Postscripts to Les Miserables

[jo]

Maybe it was the editing to shorten the movie to a more manageable 2.5 hour length, but the real relationship of Gavroche to Eponine was only implied in the film. He was shown looking so sad when Eponine died in Marius's arms...and later on, when Marius looked for him to ask to bring a letter for Valjean, Gavroche looked like he has just been crying. But he never had the chance to say " She was my sister." in the movie.

The movie also shortened two songs, A Little Fall of Rain and Drink with Me. At first, I felt sad that they had to do that with two of the most poignant songs in the musical. But then I realized that singing the whole duet with Marius would have dragged the death scene of Eponine and would have been too long a pause during that rainy morning when they were all tense and waiting for the government forces to slaughter them. Drink With Me, on a night also full of tension, if sung fully would have toned down the atmosphere of the young revolutionaries trying to show a brave face ( because it would have emphasized the camaraderie too much - they were there for " a higher cause") in the face of impending death the following morning.

I think comparisons with the musical and the book will come every now and then, so maybe watching the movie after a distance of time... from having read the book or played the last concert or cast recording ...will make one appreciate the entire movie even more fully, all on its own!

I did that the other day...and I have begun to appreciate the movie, by itself, even more so!


Jo

[suefb]

In some ways, I'm glad I saw it without ever having seen a stage production or any of the other film versions or reading the book (which I read subsequently). Until I saw it, I knew very little about the plot - really only that Javert is chasing Valjean, a lot of people die, sewers feature in some way, and Valjean dies in the end. For newbie me, the movie stood fully by itself. Of course, it's a classic tale, so the story itself sucked me in. And the music and lyrics served the purpose of advancing the story and enhancing the drama. There was really no music-for-music's sake, which is something that often bugs me about musicals.

Honestly, EVERYTHING about it floored me. But mostly Hugh's performance.

[birchie]

Just a couple of additions, comments etc on some of the previous posts...
I did love how much participation was given to the Gavroche character in the film and also, as I've said many times, that they did the passing of the notes correctly. In the script, and it was mentioned in an interview with someone from the film, Gavroche is asked why he's crying after Eponine dies and he says that she was his sister, but that scene was eliminated in the final cut of the movie. I think that was a good decision since there had been no other hint of their relationship. Also as noted Mm Thenardier had no use for her sons but doted on her daughters as much as she was capable of anyway. She had two daughters, Eponine and a younger sister Azelma. In the book Azelma and Monsieur Thenardier are the only survivors and she accompanies him to America where he becomes part of the slave trade...not a stretch to be sure LOL. We never learn what becomes of the younger two boys but I don't think there was a high probability of their surviving once Gavroche died. Also both the Thenardiers were arrested but only the father escaped and Gavroche helped his gang do that. The mother died in prison.

I was glad they shortened A Little Fall of Rain, and still think it's too long in the stage show, but I would have preferred the full Drink With Me number. I think it was a poignant review of how important these boys were to each other and that they new it was their last night together. I do think most of the musical changes, additions & deletions were very much for the better, for the flow of the story, putting certain emphases where they belonged, enhancing the character arcs etc.

Finally, as I mentioned last week, even watching a very good theater production made me want to see the movie again. I watched it the day after I saw the stage musical and it reaffirmed my belief that this film is a masterpiece! By that I mean how beautifully it combines all three mediums...the novel, the musical & film...into one perfect package! I will never get tired of watching it.
Sue

[jo]

I had responded to that recent Entertainment Weekly comment on Les Miserables ( in relation to the Broadway casting) where the author dissed Russell's performance on an aside.

While looking for comments on Russell's singing in the movie, I came across this blog on Russell's singing voice and acting forte --

www.grantland.com/blog/hollywood-prospectus/post/_/id/64434/in-defense-of-the-pub-voiced-russell-crowe-in-les-miserables

In Defense of the Pub-Voiced Russell Crowe in Les Misérables

By Charles P. Pierce on January 2, 2013 11:01 AM ET Universal.

I realize that I'm unqualified to do what I'm about to do, which is to talk about the musical and cinematic bludgeon that is Les Misérables without having ever seen the actual show, and without ever having listened to the soundtrack. I'm also apparently one of only 13 Americans who did not appear in a production of the original musical while I was in high school, and we’re dying off fast.

