#1
Posted: 1/6/07 at 7:22pm
This was my first Broadway show, so I wanted to review it. It was also my seventh time seeing Les Mis. For anyone interested in Lazar's understudies, Nehal Joshi was on. Drew Sarich played Grantaire. I did Standing Room Only, which wasn't bad, but found a seat during the second act.
ACTORS
Alex Gemingani—Wow. At first, I wasn’t impressed by him in the prologue. He acted animalistic, but then I got more into it. After the prologue and until the end of the musical, I was hooked on his interpretation. I loved how he brought more insecurity and softness to the character. I also liked his nervous tick (shaking hands) and how he conveyed the sense of loss and isolation by allowing Cosette to marry. He and Celia were the best performers.
Norm Lewis—I enjoyed his solos, but was not impressed overall. Just another Javert.
Daphne Rubin-Vega—I’m sure everyone’s sick of hearing opinions of DRV, but I’ll give mine quickly. Her acting was impeccable. Her voice wasn’t necessarily bad, but different. Different in the way that Frances Ruffelle’s voice sounds unique. Of course, she can belt and DRV can’t.
Gary Beach—Master of the House was so-so. I enjoyed him much more in the Paris scenes and in Dog Eat Dog.
Jenny Galloway—hilarious Mme. Thenardier. I’ve always considered Mme. Thenardier to be the most minor of the main characters, but I didn’t feel that way at all after her performance.
Celia Keenan-Bolger—Again, wow. I was convinced that no one could outdo Sutton Foster’s Eponine. And while Celia doesn’t belt On My Own as much as she should, I love her character portrayal. It’s similar to the book, and not following in the veins of cutesy, one-dimensional Eponines. In every scene, Celia did something different than other portrayals, but that seemed absolutely right. Also, her A Little Fall of Rain was the best I have ever seen. I was crying, and I have never done that before for any musical.
Adam Jacobs—Good. He reminds me of Peter Lockyer.
Nehal Jashi (u/s)--Completely forget-able. He lacked the passion necessary for the role. But it was probably his first time on as Enjolras, so it’s understandable.
Ali Ewoldt—One of the best Cosettes. Great actress.
Drew Sarich—I normally wouldn’t list Grantaire as a main character, but I have to comment that his is the only Grantaire I’ve ever liked or felt sympathy for. Most actors focus heavily on the drinking and try to get laughs (and fail), so I enjoyed the depth Sarich brought to the character.
NEW MUSIC. The way I felt about the new orchestrations was kind of how I felt about DRV—some good, some bad. The good additions were at the end of Javert’s suicide, in the sewers, and a few other places. The bad were in every solo, particularly On My Own. I want to write Cameron M. a long letter about butchering that song. Celia’s voice and acting can only make you ignore the music to a point. I also like how Cameron M. said the orchestrations would freshen up the show, but instead he put in double the synth.
MISC
The new blocking was great, and along with the actors, really helped make this feel like a fresh show. The line changes didn’t bother me, but I had to laugh at Enjolras’ changed line to something like, “Sure as the eagle flies at dawn…the people will rise.”
All in all, it was refreshing, and I felt like I was seeing it again for the first time.
ACTORS
Alex Gemingani—Wow. At first, I wasn’t impressed by him in the prologue. He acted animalistic, but then I got more into it. After the prologue and until the end of the musical, I was hooked on his interpretation. I loved how he brought more insecurity and softness to the character. I also liked his nervous tick (shaking hands) and how he conveyed the sense of loss and isolation by allowing Cosette to marry. He and Celia were the best performers.
Norm Lewis—I enjoyed his solos, but was not impressed overall. Just another Javert.
Daphne Rubin-Vega—I’m sure everyone’s sick of hearing opinions of DRV, but I’ll give mine quickly. Her acting was impeccable. Her voice wasn’t necessarily bad, but different. Different in the way that Frances Ruffelle’s voice sounds unique. Of course, she can belt and DRV can’t.
Gary Beach—Master of the House was so-so. I enjoyed him much more in the Paris scenes and in Dog Eat Dog.
Jenny Galloway—hilarious Mme. Thenardier. I’ve always considered Mme. Thenardier to be the most minor of the main characters, but I didn’t feel that way at all after her performance.
Celia Keenan-Bolger—Again, wow. I was convinced that no one could outdo Sutton Foster’s Eponine. And while Celia doesn’t belt On My Own as much as she should, I love her character portrayal. It’s similar to the book, and not following in the veins of cutesy, one-dimensional Eponines. In every scene, Celia did something different than other portrayals, but that seemed absolutely right. Also, her A Little Fall of Rain was the best I have ever seen. I was crying, and I have never done that before for any musical.
Adam Jacobs—Good. He reminds me of Peter Lockyer.
Nehal Jashi (u/s)--Completely forget-able. He lacked the passion necessary for the role. But it was probably his first time on as Enjolras, so it’s understandable.
Ali Ewoldt—One of the best Cosettes. Great actress.
Drew Sarich—I normally wouldn’t list Grantaire as a main character, but I have to comment that his is the only Grantaire I’ve ever liked or felt sympathy for. Most actors focus heavily on the drinking and try to get laughs (and fail), so I enjoyed the depth Sarich brought to the character.
NEW MUSIC. The way I felt about the new orchestrations was kind of how I felt about DRV—some good, some bad. The good additions were at the end of Javert’s suicide, in the sewers, and a few other places. The bad were in every solo, particularly On My Own. I want to write Cameron M. a long letter about butchering that song. Celia’s voice and acting can only make you ignore the music to a point. I also like how Cameron M. said the orchestrations would freshen up the show, but instead he put in double the synth.
MISC
The new blocking was great, and along with the actors, really helped make this feel like a fresh show. The line changes didn’t bother me, but I had to laugh at Enjolras’ changed line to something like, “Sure as the eagle flies at dawn…the people will rise.”
All in all, it was refreshing, and I felt like I was seeing it again for the first time.
Updated On: 1/6/07 at 07:22 PM
(Really, though, it probably does boil down to an imbalance of experience in the role -- and fairness to Nehal.)
