"Les Miserbales" Previews- Page 9

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 3/11/14 at 11:13pm

"They did for the movie, but that was because of the reaction shots giving us plenty of information!"

That's because what works in one medium won't always work in another.

[PapaGe]

Posted: 3/12/14 at 12:12am

My two sentence review of tonight's show would be: I didn't cry. How sad.

Here's my long review, with the caveat that I'm a big fan of the show and can be picky: None of the actors really shone. The highlight was definitely Bring Him Home, which Aaron Walpole (Ramin Karimloo's understudy, who played Annas in the recent Superstar revival) sang beautifully. He did a nice job overall although he sounded like he had a frog in his throat on all the low notes and wasn't a very compelling actor. I'm still very disappointed Karimloo was out. The tie for weakest cast member goes to the actors who played Fantine, Eponine, and Javert (or, the bland chick from Ghost, the shrill chick from Book of Mormon, and Will Swenson). They all sang their big songs passably but were overall unimpressive or even annoying. Marius, Grantaire, the Bishop, and Enjolras were good. Cosette was Cosette. Gavroche and the Thenardiers were fine (the hilarity of many of the Thenardiers' scenes was counterbalanced, as usual, by having way too much of them). Almost everyone's acting was ridiculously over the top, especially Swenson's. No one stood out as exceptional (again, except for Walpole in Bring Him Home).

The quality of the production, otherwise, was okay. The ensemble was great. Most of the cuts were the same as those made to the touring productions, although some lyrics were changed to match the ones from the movie. There's a lot more unnecessary stage violence than in the original. There's also a lot more random shouting of made up dialogue by the ensemble, resulting in some pretty funny lines that stood out ("If you'd been there tonight you might know how it feels" "We weren't there, Marius!"). The turntable is sorely missed, especially in scenes like the Runaway Cart, Empty Chairs at Empty Tables (which is sung without any chairs or tables since there isn't time for a set change after), and when Enjolras' body is revealed. They've added digital projections to most scenes, which occasionally made me motion sick (I had to look away for almost half of One Day More). There are two or three narrative changes I really liked (SPOILERS: I especially liked the change that Eponine dies saving Marius, and that Fantine's first customer when she becomes a prostitute is the foreman or someone played by the same actor).

My ultimate feeling is that it was fine, but not the emotional powerhouse I hoped for. I wouldn't have been disappointed if it was a random tour I'd happened to catch, but for a much heralded Broadway revival it left a lot to be desired. I still want to see Karimloo as Valjean. Otherwise, I'd actually like to see it further down the road when the "big name" Broadway people have left the show.



Updated On: 3/12/14 at 12:12 AM

[theCucumberSandwich]

Posted: 3/12/14 at 11:04am

This thread contains some of the dumbest statements I've ever read about theatre. Seriously. Ridiculous.

[brdway411]

Posted: 3/12/14 at 11:11am

Les Misérables opened 27 years ago tonight.

[tmbyru]

Posted: 3/12/14 at 1:27pm

why the hell didn't they move I Dreamed a Dream to after Lovely Ladies like the movie?

[Jeffrey Karasarides]

Posted: 3/12/14 at 1:30pm

"why the hell didn't they move I Dreamed a Dream to after Lovely Ladies like the movie?"

I mentioned this in a previous post, I Dreamed a Dream has to place in between At the End of the Day & Lovely Ladies onstage because the female ensemble members need the time to change from factory workers to prostitutes.

I also feel that could give we the audience a moment to get to know who Fantine is before she loses everything else.
Updated On: 3/12/14 at 01:30 PM

[tmbyru]

Posted: 3/12/14 at 1:32pm

Boooo... make the men dress as prostitutes. Or make it rip off costuming! They could take some tips from Cinderella or Jafar. He changed outfits twice in a minute!

[p.s.]

Posted: 3/12/14 at 2:11pm

Fantine's first customer when she becomes a prostitute is the foreman or someone played by the same actor.

Definitely the foreman! I was up close last night (row D, behind a real tall guy) and noticed the recognition upon her face. She realized as they started off together that it was the foreman, while he apparently didn't recognize her at all.


p.s. Notable change (at least to me!): The Runaway Cart lyrics

Come to that, can you be sure,
That I am not your man?

is changed to

... can you be sure,
That they have got your man?

Very much less self-incriminating!

[brdway411]

Posted: 3/12/14 at 7:39pm

Just got seated, lots of understudy tonight. Ramin is out. Which is fine with me, I saw him last Monday.

[MaddieBB12]

Posted: 3/12/14 at 7:46pm

Who else is out tonight?

