Les Miserables – the classic musical
Les Miserables or Les Miz – what’s in a name?
Give it its full title, Les Miserables or shorten it to Les Mis or even Les Miz, whatever you want to call, it is worth remembering that this classic musical has been playing in the West End since 1985 last century.
** book Les Miserables theatre breaks **
Les Mis recently extended its booking period through to April 25th 2009. The production has had over 9,000 performances. What is it about the show that makes it such a classic? How has it kept going when other great shows have come and gone? I thought I’d try to find out.
Les Miserables – the public’s favourite
Right from the start it was the public that made Les Miz a hit. The show had pretty much bombed in its original form in Paris in 1982. It took the vision of Cameron Mackintosh, Trevor Nunn and John Caird to bring it to London in 1985. The reviews of the critics were very mixed, most of them thought it was either too heavy or that the subject was more suitable for an opera than a musical. It was word of mouth that sealed the show’s success. The British theatre public simply loved the show. It moved from the initial run at the Barbican to the Palace Theatre and eventually to the Queen’s Theatre, where it still plays.
When, in 2005, BBC Radio 2 ran a poll to find “The Nation’s Number One Essential Musicals” 40% of the 400,000 votes cast were for Les Mis. No wonder, then, that people are still booking to see the show in large numbers. Some are new to the show, others are revisiting it, perhaps having seen it many years ago. Parents are sharing it with their children. Others are seeing it for the first time. It’s a favourite choice for theatre breaks for wedding anniversaries and special occasions. They all know that they will be taken on a huge emotional journey, with powerful music and drama.
What People Say About Les Mis
I asked a friend who recently returned from a Les Miserables London theatre break what her experience had been like and why she’d chosen the show. She explained that:
I remembered the music from my childhood as my parents had the CD. A friend and I were chatting about our childhoods and how we both remembered the music but didn’t really know the story. I got the idea to book a theatre break so that we could see what it was all about. I was amazed by how easily we got swept up in the story.
Another recent audience member told me:
I thoroughly and utterly recommend it, Linda! Before I went I listened to the soundtrack a bit and it really made me enjoy it even more because the music is just so amazing.
She went on to say it was the best show she had ever seen:
They got a standing ovation, and surely must do every time. I sobbed my heart out throughout, it was really pathetic! I loved it though, the music is just so amazing, as was everything else about it, now I want to go again!
So there we are, Les Miserables’ power to move and amaze are undiminished after all these years. Not only that but the show has had some interesting cast changes recently which have given it yet another lease of life with no end to the record breaking run in sight.
** book Les Miserables theatre breaks **