(Let me also say that I enjoyed the film, even though I'll never watch another Tom Hooper movie until I'm guaranteed by the producers that his damned camera has been riveted to the floor. For sheer directorial busy-work, Hooper makes Tarantino look like he’s working in Super-8. You get more consistent photographic angles from the Hubble Space Telescope.)

Nevertheless, I rise today in defense of the Pub Voice. This is because the Pub Voice is taking quite a beating these days, most notably at the Browne-Yoshida cyber malt shoppe here last week. The Pub Voice is something we all have. Even actual singers have it. The difference between actual singers and, well, me, is that they have other voices besides the Pub Voice. I have the Pub Voice and nothing else. The only song I've ever sung in any karaoke context is “Mississippi Queen” (if you know what I mean). There are three basic kinds of Pub Voice — loud, louder, and Would You Like to Step Outside? I have all three, as well as a fourth variation that I've kept under wraps since my undergraduate days because, when it's unleashed, it generally results in my having to walk home in the snow.

Moreover, there is a long and proud tradition of the Pub Voice in musical theater. For example, the role of King Arthur in Camelot was specifically written for Richard Burton, who could not sing, but who had a Pub Voice from God. The role then passed to Richard Harris, who had an even stronger Pub Voice than did Burton, having remarkably visited even more pubs in his time than had Burton. Which is why I rise today to the defense of Russell Crowe and his role as Javert, which he performs almost entirely in the Pub Voice, and for which he is being unfairly pilloried by the 99.99 percent of Americans who appeared in a performance of that show in 11th grade.

Crowe, who actually sings with a rock band in his off hours, has a firm and distinctive Pub Voice. He doesn’t have a lot of range, but the Pub Voice doesn’t depend on range. It depends on its ability to make itself heard over the general hurly-burly and the shouted orders for Buffalo wings. In this case, Crowe has to fight to be heard over all the Hooperish filigree, and the dancing cameras, and the movie’s shawl-like piety, which we'll get to in a minute. These things he generally does. He doesn’t have the big moment that Anne Hathaway does — after, of course, she gets beaten to a pulp in the most extended filmic martyrdom since Mel Gibson got a hold of the Gospels — and he doesn’t have the ongoing halo that surrounds everything Hugh Jackman does, but, in a very strange way, and in a way I never did with Javert either in the novel or in the straight dramatic movies made out of it, I identified with his character because he seemed like the only ordinary bloke on the screen.

Javert is an impossible character, the most rigid person in literature except, possibly, for Ahab, who at least has a deep personal wrong to be avenged. But Crowe manages to humanize him and, because he does, Crowe’s the only real actor in the film. Everybody else — except the comic-opera Thenardiers, whose every appearance had me wishing for a general cholera outbreak — is a saint with celestial pipes. From the first time Hugh Jackman kneels before the altar, to the very end, when the spectral Hathaway comes back from heaven with a nicer haircut and all her teeth, Valjean is on a road to redemption that’s as predictable as a drive down the Jersey Turnpike. Even the revolutionaries are saintly, which can make them very boring revolutionaries, indeed. If I’m on a barricade, and the preposterously callow Marius is next to me, I’m going over to the royalist side. All of the roles are extraordinarily well sung but, except for Samantha Barks’s Eponine, an utterly glorious performance that deserves a parade, there isn’t a single surprise to be had from any of them, no matter how well they sing. Sooner or later, even in a piece of musical theater that is all music, there has to be some theater.

Only Crowe’s Javert even flirts with any kind of nuance. Watch him truckle before Monsieur le Maire before he realizes who Monsieur le Maire really is. Fundamentally, he is that most dangerous creature — a jumped-up clerk with power, and he knows it, and, in Crowe’s eyes, you can see that insecurity flickering there even in his most authoritarian moments until it finally breaks him entirely and he throws himself into the river with a satisfying — and surprisingly audible — crunch. No, he’s not the singer everyone else is, but he unlimbers the Pub Voice, and he does a decent job with it, and we all know that our Pub Voice sounds better than the world gives it credit for sounding. I’m willing to cut myself that kind of slack, and I’m willing to cut Crowe that kind of slack, too. I’d like to hear him on "Mississippi Queen." I’ll bet he’d kill it.

