Archive for Musicals.Net Musicals.Net |
| Yakko |
Favorite Enjolras'?Any favorites? Mine are:1. Anthony Warlow 2. Gary Mauer 3. Drew Sarich(let the flaming on) 4. Aaron Lazer 5. John Owen Jones |
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| DontDoSadnessxx |
aaron lazar owned that part <3 | ||||||
| Orestes Fasting |
Re: Favorite Enjolras'?
Dude, did you ever see him live? The true horror cannot be comprehended from audio alone. In fact I'd wager he sounds like plain old Drew on audio. |
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| The Very Angry Woman |
Re: Favorite Enjolras'?
I would venture to guess Yakko didn't see most of the people on his/her list in person. |
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| curlyhairedsoprano91 |
Aaron Lazar, Matt Cammelle, Michael Maguire, Ramin Karimloo.
All from audio and bootleg. |
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| Quique |
LIVE:
-Pete Herber (1st NT, 1991) -Stephen R. Buntrock (Broadway, 1997) -Gary Mauer (3rd NT, 1994) -Kevin Early (3rd NT, 1999) RECORDINGS: -Aaron Lazar -Anthony Warlow -David Burt |
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| Orestes Fasting |
Live:
- Aaron Lazar (Broadway revival) - Don Brewer (Broadway revival understudy) - Victor Wallace (3nt, 2006) Recorded: - Matt Cammelle (London, late '90s; Scandinavian tour, 2002) - David Thaxton (London, 2008) - Alexander Diepold (Original Vienna cast) - Martin Berger (Original Duisburg cast) |
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| Disney-Bway27 |
I have beefs with Michael Maguire's voice. 
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| bigR |
Re: Favorite Enjolras'?
Mine: Live: -Freek Bartels Video: - Aaron Lazar Big guilty Pleasure: -David Thaxton |
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| EponineMNFF |
Victor Wallace. Mmmmm. | ||||||
| Buff Daddy |
Anthony Warlow. 'Nuff said.
Buff 
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| windbelle |
It's a little hard for me to pick...
From audios and videos: Anthony Warlow Aaron Lazar Kevin Earley Gary Mauer Joseph Mahowald Scott Irwin |
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| Yakko |
Re: Favorite Enjolras'?
Saw him on youtube. Sorry but my opinion stands. |
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| Yakko |
Re: Favorite Enjolras'?
That is true, but I have seen Aaron Lazar live. |
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| EponineBarker |
Live:
Aaron Lazar (Loved his acting!) Recording: Michael Maguire |
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| eponine5 |
David Thaxton
He's about the only Enjolras I've seen live who really impressed me, come to think of it. When I saw the revival I got Drew Sarich... |
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| Artemis Entreri |
Michel Sardou and Anthony Warlow. Hate Maquire and Drew. | ||||||
| mastachen |
As I've only seen Victor Wallace, Tom Lowe, and Max Von Essen live, I'd say the one I like best is Tom Lowe. On video, the best Enjolras performance I've seen is Aaron Lazar. For recorded audios/CDs, the best is Anthony Warlow. | ||||||
| Fantine |
Freek Bartels and Ramin Karimloo. | ||||||
| javertim |
Dallyn Vail Bayles. The only other two that have even come remotely close are Ben Davis and Aaron Lazaar.
On recording, I really enjoy David Bardsley and Kevin Earley. I also must confess that I hold a special fondness for the histrionics of David Burt. 
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| EponineBarker |
I hear that Von Essen is good, I'll have to look him up on youtube sometime. I don't know why, but I never too fond of Walrow. Don't get me wrong, he's got a good voice, but his Enjolras never really did anything for me. I recently tried listening to his recording of "Red and Black" again and still...nothing. (Warlow fans, please don't murder me, this is just my opinion.) |
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| mastachen |
I thought Max Von Essen wasn't bad, but he didn't do anything to make it memorable. | ||||||
| mezzogeek |
I've only seen one live, so I don't have much frame of reference there, but I thought David Thaxton was excellent when I saw him =) | ||||||
| MariekeLovesEnjolras |
Freek & David Thaxton
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| LesMisForever |
Live: Ramin Karimloo, but David Thaxton is also great.
