Hans
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My Les Mis review.Just in case anyone cares...
Last Monday I had the pleasure to attend the Trondheim production of Les Mis. I was sitting at the first row. Not an ideal place to sit, but definately interesting. I could touch the Paris pavement and had whores, students and orphans literally on my lap.
As this is, so I understand, a semi Cameron Mackintosh production, I was expecting some bold choices of direction. Thankfully they avoided such directional choices as relocating the story to present day Trondheim, in a misguided attempt to make it �relevant�; cutting songs they don�t fancy or incorporating new material by Madonna.
There were some dull takes on the direction. As I hoped not, the dead Enjorlas was hanging uncomfortably out of the barricade with the red rebellion flag draped SYMBOLICALLY around him. Javert committed suicide by waving his arms dramatically while the bridge was speeding towards the ceiling. Are there no alternative ways to do these scenes? Surprisingly the Thenardiers did not duck up through the floor during One Day More (which btw is fantastic to experience a few feet away!).
The Prologue started with the prisoners kind of lumped together in a heap, which seemed a somewhat awkward form of punishment to me. But maybe that was the custom in France of the 19th century? The scene where Fantine joins the prostitutes is directed very explicitly, which is suitable.
Thernardier�s diction was regretfully sloppy. We know there is a funny song in there somewhere, so the audience reacted to it anyway. Unfortunately that diction also muddles the scene the Thernardiers have at the wedding towards the end of the musical. I don�t think it�s clear to the audience what they are talking to Marius about. Mme Thernardier was grotesque, and sensationally so. She might do an interesting Lovett.
Cosette is a difficult part to play interesting, but Eir Inderhaug did a marvellous work fleshing the role as much as possible without overacting. Ingrid Bergstr�m was also a wonderful Eponine. I didn�t like her in her previous musical, Ann-Magritt, but that was due to inferior material. Evelyn Jons as Fantine was heartbreakingly sad without being sentimental.
I was particularly impressed by B�rd Steine as Grantaire. He has few actual lines, but we were presented a very colourful character which constantly acted in the background without overshadowing the central characters.
Paul Ottar Haga, which is underestimated (or underused) as a musical artist, did a scarily severe Javert. His dark eyes signalled total mercilessness. He is a fine example of a singing actor, which I prefer. I�d like to see him in something by Sondheim.
Marius, as played by Torgeir Reiten, is a bleak figure, but what can one do except singing pretty? Stephen Brandt-Hansen as Enjorlas was better than I feared, which is mainly because he doesn�t have that much to sing. He has a heavy, unsuitable vibrato, and does not really look like a rebellious student at all. Neither does some of the other students. Maybe I�ve grown cynical after experiencing human meat pies and cake walking assassins. But I can�t help feeling there�s something a little wrong when the reaction dieing students provoke in me is a heavy giggle.
Erik Jacobsen did a solid Jean Valjean.
The translated text was mainly flowing well. But the translator has made some inexplicable choices as to the rhyme scheme. Granted, Les Mis does not show off the cleverest rhyme schemes to begin with. But here, rhymes pops up totally in randomly. The results are that choices of words and syntaxes don�t feel too forced, which is good. The randomness is somewhat disturbing, though. Particularly when Marius all of a sudden seems to have become possessed with the spirit of Sondheim, as he insists to rhyme every sentence in his letter to Cosette.
Paradoxaly, in a safely directed and casted production like this, the weakest spots seem to be the result of heavy handed dramaturgy from the creative team of the musical. There is only so much you can do with people without real material in large scenes which focuses heavily on one or two persons. Particularly A Little Fall Of Rain seems cartoonish when the entire cast of students on the barricade just hangs around in the background while Eponine is going through agony. Also other situations in the musical appear difficult to direct, but the problems are mostly convincingly solved.
My least favourite scene in the show, is Valjean explaining to Marius why he has to leave Cosette. Yeah, her heart will break if she�ll ever learn he stole a loaf of bread ---- FOURTY YEARS AGO, so it�s best for all if he LEAVES HER FOREVER AND DIE! Sure. That makes sense.
The show was heavily amplified, which I don�t favour, but Les Mis isn�t a very intimate show anyway.
All in all I felt this was a very solid production of Les Miserables, which probably means it is actually sensational by less cynic standards.
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olly
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Re: My Les Mis review. | Dvarg wrote: | had whores, students and orphans literally on my lap.
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Lucky you. 
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LesMisForever
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Hello
Thank you for the review.
I share your opinion about changing the dates. I am not fond of those updates at all. Actually i feel that there is some patronising involved. As if people won't get it if events are hapenning few hundreds years ago (i am talking generally here). And even if it is not very obvious, well let them do some research, and maybe they will learn something.
Now, may i ask you why the death scene of students makes you giggle? This is not meant as criticism. One can't help what he feels. But, i am curious to know why a scene that is meant to be sad produces the opposite reaction?