Very interesting and humorous

Do check out the entire feedback for some interesting comments!

Would you rather get a stage actor who can sing the notes ( not necessarily articulate the real message of the lyrics) but not emote very well in a film adaptation of the musical that was based on a monumental work of literature?

I know what I like ... and I am happy with my choice


PS:

and he doesn’t have the ongoing halo that surrounds everything Hugh Jackman does

Mr. Likable! Or Mr. Charisma! Not going to comment any further as he did have his share of brickbats in the role - LOL!

Jo

[jo]

It's good to revisit what their vocal teacher for the movie, Roberta Duchak, had to say --

www.suntimes.com/entertainment/stage/17317318-421/russell-crowe-hugh-jackman-owe-les-miserables-voices-to-chicago-trainer.html

Russell Crowe, Hugh Jackman owe ‘Les Miserables’ voices to Chicago coach

BY MIRIAM DI NUNZIO Staff Reporter/[e-mail] January 6, 2013 10:34PM


If Russell Crowe and Hugh Jackman are hitting all the right notes in the hit film “Les Miserables,” they have one talented Chicago area resident to thank for their vocal prowess.

That would be Roberta Duchak, the Jeff Award-winning musical director (“Miss Saigon,” “Ragtime,” among many others, and the upcoming “Sunset Boulevard”) at the Drury Lane Theatre in Oakbrook Terrace. Duchak, who owns a voice studio in Chicago and also teaches fundamentals of musical theater singing at Columbia College, put the two megastars through their vocal paces, working with Crowe from the audition through the actual filming — which in an unprecedented movie musical move featured the cast singing live as the cameras rolled.



Duchak, who spent nearly four months in England for rehearsals and filming, and three weeks in Australia at Crowe’s request to augment his training, said fate had a hand in all of it.

“My vocal teacher, John Komasa, originally got the call from the movie company,” Duchak said. “Russell was auditioning for the role — everyone had to audition for their parts. Hugh Jackman had a three-hour audition for the role of Jean Valjean. Don worked with them for a while, but he was leaving for Europe in June or early July last year and he called and asked me to fill in for two weeks with Russell. So that’s what I did.

“Then a month later, Russell called me directly asking me to accompany him to his audition. So off we went. I played a few warm-ups with him, he sang a few songs, and then in came Cameron Mackintosh, the producers and director Tom Hooper. It was just us and a piano. Russell nailed it.”

Duchak recognizes that not all the commentary about the cast’s vocal abilities (she also did on-set vocal warm-ups with Anne Hathaway, Samantha Barks and Amanda Seyfried) has been positive, something she said is very misguided.


“There have been a lot of opinions, and yes, criticism of the live singing in the film,” Duchak said. “I feel like we, within the industry, should embrace the live singing and hope that this becomes the industry standard. It enhances the storytelling with an intimacy we’ve never seen. Honestly, auto-tuning, ghosting voices and lip synching seems cheap and antiquated. I think Tom Hooper has elevated the art of making movie musicals.”

Crowe is no stranger to music or musical theater, having starred as Eddie and Dr. Scott in an Australian production of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” in the 1980s, as well as busking on the streets of Sydney as guitar-in-hand teen, and more recently fronting his rock ’n’ roll band 30 Odd Foot of Grunts.

The first note heard in the film is Crowe’s high “F” as he sings “... bring me prisoner 24601” in the pouring rain, Duchak said. Getting to that note was a testament to Crowe’s unrelenting dedication to honing his vocal skills.

“Like anyone who walks into my studio for voice lessons, I warm them up to evaluate where they are so I know how to proceed to make them grow,” Duchak said. “ ‘Les Mis’ is among the three hardest musical theater pieces out there, in addition to ‘Ragtime’ and ‘Miss Saigon.’ Everyone in ‘Les Mis,’ from Fantine to Jean Valjean, has to have huge ranges. The cast in this film had range, but we had to push it even further.”

Duchak says she found Crowe’s voice fascinating from the get-go.

