Musical: “Les Miserables”
Company: The Muny
Venue: The Muny in Forest Park
Dates: Through June 23
Tickets: $16.75 to $135, with 1,450 free seats; contact MetroTix at 314-534-1111 or metrotix.com
Story: Jean Valjean was sentenced in 1796 to 19 years of hard labor in France for stealing a loaf of bread to feed his nephew. Paroled in 1815, Valjean is unable to find work because of the badge he must wear, which signifies his past criminal status.
When Valjean steals silver from the home of a bishop, the kindly cleric informs police that he had given the silver to Valjean as a gift. He then tells Valjean that, given a second chance, Valjean should make the most of his opportunity.
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Photo by Phillip Hamer, courtesy of The Muny
Eight years later the penitent Valjean has done so, becoming a successful businessman and mayor of the town of Montreuil-sur-Mer. He continues to be pursued, however, by the inflexible, unyielding Inspector Javert, a letter-of-the-law officer who wants Valjean imprisoned for breaking his parole years earlier.
One day, Valjean interrupts a fight between two women at his factory. He is moved by the story of Fantine, a young woman ostracized by others for having a child out of wedlock. Fantine is badly beaten in the brawl, and Valjean takes her to a hospital, where she implores him to care of her daughter.
Eventually, in 1832, Valjean ends up in Paris, where he protects Cosette, now a young woman. Valjean promised he would care for Fantine’s daughter, upon Fantine’s premature death, and has done so faithfully.
After the death of French leader General Lamarque, the lone government official sympathetic to the plight of the poor, a band of students led by Enjolras urges an uprising against the tyrannical French government.
![087_MUNY_LESMIS_Emily Bautista_Photo by Phillip Hamer.jpg](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/laduenews.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/cd/ccd1077a-3005-11ef-a91a-3b7a238086cd/6675d6a61c29a.image.jpg?resize=150%2C100 150w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/laduenews.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/cd/ccd1077a-3005-11ef-a91a-3b7a238086cd/6675d6a61c29a.image.jpg?resize=200%2C133 200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/laduenews.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/cd/ccd1077a-3005-11ef-a91a-3b7a238086cd/6675d6a61c29a.image.jpg?resize=225%2C150 225w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/laduenews.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/cd/ccd1077a-3005-11ef-a91a-3b7a238086cd/6675d6a61c29a.image.jpg?resize=300%2C200 300w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/laduenews.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/cd/ccd1077a-3005-11ef-a91a-3b7a238086cd/6675d6a61c29a.image.jpg?resize=400%2C267 400w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/laduenews.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/cd/ccd1077a-3005-11ef-a91a-3b7a238086cd/6675d6a61c29a.image.jpg?resize=540%2C360 540w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/laduenews.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/cd/ccd1077a-3005-11ef-a91a-3b7a238086cd/6675d6a61c29a.image.jpg?resize=640%2C427 640w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/laduenews.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/cd/ccd1077a-3005-11ef-a91a-3b7a238086cd/6675d6a61c29a.image.jpg?resize=750%2C501 750w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/laduenews.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/cd/ccd1077a-3005-11ef-a91a-3b7a238086cd/6675d6a61c29a.image.jpg?resize=990%2C661 990w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/laduenews.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/cd/ccd1077a-3005-11ef-a91a-3b7a238086cd/6675d6a61c29a.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C691 1035w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/laduenews.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/cd/ccd1077a-3005-11ef-a91a-3b7a238086cd/6675d6a61c29a.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C801 1200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/laduenews.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/cd/ccd1077a-3005-11ef-a91a-3b7a238086cd/6675d6a61c29a.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C890 1333w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/laduenews.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/cd/ccd1077a-3005-11ef-a91a-3b7a238086cd/6675d6a61c29a.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C985 1476w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/laduenews.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/cd/ccd1077a-3005-11ef-a91a-3b7a238086cd/6675d6a61c29a.image.jpg?resize=1762%2C1176 2008w)
Photo by Phillip Hamer, courtesy of The Muny
One of the students, Marius, asks his friend and confidante, Eponine, to help him formally meet Cosette, whom he had briefly seen on the streets of Paris, oblivious to Eponine’s own love for him. Eponine is the daughter of a pair of scoundrels, Monsieur and Madame Thenardier, from whom Valjean had “purchased” Cosette years earlier to honor Fantine’s request.