I agree that Eponine's death scene is not the strongest, but it is hard to direct anyway, because it would be hard to have a battle going and singing a song.
I also agree that Valjean's reason for not telling Cosette is weak, but we have to blame Hugo for that. The novel has many holes actually, but the final product is so great that one can forgive him those.
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Aimee
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I don't think we can blame Hugo for the whole Valjean leaving being so weak thing. Yeah that's what happens in the book but its dealt with really badly in the show and the now shortened version makes it even worse. In the book you are screaming out for Valjean to tell him the truth but Marius doesn't like Valjean in the book so he never does. None of this come across in the show and I think that's a shame.
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LesMisForever
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Hello
Fair enouh Aimee, I agree with you. The show deals with the matter badly.
But even in the novel, Valjean doesn't tell Cosette the truth, because he wants to spare her the emotional distress. I think that is weak.
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Kragey
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Valjean's death scene in the novel is rather dull in general. I'm not saying I expect fireworks and fanfare, because really, he's KICKIN' THE BUCKET. However, the writing is so strong and interesting in other parts of the book that the lackluster finale and--and I know I'm gonna get slapped for this, but hey--drowning out of incredible monologues with Hugo's boring political commentary drive me NUTS.
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Hans
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| LesMisForever wrote: |
Now, may i ask you why the death scene of students makes you giggle? This is not meant as criticism. One can't help what he feels. But, i am curious to know why a scene that is meant to be sad produces the opposite reaction?
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I felt a little guilty, but I couldn't help finding it amusing the way they stubled over the barricade and died in partly pompus ways. I'm sure it has to do with direction. The students were trying so hard to make it heart breaking, and it might have been a little too overdramatic for me.
| LesMisForever wrote: |
I also agree that Valjean's reason for not telling Cosette is weak, but we have to blame Hugo for that. The novel has many holes actually, but the final product is so great that one can forgive him those.
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I don't remember the situation in the book that well, so you may certainly be right. But no matter who is to blame for the awkwardness, it doesn't change how I feel about the scene.
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LesMisForever
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| Kragey wrote: | | Valjean's death scene in the novel is rather dull in general. I'm not saying I expect fireworks and fanfare, because really, he's KICKIN' THE BUCKET. However, the writing is so strong and interesting in other parts of the book that the lackluster finale and--and I know I'm gonna get slapped for this, but hey--drowning out of incredible monologues with Hugo's boring political commentary drive me NUTS. |
Hello
The finale is lacklustre!! mmm...I couldn't disagree with you more. Believe it or not it, it took me almost an hour to read the last ten pages or so. I wasn't crying. I was sobbing as if i am about to loose a dear friend. I do sometimes cry, but not that way. But, i guess different situations have different impacts on people.
I didn't find Hugo's comments boring, but they are distracting at many places, and they are sometimes too lenghthy. In general though i liked those digerssions, especially the big ones like the life of the bishop, and the battle of Waterloo.
Actually, when i come to think of it, the writing, and those deep analysis is what made "Les Miserables" great to me, because the story as pure tale is weak, and rely heavily on coincidences.
Les Miserables is not a page turner. It needs patience and dedication. In defence of Hugo though, almost all the great classic writers wrote very lenghthy novels like Dickens, or Dostojevsky.
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Aimee
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| LesMisForever wrote: | | Kragey wrote: | | Valjean's death scene in the novel is rather dull in general. I'm not saying I expect fireworks and fanfare, because really, he's KICKIN' THE BUCKET. However, the writing is so strong and interesting in other parts of the book that the lackluster finale and--and I know I'm gonna get slapped for this, but hey--drowning out of incredible monologues with Hugo's boring political commentary drive me NUTS. |
Hello
The finale is lacklustre!! mmm...I couldn't disagree with you more. Believe it or not it, it took me almost an hour to read the last ten pages or so. I wasn't crying. I was sobbing as if i am about to loose a dear friend. I do sometimes cry, but not that way. But, i guess different situations have different impacts on people.
I didn't find Hugo's comments boring, but they are distracting at many places, and they are sometimes too lenghthy. In general though i liked those digerssions, especially the big ones like the life of the bishop, and the battle of Waterloo.
Actually, when i come to think of it, the writing, and those deep analysis is what made "Les Miserables" great to me, because the story as pure tale is weak, and rely heavily on coincidences.
Les Miserables is not a page turner. It needs patience and dedication. In defence of Hugo though, almost all the great classic writers wrote very lenghthy novels like Dickens, or Dostojevsky. |
I'm in the sobbing camp too. I cried and cried. I was so angry with Valjean for not telling Cosette and angry with Marius for allowing this to happen. Then when he finds out how wrong he is and the doctor says Cosettes was what Valjean needed but that it was too late.
sob sob sob 
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Elin
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What did you think about Madame Th�nardier's knitting?
I loved the curtain call. It surprised me at first, but I guess they had to do even that differently.
IB and POH are marvellous.
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