“He is a true bass baritone,” she said, noting that his favorite warm-up song was the hugely demanding basso classic “Ol’ Man River” from “Show Boat.” “There are very few men who have that gorgeous bass baritone voice. It was exciting to see how deep it was. But the challenge was to make him into a high baritone. The most challenging song for Russell was ‘Javert’s Suicide,’ because it’s so rangey. You’re hitting that F-sharp over and over again. In all, I ended up increasing Russell’s range by about four notes. That’s a big leap for a singer who isn’t used to singing every day.

“With Hugh [whom Duchak began coaching eight weeks into the filming], we added maybe three notes to his range because ‘Bring Him Home’ is just an unbelievably difficult and emotional song. But both of these guys they were like Olympic athletes when it came to retraining their voices and getting them ready to sing 12 to 14 hours a day. Because all the singing was done live, if you did a take multiple times, you sang it over and over again. I don’t know of many musical theater veterans who could even do that.”

Duchak, 47, started playing piano at age 3. Music was always in the house, she said; her father was a musician. She went on to participate in choir, dance and musicals throughout grammar school and high school. At Indiana University, Duchak majored in broadcast journalism and theater.

In addition to Broadway and national tours, her local credits as musical director or an actress include Chicago Shakespeare Theater, American Theater Company, the Goodman Theatre and Marriott Lincolnshire Theatre.

While “Les Mis” afforded her months to get her singers into shape, at Drury Lane, Duchak said, there is no such luxury; the pace is lightning-quick.

“I think musical theater in Chicago does what it does extremely well in an incredibly short amount of time, sometimes with only a few weeks in between shows,” Duchak said. “That’s a real testament to the high caliber of talent we have here.”

Duchak had similar praise for her film cast, calling Crowe and Jackman two people “who I think will always be in my life as my friends.”

“All these actors were so brave to sign up for a musical that is being sung live,” she said. “We were making history and we all knew it. All they heard was a piano in their tiny ear pieces [Duchak played piano for Crowe during his turn on ‘Stars,’ per the actor’s request]. The songs all sounded a cappella to the crew. That’s a very cool and different way for a cast and crew to ‘hear’ a musical. To be able to act and sing in a musical when you’re hearing everything a cappella, that’s simply marvelous talent.”

And it is also nice to revisit the video clip from 60 MINUTES about the singing in the movie --

www.cbsnews.com/8301-504803_162-57557944-10391709/crowe-vs-jackman-the-great-rivalry-of-les-mis/


Jo

[mamaleh]

Good finds, Jo. I liked Duchak's comment about how not many musical theater veterans could sing live for up to 14 hours daily. Take that, Harris et. al.

Pierce's piece was interesting, but I don't quite remember a scene in which Fantine was "beaten to a pulp." And I take exception to his statement that Crowe (whom I thought was very effective as Javert) was the "only real actor" in the movie. I think he's confusing the character of Javert and his arc with Crowe. Many theater pundits over the years have said that Javert is the more interesting character because of his flaws and how his character evolves. On the other hand, Valjean's humanistic character, after the first few scenes, was pretty firmly established and carried throughout the film, and Hugh did a brilliant job with it, as evidenced by his Oscar nomination. The roles are simply very different.

Ellen

[jo]

Many theater pundits over the years have said that Javert is the more interesting character because of his flaws and how his character evolves

I actually disagree with that - these theatre pundits are confusing the character in the novel with the way the stage Javerts have portrayed the role. I have seen Les Miserables 9 times and all the Javerts that I saw played it the same way. One-dimensional - all anger and disdain, even the suicide song was sang not as a final moment of personal contemplation but to reach the last seat in the balcony! Show off the notes - not the emotion! If they had not rumpled his hair at the bridge ( for the suicide) -- he looked exactly the same since he first appeared on the stage. The true character arc that was more similar to the man in the novel was what Russell Crowe partly portrayed in the movie - something that too many people did not acknowledge, no matter how true. In the film, one can see the inner conflict that beset his character, even from the beginning ( e.g., going to M Le Maire to confess that he wrongly reported M Madeleine to the authorities). His STARS in the movie was all about his contemplation of his moral code, whether he is following the right path or not. He was not shouting to the stars ( as stage Valjeans are wont to do), but rather looking for guidance from above as to whether he is being right in what code he follows.