[Painter1982]

Posted: 3/12/14 at 9:40pm

Took my gf to see it last week as it was a show we could both agree we had been looking forward to for a long time. We had seen Karimloo in the role of Valjean previously and were eager to see how he had grown in the role. He did not disappoint in the least. Easily the strongest member of the cast, by FAR. I hate to say that if the show loses him at some point, it can lose all hope of a big draw, but honestly he carries the show. If you've seen the show in the UK at any point, you know there are much stronger options out there for Javert. I can't even begin to talk about what a mess Eponine is in this production. We both agreed that Levy was a solid Fantine and that this Enjolras was a pleasant surprise. We also liked Saunders as Thenardier but not so much the actress playing opposite him. We felt she tried too hard and didn't ease up on "overdoing it" during the entire show. Barricade guys seemed hit or miss; Rapson (Grantaire) is easily the most talented among them and we noticed him in several roles throughout the performance. Mientus is neither a memorable or forgettable Marius; he's just kind of "there". There is some sweet chemistry between him and the actress playing Cosette, but at times even that seemed a bit too forced. Both have pleasant voices but perhaps we couldn't get into their scenes because we so heavily disliked NMJ as Eponine, and regrettably she takes up too much time and space in their scenes. The actor playing one of our favorite parts, the Bishop, nailed it. Overall, we liked the set design and digital scenery. We sat quite close so I'm not sure why some said the scene changes made them sick; none of them moved fast enough to do that for us. One Day More and Bring Him Home are the two highlights of the show; you won't get a rousing "Stars" from Swenson or a beautiful "On My Own" from James.

Clearly this is a show built on big names and nostalgia. We have seen overall better productions. Karimloo is the glue holding the show together, and seems to almost overshadow the rest of the cast with how good he is in comparison to some of them. Go if you're a fan of Valjean and have yet to see him live; his Bring Him Home is worth taking your time and money to attend. We hope to see it again and see that the producers and directors have fixed some of the flaws, as there are some poor casting decisions in this production that was supposed to dazzle New York. We were dazzled by the lead and just ho-hum about everyone else.

[Jeffrey Karasarides]

Posted: 3/12/14 at 11:17pm

There's no big names in this production, the title itself is the real star here!

[brdway411]

Posted: 3/12/14 at 11:49pm

I saw the show with Ramin last Monday. Went again tonight with a friend and Ramin was out (the others posted on the board were the kid roles, my bad, I just gave it a quick glance on my way in, not replacements.) Well, I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by Aaron Walpole. He was INCREDIBLE!!!! Will be heading back on a Thursday to catch him again. Also I don't know if Nikki M. James had a head cold last week or what (she sounded a little off last Monday), but she killed it tonight. Also the show looked a lot tighter tonight (ie the fight scenes).

[neonlightsxo]

Posted: 3/13/14 at 6:24pm

I saw the GMA performance this morning...does Nikki always sound like that? Yikes.

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 3/13/14 at 6:34pm

That is exactly what I thought when I watched it. Well, and the dude who slipped walking to center stage. It seems her voice doesn't suit the material. Yikes x 2

[Hairspray0901]

Posted: 3/13/14 at 6:40pm

@neonlightsxo unfortunately, i believe so. she sounded like that when i saw it, if not worse. =/ she was my least favorite part of the entire production

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 3/13/14 at 6:48pm

"I saw the GMA performance this morning...does Nikki always sound like that? Yikes."

That's exactly how she sounded when I saw the show.

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 3/13/14 at 6:48pm

"I saw the GMA performance this morning...does Nikki always sound like that? Yikes."

That's exactly how she sounded when I saw the show.

[steven22]

Posted: 3/13/14 at 7:23pm

I just watched the GMA preview and liked it until Nikki started singing....Will, Ramin, Andy and Sam sound great, though!

[DottieD'Luscia]

Posted: 3/13/14 at 7:32pm

Guess I'm in the minority, Nikki James sounds fine to me. I'll admit I wasn't too excited about this revival, but I certainly got chills watching this clip.

My complaint is that whenever I watch these clips, the sound is never in sync with the tape.

Updated On: 3/13/14 at 07:32 PM

[HorseTears]

Posted: 3/13/14 at 8:20pm

Have to admit, I enjoyed reading the profile of Ramin Karimloo in the Times and learning about the physicality of his performance. Also was interested to read that they've dropped the cheesy 1980s electronic keyboard from the orchestrations. How do the orchestrations sound overall? Are they dramatically different?


Ramin Karimloo NYT Profile

[wood2burluvr]

Posted: 3/13/14 at 8:22pm

Apparently, they are in a technical stop right now. 15 minutes into Act 1.

[mikey2573]

Posted: 3/13/14 at 8:39pm

"My favorite performances, which were surprising to me, were Samantha Hill as Cossette and Josh Colley as Gavroche. Josh has a longgg career ahead of him, he was incredible! "

Agreed!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D6vNv1M_VK4

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 3/13/14 at 9:04pm

Horsey, the 80s synths have been dropped from various productions for a while now. I *believe* the last televised concert largely shows that off (but these might be brand new orchestrations for this production again, not sure...)

[theminutepast]

Posted: 3/13/14 at 9:33pm

PapaGe, can you elaborate on the change before "A Little Fall of Rain"? How do they make that work?