more a revue without much room for complexity, and there's one slightly complex character who gets two songs and no dialogue in the whole show. Look what happens when he tries to deal with real complexities; he completely missed Norma Desmond and Joe.

Updated On: 1/24/06 at 01:57 AM

[little_fall_of_rain]

Posted: 1/24/06 at 3:13am

I don't know if he necessarily didn't like it, but I do know it wasn't getting good reviews when it initially opened it was scheduled to tranfer to a theatre that ALW owned and he offered to let Cameron Makintosh pull out if he wanted.

[Pippin]

Posted: 1/24/06 at 11:00am

I don't know about Webber, but I know that Jonathan Tunick called Les Miz the worst thing to ever happen to musical theatre.

Posted: 1/24/06 at 11:55pm

deleted by author Updated On: 1/25/06 at 11:55 PM

[ALWrules]

Posted: 1/25/06 at 12:03am

I would be suprised if he had actually commented on it. He usually only complements other artists, and I've never heard of him doing that. But if he did hate it, I wouldn't be suprised. I think he would probably be a little miffed that it is so similar to a lot of his music. Sort of like he spawned the genre, and then Schonberg gets all the hype. I'm sure it's a twinge of jealousy if it is true.
Suprising, because it is such a great show.

[Fosse76]

Posted: 1/25/06 at 12:20am

Well, his opinion at the time was biased. Les Miserable opened at the theatre where he wanted to put The Phantom of the Opera.

[ALWrules]

Posted: 1/25/06 at 12:22am

I didn't know he wanted POTO in the Palace. It would have suited that show well.

[BlueWizard]

Posted: 1/25/06 at 12:30am

Yeah, he REALLY wanted PHANTOM at the Palace, and was quite peeved that he had to concede. But I've never heard of him attacking the quality of LES MIZ, though; would be quite strange for him to do it publicly, seeing as he had to work with Cameron Mackintosh for PHANTOM.

And am I the only one who thinks LES MIZ has a distinctly different musical vein from ALW's work?

[ALWrules]

Posted: 1/25/06 at 12:36am

It is certainly different from ALW's music, but has some interesting parrellels. It is a pseudo-opera, like most ALW shows, and uses a lot of repeated themes as both motifs and in other songs (i.e On my Own). It also is heavy keyboard stuff, like ALW. It is a big spectacle show, like an ALW show. It has huge vocal ranges, like ALW shows. It has a tragic love triangle, which are in 3 ALW shows. The list goes on...

[BSoBW3]

Posted: 1/25/06 at 12:37am

I never thought the two sounded alike in the least.

ALW's work is either more rock (JCS) or more operatic (Phantom). Les Mis is somewhere between, I think.

Les Mis did not receive good reviews at first because of its dark nature...and it was one of the first of the big British imports that so deviated from the flashy Broadway style. That is really to say that not many (successful) shows had the poor singing about being miserable and the rich ALSO singing about being miserable.

Anyway, by Palaca I assume you mean in the West End, right?

[ALWrules]

Posted: 1/25/06 at 12:40am

ALW has a ton of stuff in the middle. Aspects of Love, Song and Dance, By Jeeves, Starlight is very similar to Les Miz in terms of the genre of the score, Joseph is not really in either catagory, Cats is also not defined by a specfic genre, and neither is Les Miz. Your catagorization is just a common false assumption.

Posted: 1/25/06 at 12:44am

deleted by author Updated On: 1/25/06 at 12:44 AM

[ALWrules]

Posted: 1/25/06 at 12:48am

IT just seems strange, because I've read multiple quotes from him saying how he doesn't like to publicly disown author's work. Maybe he said that in private?

[BSoBW3]

Posted: 1/25/06 at 12:54am

ALWrules - Yeah, I didn't know what to do with Cats. I enjoy the show, but it has its own style, really.

I also (wrote incompletely because I'm multitasking) meant compared to Les Mis - ALW's shows have more of a rock quality or pseudo-opera quality.

I think (eta) ASPECTS OF LOVE most reminds me of Les Mis. Though I'm not sure why.... Maybe because AoL (eta) has more of a rock nuance, as Les Mis does...but isn't completely rocking out like JCS. If that makes sense?

ANDREWLOWE - I think the fact that Les Mis did so well proves that reviews don't matter much. Like I said, it was too dark when it first came out. Maybe RSC is the only reason it was transferred - but that was obviously a good (albeit risky) move. Look at Carrie.

ETA: Thanks for pointing that out ALWrules.

Updated On: 1/25/06 at 12:54 AM

[ALWrules]

Posted: 1/25/06 at 12:57am

The Likes of Us reminds you of Les Mis?! The Likes of US is a throwback to the days of Rodgers and Hammerstein. It sounds way diffeent to me than any ALW or british show. It isn't rock at all, but is classic broadway stuff. Heck, it has a traditional overture! That's strange for ALW! As for reviews, ALW shows have never gotten great reviews but have done well. Cats was panned and ran forver in both London and New York. Starlight was hated even more and ran for 17 years in London. Sometimes the critics just don't know what to do with a new idea, and if you look at the history of the British Invasion musicals, you will see that a vast majority of them were panned by the critics.

Updated On: 1/25/06 at 12:57 AM

[BSoBW3]

Posted: 1/25/06 at 1:06am

*Multitasking, ugh.
I meant Aspects (I think).

I have been listening to THE LIKES OF US all day.

[ALWrules]

Posted: 1/25/06 at 1:08am

I agree that Aspects is very similar, albeit not as well put together.

Good Night All.

Posted: 1/25/06 at 1:21am

deleted by author Updated On: 1/25/06 at 01:21 AM

[Kitzarina]

Posted: 1/25/06 at 1:24am

ALW didn't like Les Miz because he has no taste and no talent.

*sits back and waits for the flames to come pouring in*