Recordings: Anthony Warlow. |
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| Eppie-Sue |
overall: David Thaxton. Besides being the perfect E! he has (insert drumroll here) read the books. Twice. Which is really saying it all.
from the actual recordings: Michael Maguire, although I love Michel Sardou's "A la volont� du peuple". I've never liked Warlow's take on the role - although his voice is great - ... sounds too static and there's too much pathos, especially in the first act. |
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| Xxmcfly85xX |
Anthony Warlow 
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| MlleTholomy�s |
Waaaaaarlow. Then, Burt, Sardou, and Thaxton. | ||||||
| Vichysois |
I've only heard Warlow and Maguire. I'd probly prefer Maguire just because of the association I've made between him and the character. I just enjoy that he's a baritone, but his upper range is mad powerful. | ||||||
| Orestes Fasting |
Sorry guys, but Aaron Lazar still pwns the universe. | ||||||
| Eppie-Sue |
Have never seen him live, but I've watched the YouTube videos. He is great, and from what I gather a "calmer, quieter" Enjolras (no?), which I love, but after seeing Thaxton twice in a row I'm totally won over. He even looks the part quite well... tall, quite good-looking, light hair and all. Red and Black here - the "Lamarque is dead" part (and his Final Battle) = win. |
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| Orestes Fasting |
Aaron Lazar is how I always imagined book!Enjolras to be. He's quieter, yes, but I don't think video can quite capture the intensity that radiates off him. He could flick his fingers and have everyone at the barricade on their knees if he wanted--and he somehow captures the sad, contemplative aspect of Hugo's Enjolras as well.
From what I've heard/seen of Thaxton, he's more like fanfic Enjolras: fervent, exuberant, and really slashy. I have no doubt he'll win my heart when/if I finally see him, but Aaron Lazar's performance will still be as close to definitive as anything I've ever seen. |
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| Eppie-Sue |
*dies* oh, he reminds me of the Duisburg Enjolras that made me fall in love with the character. When I was nine years old... ---
Ah, I can definitely see your point there. The thing is, I normally don't like the romanticised, stereotypical "badass revolutionary" version of Enjolras (a route which most actors normally take, simply because it's easy and plausible if you're not familiar with the book), so I'm trying to find the right words for DT's Enjolras. I didn't get the feeling he was overly exuberant. From what I can remember, my first impression was actually that his take was that of a very noble, charismatic, principled and reflective Enjolras. There are the kind of OOC moments when he's a bit too enthusiastic and too fervent due to the libretto and the direction, but then there are great moments in "Look Down" (love the second one of the women hits on him and just gets one "astounding and terrible glance", teaching her "not to confound the mighty cherub of Ezekiel with the gallant Cherubino of Beaumarchais")... and actually, once we get to the barricades, he seems a lot like book E! to me. And the good thing is everybody (even those who see the show for the first time, I've talked to quite a few) can totally understand that he's not just their leader because of The Vest. Plus, he's great at staring others down. The problem is the overdone interaction with Marius, but that's a given because of stage direction. I'll never quite come to terms with that... But, you know, at least he has read the book. And he doesn't drink during "Drink with me", a (from what I've heard quite common) mistake known as the epitome of Enjolraic OOCness.
Ah, about that...  um, well...
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| MlleTholomy�s |
I love how he's all "OMG WTF??!? A BARRICADE, SAY YOU? Yayyayayayayay! A barricade!" He's such a doll.
