Les Misérables

Fox Theatre Broadway Series

You might assume that after seventeen consecutive years on the road, the Third National Company (a.k.a. the Marius Company, for those of you keeping track) of the monumentally popular 1985 musical Les Misérables would be looking just a little bit shopworn; that the cast – even if they're not the same ones who started out back in 1988 – might be a little less than completely enthusiastic and that the whole project; and that all of this might be especially true during the final eight performances, to which our own Fox Theatre is playing host through July 23rd [2006].

You might assume that. But you'd be dead wrong.

The production of Les Misérables that hit the stage of an unusually warm Fox Theatre on Tuesday night was, at least to my eyes and ears, every bit as much of a well-oiled theatrical machine as it was the first time I saw it back in the late 1980s. From the opening prisoners' chorus through the sublime finale three hours later, the show's canny combination of a conventional but memorable score, compelling characters and situations (the source is, after all, a literary classic) and fluid staging grabs and holds your attention and emotions. It remains, in my view, one of the most effective pieces of musical theatre of the late 20th century. No wonder it's the second longest running show in Broadway history and the longest running musical in London's West End.

As Jean Valjean, the petty criminal whose redemption and valiant struggle to redeem others is the mainspring of the plot, Randal Keith turns in a powerful and well-rounded performance. His rendition of “Let Him Live” is the expected showstopper and gives him a chance to make good use of his falsetto. As Valjean's implacable persecutor Javert, Robert Hunt is a bit more monochromatic, but he's certainly in fine voice. Jennifer Butt and Norman Large (insert obvious dumb joke here…) are hilariously gross as the venial Thenardier and his loutish wife, with Large bringing a somewhat richer voice to the character than others I've heard over the years.

Melissa Lyons is simply stunning as Thenardier's daughter Eponine, whose doomed love for the heroic Marius (sung with great charm by Daniel Bogart) provides one of several tragic sub-plots. There's fine work here as well from Joan Almedilla, bringing something of a Piaf-like fragility to the role of Fantine. Other notable performances include Ali Ewoldt as a charming Cosette, and child actors Austyn Myers as the canny street urchin Gavroche and Meg Guzulescu as the young Cosette. Myers, in particular, found great favor with the opening night audience. Meyers and Guzulescu alternate in the roles with Anthony Skillman and Rachel Schier.

The production's clear direction and brisk pacing provide maximum impact for the peaks and valleys of this highly sentimental and emotionally charged play. And this is, by the way, at least a one-hanky show. I defy anyone to get through the second act without at least a lump in the throat. I certainly can't, and this is the third time around for me.

The costumes look great and the massive turntable-based set allows for lightning-fast changes of scene and mood. My only technical quibbles were with the sound mix, which (at least on opening night) rendered the lyrics of large ensemble numbers somewhat incomprehensible, and with the lighting, which seemed darker than in past productions. Or perhaps it's just that my memory is brighter.

I continue to be amazed, by the way, that this show has gained such widespread acceptance here in the USA. To begin with, the book's obvious sympathy for the poor and oppressed seems out of step with our current adoration of the fictions of laissez-faire capitalism. It's also at odds with a political culture in which an angry, judgmental and vindictive version of Christianity – that is to say, Javert's version - is currently on the ascendant. The contrast with Les Misérables' message of redemption through compassion, sacrifice, and caring could not be more striking.

“Those who follow the path of the righteous”, sings Javert in “Stars”, “will have their reward…those who falter and those who fall must pay the price”. But ultimately it is Valjean, along with the spirits of the departed Eponine and Fantine, who has the final word: "To love another person is to see the face of God."

But I digress.

The bottom line is that this final tour of the current version of Les Misérables is a moving and entertaining one and well worth your time and money. A revamped version of the show, complete with new orchestrations, lighting and costumes, opens on Broadway this fall so this is, in fact, your last chance to see this musical theatre classic in its current form. It's at the Fox through July 23rd; for ticket information, call 314-534-1111.

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