Some people say that it is quite difficult for a saintly man to be seen as interesting, let alone fascinating, as he does not commit sins or thinks ill of others ( both very human traits )! LOL - I guess that is the "curse" of portraying St. Jean Valjean! When he attempts to show moments of selfishness ( in the moments before Bring Him Home, when he first receives the Marius letter)-- he is derided for his attitude about losing his daughter, when he attempts to show moments of selflessness as he sings Bring Him Home, they diss his singing. When you think of it, the Jackman intrpretation of Bring Him Home is to paint the character arc of the father Valjean - from selfish Dad to selfless Dad! Yet people only want Papa Valjean to let the notes ( not the impassioned prayer) soar to the heavens smiley-rolleyes010

Sorry, if I sound a little bitter

Jo

[mamaleh]

Jo, of course I bow to your much more thorough knowledge--and appreciation--of all things LES MIZ. I'm sure over the years you have read those BroadwayWorld comments, too, about how a good Javert is the key to a successful production of the musical, etc. I'm not sure I agree with that but there is certainly plenty of room for a lively divergence of opinion. And it's certainly true that "the snake gets all the lines" as playwright Jean Kerr once put it, a nod to how characters perceived as "villains" usually are more interesting. So much can depend on the director's vision!

Ellen

[jo]

It is how a role is originated onstage, which becomes the permanent template for all replacement casts including the transfer casts. In the case of Javert -- I actually think that people perceive his role to be more interesting because he has the better-sounding soliloquy ( Stars) and his death is more dramatic ( Suicide Song and how London/Broadway showed the suicide). Plus he gets to wear that stern face all the time!

Unfortunately, the way the original stage Valjean was directed to sing his Soliloquy was all rumbling, almost unintelligible, singing on stage ( and he walks around the spinning turntable -- nothing as picturesque as that chapel/outside the chapel/into the air scene that we saw with Hugh/Valjean. So, that song never stuck. Most theatre fans only remember the last part where he sings falsetto with " ...take flight!". Lol - were they mad when that part was omitted in the movie...Who Am I became famous because of his soaring notes ( when he sings " Who Am I --I'm Jean Valjean" and sings the immortal "24601"), but never because it is really the real song of redemption which can be sung almost to himself as Hugh does in the early part of the song.

Maybe I am not sounding like a real fan of musical theatre -- but I do think that sometimes there is too much emphasis on the music and not the characterization. In a dramatic musical, the characterization plays as important a role in advancing the story. That is why, compared to most musicals, sometimes plays come out to be the more intellectually richer experience, if not as dazzling. But I am a great fan of the music of Webber, Rodgers and Hammerstein, Lerner and Lowe, Boublil and Schonberg et al - the oldfashioned melodies. I also like literature, although I do not read as much anymore, and when there is a chance for it to be adapted into another medium, I also like to see the characters to come alive -- not just because he is assigned a beautiful song to sing.

Ahhh... it is late ( for me, it's past midnight) -- time to pack up my laptop

Jo

[birchie]

Jo, I had to laugh: "If they had not rumpled his hair at the bridge ( for the suicide) -- he looked exactly the same since he first appeared on the stage."
I always thought that was the stupidest thing...Javert deciding "let me just mess my hair up before I kill myself, that'll show 'em" ...probably done for affect by the first stage Javert then forever copied!
When I saw that local production a couple weeks ago, I was relieved to see that Javert went to his watery grave with his hair perfectly in place!
Sue

[jo]

A Sesame Street parody


www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBpDDbVNRPk

[jo]

From the press release re the casting of the Broadway stage revival --

The 2012 Universal film version of LES MISÉRABLES co-produced by Cameron Mackintosh and Working Title Films, and directed by Tom Hooper, is one of the most successful musical films ever. The film received the Golden Globe Award as Best Picture (Musical/Comedy) and received eight Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, and won three Academy Awards. The film's soundtrack debuted at #1 on Billboard's Album chart and has sold over 2 million copies worldwide.

I wonder how many BluRay, DVD, and on Demand choices have been purchased re the movie musical. The worldwide box office topped at $ 442 million, but total revenues could very well come close to $ 500 million from the home video releases and on Demand sales, plus the soundtrack sales?

