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Les Misérables, commonly known as Les Mis, is a musical based on the novel Les Misérables by Victor Hugo. It tells the story of ex-convict Jean Valjean and his attempts to start a new life and make the world a better place.
The musical's emblem is a picture of the waif Cosette, usually shown cropped to a head-and-shoulders portrait with the French national flag superimposed.
Well-known songs from the musical include "I Dreamed a Dream", "Master of the House", "Do You Hear the People Sing?", "On My Own", and "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables".
The musical was written by the composer Claude-Michel Schönberg and the librettist Alain Boublil. It opened in September 1980 at the Palais des Sports in Paris for a projected eight-week season; such was its success that it ran for sixteen weeks, closing only because the venue was already committed to other projects after that point. Les Misérables was a part of the major European influence on Broadway in the 80's and along with Cats, The Phantom of the Opera, and Miss Saigon, they are often collectively known as the greatest musicals in history.
In 1982, English producer Cameron Mackintosh began work on an English language version, with lyrics by Herbert Kretzmer. The first English production, produced by Mackintosh and directed by Trevor Nunn, opened on October 8, 1985, in the Barbican Theatre, London. It starred Colm Wilkinson as Valjean, Rebecca Caine as Cosette, Patti LuPone as Fantine, Roger Allam as the persistent Inspector Javert, and Alun Armstrong as the villainous rogue Thenardier. On December 4, 1985, it transferred to the Palace Theatre, and moved again on April 3, 2004 to the Queen's Theatre. On October 8, 1995, the show's 10th anniversary was celebrated with a concert at the Royal Albert Hall; one of the finalés was a performance of "Do You Hear the People Sing?" sung a line at a time by seventeen Jean Valjeans, each from a different production in a different country.
The Broadway production opened on March 12, 1987. Colm Wilkinson and Frances Ruffelle (as Eponine) reprised their roles from the London production. The musical won the Tony Award for Best Musical in that year, and won in five additional categories: Michael Maguire for Actor in a Featured Role, Musical; Frances Ruffelle for Actress in a Featured Role, Musical; Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg for Book, Musical; Trevor Nunn and John Caird for Director, Musical; and David Hersey for Lighting Design.
It ran at the Imperial Theatre until May 18, 2003, (its scheduled end on March 15, 2003, having been postponed by a surge in public interest). After 6,680 performances in sixteen years, it is the third-longest-running Broadway musical after Cats and The Phantom of the Opera.
In 2002, a student edition of the musical became available. This is notable because it is unusual for a student edition to be released while professional productions (London and US touring productions) are still showing. However, all the actors in the school edition must be students (under 19 and unpaid), in order to prevent theatre companies from performing the show. It is also shorter than the "official" version, although no major scenes or songs have been removed (some, however, are very substantially cut). The official poster and cover art for the student edition features Cosette wearing a letterman jacket and holding a textbook.
Les Miserables was nominated for the following Tony Awards in 1987:
- Tony Award for Best Musical WINNER
- Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical WINNER
- Tony Award for Best Original Score WINNER
- Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical (Terrence Mann)
- Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical (Colm Wilkinson)
- Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical (Michael Maguire) WINNER
- Tony Award for Best Performace by a Featured Actress in a Musical (Frances Ruffelle) WINNER
- Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical (Judy Kuhn)
- Tony Award for Best Scenic Design of a Musical WINNER
- Tony Award for Best Costume Design of a Musical
- Tony Award for Best Lighting Design of a Musical WINNER
- Tony Award for Best Choreography WINNER
- Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical WINNER
Links
- Cameron Mackintosh: Les Misérables (http://www.lesmis.com/)
- A Resourceful Les Mis Fan Site (http://members.aol.com/REELMACK/LesMisClub1.html)de:Les Misérables (Musical)