An expectant audience finally sat down after a two year wait for this musical juggernaut, and any fears that this wouldn’t be the full West End experience were dashed from the first chord as massive sets rumbled on and off this vast stage.
Les Misérables is an epic in every sense, based on Victor Hugo’s sprawling novel of redemption and obsession set against the backdrop of a France riven by poverty and doomed petit bourgeois revolutionaries.
It is perfect fodder for a sung through piece that sits somewhere between musical theatre and opera as reformed convict Jean Valjean seeks redemption after breaking his parole after stealing bread for his sick nephew, but is pursued over decades by implacable lawman Javert, who loses his reason as he tries to bring his quarry to justice. it’s a theme familiar to anyone who has watched John Wayne in The Searchers, or has read Robert Harris’ recent novel Act of Oblivion, which considers how once decent men can become zealots.
Along the way Valjean’s long journey to some sort of closure the body count steadily increases as he battles to keep his nemesis at bay. This is a nearly three hour show with Dean Chisnall’s Valjean onstage for much of it, and his vocal control and power never dimmed as he led a big cast with aplomb. His acting matched his voice, especially on a heartfelt Bring Him Home as he sits on the barricades.
Marching him note for note is Nic Greenshields, who selflessly essays a bitter lawman who slowly loses his strict moral compass stalking his prey. Greenshields incredibly rich voice is deployed on Stars that fills this vast theatre, subtly tracing the mental decline of Javert in his less than noble obsession, and there is genuine chemistry with his sparring partner Chisnall.
It’s probably musical theatre heresy to say this show could be a good bit shorter without losing much of the emotional impact, but it is packed with the sort of big numbers that qualify it as a classic. None more so than the bittersweet I Dreamed A Dream rendered on a bare stage by Lauren Drew as the tragic factory worker Fantine, forced to sell herself to feed her daughter Cosette who lives with crooked innkeepers, the Thénardiers.
Cosette is taken under Valjean’s wing as he tries to pay off his debt to society and Rebecca Ferrin, who started her career on this very stage stepped into the role as cover singing passionately with Will Callan as lovelorn posh revolutionary Marius desperate for her affections.
This is a dark piece, so the comic chops of veteran Ian Hughes and Helen Walsh as the venal Thénardiers is welcome as their naked self-interest contrasts with the moral battles raging around them. Hughes’ impish Thénardier Waltz is a masterclass in comic timing, and his work with Walsh is great fun.
Valjean is forced to flee to Paris by his pursuer getting involved in an uprising and there is no bigger anthem in musical theatre than Do You Hear The People Sing? as the middle class students march to their doom on the barricades. It is especially powerful when you have an ensemble this strong belting it out, and whilst every show lives and dies by how good the supporting cast is it’s especially true here.
The crack ensemble who won through up to seven rounds of auditions sang wonderfully throughout as they manage endless costume and scene changes as they come on and off playing many different roles. A special mention to junior performer Lucas Melrose Steel, who delighted the audience as the cheeky street urchin Gavroche, and if he carries on with his career then he could be a future West End star.
The other star is Matt Kinley’s set design, and this historic theatre is the perfect backdrop for his big and small set changes that always add to the onstage drama, and the massive barricades set offers an unforgettable theatrical experience.
The big orchestra under Giles Deacon bring power, panache and pathos to Claude-Michel Schonberg’s massive if at times melodramatic score, which echoes round this big space and up into the gods.
If you had waited two long years, then no-one will have felt short-charged as this is the full Les Mis experience. If you were in the clear minority tonight who are not super fans you get a real sense of why over 150 million people have watched a show that has a lot to say about human frailty, and how we can all find some kind of redemption no matter what we have done.
Les Misérables runs until Saturday 10th December. Returns only.
Reviewer: Paul Clarke
Reviewed: 29th November 2022
North West End UK Rating: ★★★★