Jo

[jo]

It looks like it has actually exceeded the $ 500 million total revenues mark. In domestic DVD/BluRay sales alone, revenues of $ 56.3 million have been generated. This does not include rentals and video on demand sales.

www.the-numbers.com/movie/Miserables-Les#tab=more

Home Market Performance


Domestic DVD Sales - $29,317,187

Domestic Blu-ray Sales - $27,028,017

Total Domestic Video Sales - $56,345,204

[mamaleh]

To those who were curious to see Ramin Karimloo as JVJ on Broadway in the incipient revival, I learned today that he's doing only 7 perfs a week, not the usual 8. Likely day for the alternate is Thursday, according to theater chat sites.

Ellen

[jo]

Photo clip from the current revival of LES MISERABLES in Toronto, with Karim as Valjean --



It looks like they have adopted the prisoner-look of Valjean in the movie, with hair cropped to his head. It looks like he is singing THE SOLILOQUY in this scene.


Another scene --



It does look very "stage-y" -- but that is to be expected because the stage has a more theatrical/overblown feel, while film is the advocate for realism, including the costumes and makeup. To each his own - I enjoy both...but I think I have been ruined by the film adaptation of Les Miserables, meaning I am forever biased - LOL!


Jo

[jo]

The list of GRAMMY nominations has been released.

The winners will be announced on JANUARY 26!


www.grammy.com/files/pages/56thpresslist-final-secured.pdf

Field 20: Music for Visual Media

Category 57 : Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media

Award to the Artist(s) and/or Producer(s) of a majority of the tracks on the album, or, in the absence of either, to the individual(s) actively responsible for the concept and musical direction and for the selection of artists, songs, and producers, as applicable.

1.DJANGO UNCHAINED
(Various Artists)

2.THE GREAT GATSBY - Deluxe Edition
(Various Artists)

3.LES MISERABLES - Deluxe Edition
(Various Artists)

4.MUSCLE SHOALS

5.SOUND CITY: REAL TO REEL

Crossing my fingers that the LES MISERABLES Deluxe Edition soundtrack is hands-down winner <cheer>

Hope this happens and that Hugh is cited as Principal Vocalist ( as the artist with a majority of the tracks on the album) -- if so, he will have completed 3 legs of the EGOT ( Emmy/Grammy/Oscar/Tony) honors <cheer> <cheer> <cheer>

Jo

[jo]

Start counting! smiley-cool13

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. Look Down - Hugh Jackman / Russell Crowe / Convicts
2. The Bishop - Colm Wilkinson
3. Valjean s Soliloquy - Hugh Jackman
4. At The End Of The Day - Hugh Jackman / Anne Hathaway / Factory Girls / Cast
5. The Docks (Lovely Ladies) - Anne Hathaway / Cast
6. I Dreamed A Dream - Anne Hathaway
7. Fantine s Arrest - Anne Hathaway / Hugh Jackman / Russell Crowe
8. Who Am I? - Hugh Jackman
9. Fantine s Death - Anne Hathaway / Hugh Jackman
10. The Confrontation - Hugh Jackman / Russell Crowe
11. Castle On A Cloud - Isabelle Allen
12. Master Of The House - Sacha Baron Cohen / Helena Bonham Carter / Cast
13. The Bargain - Isabelle Allen / Hugh Jackman / Helena Bonham Carter / Sacha Baron Cohen
14. Suddenly - Hugh Jackman
15. The Convent - Hugh Jackman / Cast
16. Stars - Russell Crowe
17. Paris / Look Down - Daniel Huttlestone / Aaron Tveit / Eddie Redmayne / Students / Cast
18. The Robbery - Sacha Baron Cohen / Helena Bonham Carter / Hugh Jackman / Samantha Barks / Russell Crowe / Cast
19. ABC Café / Red & Black - Eddie Redmayne / Aaron Tveit / Students
20. In My Life - Amanda Seyfried / Eddie Redmayne / Samantha Barks / Hugh Jackman
21. A Heart Full Of Love - Eddie Redmayne / Amanda Seyfried / Samantha Barks
22. On My Own - Samantha Barks
23. One Day More - Cast