Now I'm kinda wishing I'd seen the revival . . . |
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| Orestes Fasting |
Yeah, it's the "OMG we're going to build a BARRICADE it's like Christmas only with more death" attitude that's making me reserve judgment on Thaxton's Enjolras until I've seen him (*crosses fingers*). Because it seems both awesome and more appropriate for Courfeyrac than for Enjolras. (Speaking of which, I heard that as Courfeyrac he tended to do more actual leadership at the barricade than Simon Bailey as Enjolras.) My impression, never having seen him live, is loud and energetic and in-charge while still taking more elements from the book than from your stereotypical G.I. Joe Enjolras characterization. But the barricade scenes are crucial, and there's practically no video of them.
Aaron Lazar read the book too, and you can really really tell. He was constrained by some of the weird directing for the revival, and did have to drink in Drink With Me, but he had the essence of his character completely down. I hope he reprises the role in a regional production sometime. |
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| Eppie-Sue |
You know, there is that one scene before "Drink with me" after Valjean fakes shooting Javert, comes back and says "It's done" or something of that effect. And then all the students - except for Enjolras - start "clapping" by stamping their guns. Enjolras, however, cuts that off with The Stare, but Courfeyrac doesn't stop. And that's where the "Courfeyrac! You take the watch"-line comes from... I really liked that, it seemed very in-character. I still don't like the idea that Enjolras hands Javert over to Valjean just because Valjean shot the sniper that was aiming at E!, though. 
I haven't seen any other productions, all I know stems from YouTube and reviews, but can anyone tell me what the other Enjolras actors did during "Bring him home"? Because I've seen the London u/s, Mark Dugdale, and he didn't move at all, just like everybody else, but David Thaxton was actually sitting there, facing the auditorium, moving, contemplating, clearly awake. Loved it. And no, the whole "OMG we're going to build a BARRICADE it's like Christmas only with more death" attitude (amazing description) is really not what defines DT's Enjolras! Yes, he is in charge and he is energetic, but his attitude regarding the revolution, the barricades, the sacrifice is almost "fatalistic". I can't describe it.
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| MlleTholomy�s |
I know, but he's so adorable when he appears like that in pictures. |
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| Vanessa20 |
Every Enjolras I've seen in the US has spent BHH standing or sitting on the barricade, staring into the distance and contemplating. But the one time I saw the show in London, 2004, Oliver Thornton lay down like everyone else. Maybe it's more common for London Enjys to sleep and US Enjys to stay awake, I don't know, but I prefer him awake too. As for my favorite, I think I'm an Aaron Lazar fangirl too, though unfortunately I only got to see him once. |
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| Eppie-Sue |
I've talked to another girl in London after the show about BHH and she actually said that she always imagined Enjolras to witness the whole Marius/Cosette/Valjean drama and that leading to protective!Enjolras ("I can't let you go/It's too much of a chance") resulting in the whole "Waving The Flag" business... as a distraction so JVJ and Marius can escape the battle.
Me:
Ummmmm - am I missing something here?! I'm pretty good at over-analysing, but this?! |
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| music-man |
Enjolras!It can only be Anthony Warlow. His recordings are just amazing!!!There is a video of him on youtube doing a concert version of Les Mis (sorry im not good enough to know what it actually was, might have been in australia, but who knows) and in the ABC cafe all the men are really old, and quite shockingly bad, but Warlow is just fantastic, really made me laugh. |
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| MlleTholomy�s |
Re: Enjolras!
God, I LOVE that video! It's even more lulzy when you just have the cd! |
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| music-man |
Its actually amazing, its also probably the worst Marius ever to have been broadcast.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bv4jXzn5fys - for a laugh. Its just so funny. |
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| Eppie-Sue |
 ... can't ... breathe...
Hysterical. But I still don't like Warlow's Enjolras, I can't feel anything when I hear him sing... Of course he's got a great voice, but it sounds too "condescending" and holier-than-thou.
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| curlyhairedsoprano91 |
Agreed, absolutely. Also, that Marius looks like a 12-year-old Michael Ball. And possibly sounds like a 12-year-old Michael Ball. |
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| lesmisloony |
I'm so glad I'm not alone in my general apathy towards AW.