As the students’ desire for revolution builds, Valjean works to get Cosette to safety, a plan now complicated by her love for the newfound Marius. All the while, Javert, now relocated to Paris, continues in his endless quest to bring Valjean to Javert’s definition of "justice."
Highlights: The Muny opens its 106th season at its amphitheater in Forest Park with its third rendition of “Les Miserables,” featuring a different set, dynamic performers, and a musical score that has captivated audiences for more than 40 years worldwide.
Other info: In his program notes, Muny artistic director and executive producer Mike Isaacson states truthfully that “’Les Miserables’ is epic musical theatre, a contemporary masterpiece that inspires audiences’ passions and loyalties like few musicals in my lifetime.”
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Photo by Phillip Hamer, courtesy of The Muny
“Les Miserables” is based on the 1862 novel of the same name by French writer Victor Hugo, considered to be one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. It is sweeping in scope, written by Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schonberg, and features rich, powerful music composed by Schonberg, with lyrics by Herbert Kretzmer based on an original French text by Boublil and Jean-Marc Natel, plus additional material by James Fenton.
Originally released as a French concept album, the original French musical premiered in 1980, with the English version produced by Cameron Mackintosh opening in London in 1985, where it continues to run after more than 15,000 performances, making it the longest-running musical in West End history, and second only to the Off-Broadway production of “The Fantasticks” as longest-running musical anywhere.
The first Broadway production opened in 1987 and ran until 2003, closing after 6,680 performances. A revival opened in 2006 and closed in 2008, and a second Broadway revival ran from 2014 to 2016. “Les Miserables” and its 6,680 performances make it the sixth-longest running musical in Broadway history and the winner of eight Tony Awards in 1987 including Best Musical.
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Photo by Phillip Hamer, courtesy of The Muny
This marks the third Muny production, following the first in 2007 and the unforgettable 2013 presentation, which remains the finest of the three and one of the most brilliant productions of anything I’ve ever seen anywhere, recipient of a spontaneous standing ovation by the audience before the lights came back on for the curtain bows.
The 2024 presentation is magnificent on its own, impeccably directed by Seth Sklar-Heyn, who has been executive producer since 2013 for Cameron Mackintosh Inc., working on all recent Broadway and North American touring productions of “Les Miserables,” “Miss Saigon” and “Phantom of the Opera.”
The dazzling choreography is by Jesse Robb, who received a 2024 Tony Award nomination for “Water for Elephants,” and the riveting, haunting musical direction is by longtime Muny contributor James Moore, with associate musical direction by Muny music supervisor Michael Horsley. Moore directs not only The Muny orchestra but also 20 members of the Saint Louis Symphony Chorus, who join The Muny cast of 35 professional actors and 22 local youth performers, for a total company of 77 artists.
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Photo by Phillip Hamer, courtesy of The Muny
The sprawling cast performs on Ann Beyersdorfer’s clever, gray utilitarian set, which is assembled and disassembled to reflect the two-act, three-hour show’s multiple scenes. Impressive sound design by John Shivers and David Patridge brings the booming sounds of battle front and center, while Jason Lyons’ lighting design favors mostly dark illumination to reflect the Hugo novel’s melancholy tone. Shawn Duan’s video design is used sparingly in shrewd support of the set, Gail Baldoni’s costumes are sumptuous and voluminous and complemented with Ashley Rae Callahan’s period wigs.
The terrific cast is led by John Riddle, whose powerful tenor voice propelled last season’s Muny production of “Chess,” as Jean Valjean. The hero’s nemesis, Inspector Javert, is beautifully performed by Jordan Donica. Other fine performances are by Teal Wicks as Fantine, delivering tunes in a wonderful voice; Red Concepcion as the comically nasty Thenardier; and Jade Jones, with her magnificent voice, as the duplicitous Madame Thenardier.
There’s also fine work by Muny favorite Ken Page as the Bishop of Digne, Emily Bautista as the star-crossed Eponine, Gracie Annabelle Parker as Cosette, Peter Neureuther as Marius, and James D. Gish, whose splendid voice accentuates his performance as Enjolras. Kate Kappel, Grace Moore and Will Schulte all shine as little Cosette, young Eponine and the boy soldier Gavroche, respectively.
“Les Miserables” is the very definition of an epic story adapted into an epic musical. Enjoy it while you can.
Top photo by Phillip Hamer, courtesy of The Muny