Disc: 2
1. Do You Hear The People Sing? - Aaron Tveit / Eddie Redmayne / Students / Cast
2. Building The Barricade - Aaron Tveit / Eddie Redmayne / Russell Crowe / Students / Cast
3. Javert At The Barricade - Russell Crowe / Aaron Tveit / Daniel Huttlestone / Students
4. The First Attack - Eddie Redmayne / Hadley Fraser / Students
5. Little Fall Of Rain - Eddie Redmayne / Samantha Barks
6. Drink With Me - Aaron Tveit / Eddie Redmayne / Daniel Huttlestone / Students
7. Bring Him Home - Hugh Jackman
8. The Death Of Gavroche - Aaron Tveit / Daniel Huttlestone / Students
9. The Final Battle - Aaron Tveit / Hadley Fraser / Students
10. The Sewers - Sacha Baron Cohen / Hugh Jackman
11. Javert s Suicide - Russell Crowe
12. Turning - Cast
13. Empty Chairs At Empty Tables - Eddie Redmayne
14. A Heart Full Of Love Reprise - Amanda Seyfried / Hugh Jackman / Eddie Redmayne / Patrick Godfrey
15. Valjean s Confession - Hugh Jackman / Eddie Redmayne
16. Suddenly Reprise - Eddie Redmayne / Amanda Seyfried
17. The Wedding - Sacha Baron Cohen / Helena Bonham Carter / Eddie Redmayne / Cast
18. Beggars At The Feast - Sacha Baron Cohen / Helena Bonham Carter
19. Epilogue - Cast

Of course, he is also part of ONE DAY MORE and THE EPILOGUE! Plus he is the only vocalist with four major solos and one major duet! And he does have the most singing parts and dramatic moments in the Epilogue.


Jo

[jo]

More details on the telecast --

www.broadwayworld.com/article/HOLD-GRAMMY-Nominees-Announced-Theatre-Vets-XXXX-20010101

Nominations for the 56th Annual GRAMMY Awards were announced tonight by The Recording Academy. Among the nominees for Best Musical Theatre Album were KINKY BOOTS, MATILDA: THE MUSICAL and MOTOWN THE MUSICAL!

Also among the nominees for the 56th Annual GRAMMY Awards were the LES MISERABLES soundtrack for Best Compilation Soundtrack...

The 56th Annual GRAMMY Awards will be held on"GRAMMY Sunday," Jan. 26, 2014, at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles and once again will be broadcast live in high-definition TV and 5.1 surround sound on CBS from 8 - 11:30 p.m. (ET/PT).

[jo]

Not really from the movie or about the movie -- but featuring part of the Les Mis gang, at the concert at Joe's Pub at around Christmas time last year? I have not seen this among the uploaded songs from that concert.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=LoVHclTIJjQ&feature=youtu.be

Is the song FAIRTYTALE OF NEW YORK? I have never heard of it, till now.

Hugh is a good backing singer ...Love listening to the group ( Sammy Barks, Rusty Crowe, Kevin Durand, Alan Doyle)...and I believe the piano singer was Rusty's vocal teacher for Les Miserables.


Jo

[jo]

Re the DVD/BluRay performance, here are slightly more updated numbers --

www.the-numbers.com/movie/Miserables-Les#tab=summary




--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Les Miserables


Theatrical Performance :

Domestic Box Office -- $148,809,770

International Box Office -- $291,949,523

Worldwide Box Office -- $440,759,293



Home Market Performance

Domestic DVD Sales -- $30,154,528

Domestic Blu-ray Sales -- $27,231,572

Total Domestic Video Sales -- $57,386,100

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



The $ 57 million sales do not include the international sales figure ( it is likely that the DVD/BluRay may have been released locally in some markets, as it was done here in the Philippines). Also, there was mention in the official press release about the forthcoming Broadway revival, that about 2 million copies of the film's musical album has been registered ( but no dollar amount indicated).

All in all, the film adaptation has probably rung up way over $ 500 million in revenues!