Then again, if you put him onstage with a bunch of chimps in feathered mullet wigs, he looks great... |
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| Eppie-Sue |
A few more thoughts about Thaxton's Enjolras and why I think you get the impression he's quite close to book!Enjolras - or, for lack of a better expression: He does Enjolras justice.
So, from what I've heard, seen and read, there are normally two kinds of Enjolrati (of course there are always exceptions, but hear me out). 1) GI EnJoelras. He's badass and he knows it. He's angry and loud and he's wearing The Vest Of Power, so there's no way they're going to lose the battle! He's fed up with Marius, with Grantaire, with anybody who's not getting that [I quote Les Mis for Dummies) "WE WILL FIGHT AND OUR FUTURE WILL BE BLOODY FANTASTIC." Everyone will remember him as The Fanatic Who Was Angry At Marius. Best line: "Make them bleed while we can!" 2) Enjolwhatshisface. He's enthusiastic - barricades are awesome ("like Christmas only with more death"). He's na�ve and he's pushing his fist in the air and smiling. But - so are the other students! You don't know if it's him singing or some other student. Nobody really knows why he's in charge. Everyone will only remember him as The Guy With The Vest Who Waved The Flag And Died. Best line: "Here upon these stones we will build our barricade"... As for Thaxton: He's not the perfect book!Enjolras. He's warmer and more approachable, but you know, he has to be. In the musical, we don't have the moderating characters next to him - Combeferre, Courfeyrac, those, who give warmth, who make this revolution easier to breathe in. No one who hasn't analysed the musical at home or read the book will remember any of Les Amis. They aren't introduced as individuals, there's not room for that in the musical. And furthermore, we don't learn anything about Enjolras, about his character, all we get to hear from him is [once again I quote Les Mis for Dummies]: "THAT SAID, LET�S FIGHT!" Libretto-wise, there are no intimate, calm moments with Enjolras (except for "The people have not heard etc." maybe) and that's the reason why most people in the audience - while thinking the whole revolution thing was quite cool and The Vest was sexy - won't sympathise with him or with the cause that much. They watch them do their whole barricade-stuff, they see them die and that's it. They even get the impression of "They were schoolboys, never held a gun"-na�vety. And that's why I think Thaxton's E! is absolutely perfect. He connects with the audience. He draws them in and I swear, everybody in the auditorium, let alone everyone on stage would follow him onto the barricades without a second thought. I know that it's not supposed to be like this, book-wise: The students have their own minds and don't blindly follow Enjolras, but this is not displayed by the musical at all, so we have to take a different approach. And the good thing is that you get the impression that DT is constantly in-character and that his Enjolras knows what he's doing and doesn't need The Vest to stand out - and that it's really only due to unfortunate circumstances that they lost and not because there were only "children [on] the barricades". He's both Enjolras and Combeferre and within the scale of the musical that works amazingly well and he's doing a brilliant job trying to stay as close to the books as possible without sacrificing the audience's empathy with Enjolras and the students. Thinking about all this now makes me really regret the fact that they cut Combeferre's "Though we may not all survive here/There are things that never die" after Javert's "Death to each and every traitor!/I renounce your people's court". They only have Javert's outburst and then Enjolras puts his foot down, but I would have loved to see some more mature!students. sigh. They cut so many of their lines... which just directs everbody's attention even more to Enjolras, so I guess it's good that they have such a strong performer for that role. to put it into a nutshell: David Thaxton wins at life. |
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| DramaPrincess |
Jason McCann, followed by Thaxton, Drew and Warlow | ||||||
| MlleTholomy�s |
Drew? As in Drew Sarich? | ||||||
| DramaPrincess |
Yeah, he's not *Enjolras*, but I still like him in the part. I like him in any part though, I just wanna take him home and hug him and make him sing to me 
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| lesmisloony |
Thaaat's exactly how I feel about Max von Essen. |
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| What you own |
This made Lol. I said this to this one guy in our drama who had the solo "Mircles of Mircles" I said to him "I just want to put you in my pocket!" |
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| DramaPrincess |
Why do I have this feeling of doom that a "Which Les Mis performer would you most like as a pet?" thread is imminent?!
