This was Arbender’s first go round as Marius and I was absolutely blown away. I’ve loved him since he was in Hair — he was always a standout member of the ensemble to me because he has this ridiculously infectious smile and he exuded this pure joy whenever he was on that stage that I couldn’t help but be swept up with him in it. Of course, that was Hair. In LM, he plays Montparnasse (and several other dour ensemble roles), so that joy was notably absent. That being said… it boils under the surface of his Montparnasse and adds this almost demented glee to him that works SO well for that role.
But it isn’t that pure, immense joy I remembered. And then I saw him as Marius… and there it was. Pure. Immense. Joy. And that was so perfect for Marius, I can’t even tell you. And then when that joy breaks in the second act? First with Eponine’s Death and then here… his Marius has this jagged anger underneath it that is so different from Andy’s brokenness in this scene that it was exciting to see. I just loved everything about how he played Marius and I hope I get to see him do it again someday! ^_^
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I dunno, I work in n Broadway so I guess I need to post here too. Right?