Jo

[jo]

A little piece of magic from Michael Ball - singing SUDDENLY from one of his recent concerts that was filmed for and released on DVD recently ( BOTH SIDES NOW). It is only a truncated version of the song, but the rendition still touches the heart.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=_xmFoCVcCPE#t=0

I wonder if Hugh has ever considered singing this song (that was written by the composers with his film role and his voice in mind) in a public performance? It is poignant...and can be deeply romantic, from another viewpoint! I have no doubts that Hugh can work his own magic with the song, sung to every woman in the room smiley-love067


Jo

[birchie]

Dec 10, 2013 5:13:46 GMT -5 jo said:

A little piece of magic from Michael Ball - singing SUDDENLY from one of his recent concerts that was filmed for and released on DVD recently ( BOTH SIDES NOW). It is only a truncated version of the song, but the rendition still touches the heart.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=_xmFoCVcCPE#t=0

I wonder if Hugh has ever considered singing this song (that was written by the composers with his film role and his voice in mind) in a public performance? It is poignant...and can be deeply romantic, from another viewpoint! I have no doubts that Hugh can work his own magic with the song, sung to every woman in the room smiley-love067


Jo

I also hope Hugh incorporates the song into his public performances. It's a beautiful song written for him after all! Here's Michael singing the full song:

Sue

[jo]

Thanks for the Nottingham clip, although I have seen it before. I chose the shortened clip because it is a much clearer ( sound-wise) version uploaded from his DVD release. But listening to it again ( Nottingham) really reinforces my belief that the song could work as a romantic love song ( can even be sung at weddings, as I have read in some internet comment).

I will never understand why the title song from SKYFALL could win over SUDDENLY at the Oscars. From the point of view of relevance to the storyline and the characters, SUDDENLY was such a winning bet!

They did it again at the Grammy nominations - a nod for Skyfall, but none for Suddenly smiley-rolleyes010

Jo

[jo]

Remember the seemingly pseudo twitter exchange between faux accounts of Samantha Barks and Aaron Tveit? I can't remember where I posted it -- but it seems there is some truth to the discussion that there will be a repeat concert of the one with Russell Crowe, Alan Doyle, and Samantha Barks held at Joe's Pub in NYC...and now to be reprised in Sydney!

www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/celebrity/the-two-hugh-jackmans-20131220-2zoke.html

'Just good friends' Xmas holiday

Rumours are Russell Crowe will arrive in Coffs Harbour for Christmas with his boys this week - and will be joined in the new year by close friend and rumoured love interest, Samantha Barks.

The British-born actress, 26 years his junior, revealed she was excited about her trip here, in particular performing on stage with Crowe for four nights at the Jetty Memorial Theatre in Coffs Harbour.

''I can't wait,'' Barks, 23, told a London newspaper last week. ''I'm off to Australia to hook up with him in the new year to sing together. Russell and I stayed in touch ever since Les Mis.''

The pair met on the set of the musical last year. Barks starred as Eponine, alongside Crowe's Javert, and after filming ended, they remained close, and were spotted working out at the gym together and enjoying lunches and other social outings.

While Barks' father denied reports they were romantically linked - saying they were ''just friends'' - it did not stop the tabloids quoting film industry sources describing their unmistakable chemistry. An insider told New Idea that at the Oscars after-party, ''she was continually touching his sleeve, giggling and sitting in awe of his every word, and he was lapping up every moment''. Barks' trip to Australia will no doubt further fuel speculation they are more than just friends.

But Crowe, 49, says his focus is on The Indoor Garden Party event at Coffs, an evening of stories and songs he has performed in New York and London.

Among those joining the Oscar-winning actor on stage for the January 10-13 concerts are Alan Doyle, of Canada's well known folk band Great Big Sea, American singer-songwriter Scott Grimes, who has toured with Michael Jackson, and some ''surprise guests''.

''They are very informal parties and always full of laughs, and when you have voices like my friends have … spine-tingling is the phrase that comes to mind,'' Crowe said during filming recently of his latest movie, The Water Diviner, a Gallipoli-inspired drama.

Tickets to the shows were sold out within hours.

Hmm...will Hugh join in, too, for this one? And maybe reprise THE CONFRONTATION with Russell? Unless he is already off to South Africa for CHAPPIE then?


Jo

[mamaleh]

I have a feeling Hugh will be in South Africa filming during that time frame.

Ellen