If you directed a production...

Orestes Fasting · If you directed a production...

Imagine, if you will, that you have a lavish budget, your personal dream cast, and the go-ahead from B&S and CamMack to do whatever cracked-out stuff you want to the show. What do you do? Bring back all the cut material? Completely redesign the sets, costumes, and lighting? Cast a Fantine with a voice like a drunken sailor? Downsize like hell and rip off the Sweeney Todd revival? Commission a translation of L'un vers l'autre and put it in place of On My Own? Interrupt the Attack on the Rue Plumet so that Montparnasse can sing Mack the Knife? Insert tapdance routines? Hold B&S at gunpoint until they rewrite the last 20 minutes of Act I so that it ends with the Gorbeau robbery instead of One Day More?

Go wiiiild, folks.

Eponine93

Ooh, first of all I would put the original, full-lengh "Little People" back in. I would also restore the "In My Life/A Heart Full of Love" sequence back to the one used by the OLC, with "I Saw Him Once." I'll get more creative later. For now, all I want to do is put the cut stuff back in.

flying_pigs

I'd put 'I Saw Him Once' back in, and uncut 'Everyday'. A tap dance sounds tempting, how about during 'Empty Chairs...' when the students come in, they could tap dance!

Or not Razz

eponine5

Hmmm, so much to consider...
Firstly, going with what already exists, I'd use the updated lighting effects from the revival, like the more realistic shutters in On My Own and the grating in Dog Eats Dog, plus the window in Come to Me, and the funny orange lighting in Turning. I'd also use the slightly new look for Look Down and Drink With Me.

As for orchestrations, I'd keep the original ones. Actually, I'm not sure how I'd do this, but I might just tweak something about the instrumentals in On My Own enough to make it sound more haunting. I wouldn't do anything too noticeable, it may be possible by adding a slight echo effect or doing something to the instruments, but the actual background melody would stay the same.

I'd undo the cutting to go back until about the time of the CSR (yes, including Every Day and Turning), but I'd keep the newer Well Scene and lyric changes in Lovely Ladies and Red and Black. It would have Little People for when Javert is found, but Ten Little Bullets for Gavroche's Death. Cosette would also get I Saw Him Once back.

Right now, for the original stuff: I'd change some of the lyrics of Stars so that Javert doesn't mention God so much, to make him slightly more in character according to the book. And I'd instruct the actor who plays him to smile every so often in all his arresting scenes.
I never understood why Eponine said to Valjean "in the Rue de Villette". Yes, it does rhyme, but couldn't she have said something like "Through the Rue des Billettes" or "Near the Rue Pirouette", which are actually described in the book?
Cosette could also have some sort of solo in the second act. Maybe it could be when Eponine's going to deliver the letter. Eponine could go offstage and it could just show a scene with Cosette about her worrying about leaving. That could clear up two things for newbies: 1) that Cosette does in fact still exist, and 2) that Cosette and Valjean really are planning to leave (so many people miss that). Valjean could send her inside, and it could also be used as a device to actually show that Valjean doesn't want Cosette to be with Marius.
I'd also make the sniper part in the First Attack more noticeable, because it is really easy to miss. I'm not sure how I'd do this, though. Maybe there could be a few of the loud gunshots which make the whole audience jump, and then the orchestration could go silent while the battle still continues. the audience would then be able to focus on Enjolras trying to dodge a gunshot, and Valjean shooting at the sniper. Afterwards, the music can come back on again and the battle can finish.

The first thought I had was actually for in-between the Bishop scene and What Have I Done there could be some sort of five second silence. A little boy (the Gavroche actor probably) runs onstage, drops a coin, Valjean steps on it, the boy stares at him and runs away. That would be tacky and cheesy though... and the audience would be thinking "wtf?"
It would be funny if in the middle of Night of Anguish, before they can say "We fight here in her name", M. Mabeuf (ie, a random old man) can run on top of the barricade, wave the red flag while they stare at him, and be shot. This can then be followed by "we fight here in his name. he will not die in vain, he will not be betrayed." This still isn't at the right time according to the book, but it will still add in his character... hehehe
I would want to adjust Eponine's role in the story with all the letter giving, but the problem is that it would be too hard to add in her saving Marius' life without making her too sugary sweet and heroic, because how do you explain the whole 'wanted Marius to die' thing?

Of course the show will be twice as long, but at least I'd watch it. I'll probably think of more things later... that was a long post!

AndrewShatterhand

Off the top of my head I would....

-Add back in everything that was cut in 2000.
-Add in a *few* of the reorchestrations from the Broadway revival. I can't think of any specific ones off the top of my head but I know there were some that I was fond of.
-Add a segment in "Look Down" where Valjean and Cosette see a caravan of convicts off to the galleys, just like in the novel.
-Set the Paris robbery in the Gorbeau house, not some random street corner.
-Make Marius much more angry and disgusted at Valjean when he reveals his past.
-Remove Eponine from Valjean's deathbed, not because I don't like her but because she doesn't really have a reason to be there.
-Javert in finale.