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| flying_pigs |
Thaxton, Thaxton, Thaxton!
This is why: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYk_g6r-4uA My fav Final Battle EVER! |
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| Eppie-Sue |
epic.
here are the other two on YouTube... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IyVSSfq6Btc http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9p4XzFlgElg I'm still gushing over the Saturday matinee clip, I think it's my favourite. 
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| Madeleine |
I'm totally giddy now after listening to DT's Final Battle three times in a row.
I hope he realises that he is never allowed to leave the show because he is so perfect. <3 *has images of 80 year old DT Enjolras*
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| Eppie-Sue |
We should definitely tell him that the next time we go to the stage door. We'll be like: "You can check out any time you want but you can never leave." And then he'll be all like: "Okay then." And the world's going to turn into fluffy marshmellows and strawberries and whipped cream and the angels will sing and dance and that'll be it.
We should clone him. He's just turned 27, so he might be able to play the role for another ... 16 years?! maybe? and then he'll be 43-ish - he doesn't always have to jump from the TOP of the barricade - and we'll have a 16 year old DT who has just fully gone through early mutation. His two and twenty years appeared to be but seventeen. Sounds like a plan...?! |
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| flying_pigs |
I agree, he should never leave!
But if he should leave at the next cast change *sob*, he should go straight into another West End musical so we do not lose any of his awesomeness! |
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| Eppie-Sue |
Ah, I don't know... he doesn't seem like your "typical West End musical performer" to me, I think LesMis is all he's ever done on the West End (first as Courfeyrac/us Enjolras and now as Enjolras) - at least that's what I gathered from the Company profile-thingy in the brochure. That's why I think we might see him a bit longer at Queen's, simply because he really does seem to feel comfortable with the show (and the character). I mean, he has been in the show before, he's come back now, he's staying for another year, he's re-reading the books because they're rehearsing, he's putting so much effort into the role - I could easily see him playing Enjolras for another few years and maybe even coming back one day to play Javert or Valjean.
Yeah, I do realise the last sentence makes him sound like Drew Sarich. But it's different. 
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| flying_pigs |
Yep, this is his only West End show.
Come to think of it, nothing springs to mind when I try and think of another part he could play! Oh, he was also an understudy Bishop back when he was first in Les Mis, he was awesome! |
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| Madeleine |
Cloning sounds good!
I would do anything to see him as Valjean or Javert. But then he wouldn't be playing Enjolras anymore which would make me very sad. How about he just plays every single role in the show? Now that, I would like to see.
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| Eppie-Sue |
Somehow I have the feeling he'd make a brilliant young Eponine, but that's just me.
I really don't want to think about post-Thaxton Enjolrati, although, you know, I kind of had to when I was watching Mark Dugdale filling in for him (don't get me wrong, Dugdale's a great guy. But I've said before, this is DT we're talking about ), and one thing I noticed was that the scenes on the barricade became quite chaotic after Javert's arrival and it definitely didn't seem like Enjolras was in charge or knew what he was doing. I never got that impression with DT on stage, though, so that's another plus.
sigh |
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| Madeleine |
Oh yes, DT is always completely on charge. Except for the ammunition fight and when Gavroche climbs over the Barricade...nobody is listening to him and it all gets a bit chaotic.
I remember seeing, as the revolve turned around for Gavroche's Death, DT with his head in his hands as if to say 'OMG everythings going wrong and nobody is listening to me' just as he disappeared out of sight. He started to fall apart ever so slightly at that point. I love the total control and authority he has over the students in the ABC scene, and 99% of the barricade scene.
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| Eppie-Sue |
Aww. That comment makes me want to hug him and love him and squeeze him and call him George. |
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| BwayJuvinile |
Ben Davis was my favorite of the ones I've seen live. He was phenominal. |