Orestes Fasting

I would probably be working with either the French translation of the current show (because let's face it, the lyrics are superior) or the original London version minus Little People and with Ten Little Bullets for Gavroche's death. And when I say original London version, I do mean the whole thing with all its differences, some of which aren't revealed on the cast recording. I'd probably move Stars to after the Robbery, but I'd keep the original version--and orchestrations. And no matter whether I used the London or Paris version, I'd probably take it at OLC tempos.

I'm not sure what I'd do with the set, but I wouldn't be using a revolve, and I might take some inspiration from the Bomlo production, which had a very wide set side-to-side with a few permanent but versatile features. (Bomlo had the steps, the tenement, the arch/grating, the balcony, the staircase leading up to it, etc.) I'd also probably have a much larger male ensemble than the replica productions call for, to fill out the set a little more and reduce the number of hectic costume changes. And maybe, depending on what I did with the set and the barricade, be able to show the army storming the barricade during the final battle.

For costumes I'd want more accurate and less fantasy-inspired. Lovely Ladies, I'm looking at you, ditto the shiny gold sniper-magnet Enjolras vest and the exaggerated beggar costumes. Cosette desperately needs a prettier dress with actual color, not just variations of black and white. Only place I'd readily compromise on historical accuracy is the wedding scene--the hoop skirts there make me cringe, but even if the cuts to Every Day and Valjean's Confession were removed, there is just not enough time for the female ensemble to get into the six layers of petticoats that 1830s formal dresses would call for.

The whole design, sets, costumes, and lighting, needs to be gritty, Dickensian, and with a much stronger impression of the urban 19th century than the current design. Tattered costumes and sets made of rubble do not 1830s Paris make.

I miiight reorchestrate, but I'd definitely be upsizing, not downsizing like the revival. There are a few songs that could use a facelift, and the amount of synthesizer in the standard orchestrations bugs me.

There are also lots of little tweaks I'd make. Fantine selling her hair and teeth, none of this pansy locket business. Turning being cut entirely or sung by the whores. The Bishop coming out at the end instead of Eponine to lead Valjean to heaven. Ami lines being reassigned all over the place to fit their book personalities.

Oh, and Eponine would be half-crazy and probably have a mental breakdown during On My Own. I'd probably play up all Hugo's Ophelia references for that.

Quique

Honestly?

I'd revert the show back to its 1987 splendor in every way (lighting, orchestrations, restoration of all silly cuts) and have John Cameron's score played by an enormous, full orchestra. =)

Colle

I know I would put most, if not all, of what was cut from the CSR back in and at least toy with the idea of putting back in "I Saw Him Once" and "Ten Little Bullets."

I might make some changes in costumes and sets.

I would not do any major rewrites in or added scenes, even for sake of making the musical more like the book. In spite of the musical's books flaws, I think it is fine as it is and I am used to it. Plus, I am afraid I would butcher the musical if I tried to make any major changes in the book.

Jordan

I feel so stupid for not knowing what 'Ten Little Bullets' refers to. Can someone help me out here? (No, google wasn't an immediate obvious inspiration here!)

'I Saw Him Once' unfortunately makes the show draaaaaaaaaaag at that point, it's about the 27th love song in a row. Please, no more ok?

Orestes Fasting

Jordan

eponine5

I'd say that they both give different things to the scene. Ten Little Bullets is really tense and dramatic, but it doesn't have the same emotional impact as a child singing about little people and puppies while being shot at. Also, without Little People earlier on it doesn't feel as if you know Gavroche as well.
But then again, Ten Little Bullets doesn't have the same tendency to make people laugh before Gavroche is shot.

Timmy_Wishes he was Quast

So...i'm directing Les Mis eh?

Well firstly goodbye synth pit...hello full and glourious orchestral sound!! YAY! Becasue i'm fed up of the synth sound, and hearing School Productions with better sounding pits than the proffessional show. hum..

I would re-instate the original opening with the apregios linking into the heavy chords at the start, as heard on the OLC recording. As well as resotring the original stars and In My Life. I would also get B&S to write a more substaintial solo for Cossette. Possibly before ECAET. As Marius sleeps she can sing of her undying love for him.

Eponine ahh...the much debated. There will be a clause in the actress's contract here. "I will not portray a sad a whiney adolescent". She will be a more boistrous person. I shall directer her with vigour and masculinity. That way when they say things like "Hey little boy..." she could be mistaken for a boy as upposed to a girl.

The final battle would include athe barricade revolving to show the advancing French army (of course i would need more men for this...) Then turning to reveal the half dead revolutionaries. Peaking with Enjy waving his little arms off...as before...but as the barricade roates i would show the French walking off leaving their dead and Gavroche...and Javert emerges from them, before exploring the barricade.

More ideas to come later...

flying_pigs

I'd also make the barricade scenes longer, it seems to go so quickly at the moment!

AndrewShatterhand

Oh yea, one thing I forgot: Give the convicts and the farmers props!

Orestes Fasting

Lazarus (Adam G)

I'd have Garvoche die of cancer in the opening of ACT I so we never have to see him. And then Eponine would be hit by a bus in the beginning of "On My Own" so that we don't have to listen to her cry about how shitty her life is.

Robinflamingo

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If you directed a production...