Postscripts to Les Miserables

[suefb]

And never mind that he (Liam Neeson as Valjean) slugged the Bishop in the face. I hate-hate-hated that!!! Totally uncalled for. I know it's supposed to reveal the depths to which the character had sunk, but I thought it just made him terrible - simply robbing the one person who was kind to you and trusted you is plenty bad enough. Valjean may have been a thief, but even in his worst hour, he was not a violent man.

It's good to know that, for the vast majority of people, now and into the future, the lasting image of Valjean that's imprinted in their minds, is the one Hugh created.

[jo]

HBO Asia seems to be holding a Hugh Jackman Festival --

*Real Steel
*LES MISERABLES
*Swordfish

one after another

One common thread in these movies -- Hugh is always excellent portraying a father!


Jo

[birchie]

After the 25th Anniversary Concert I started paying a bit of attention to Ramin Karimloo. I thought he played Enjolras really well for the limited setting. He seemed like a talented guy and a year later I watched Phantom of the Opera at Royal Albert Hall & bought the DVD. I thought he was good in that too.

Now he's just getting on my nerves! <rant> I think he's trying to be Hugh and that annoys the hell out of me, since there is & can be only one! First there were pictures of him in the Toronto production with the hair like Hugh had as the prisoner Valjean. Benefit of the doubt...it could have been Cameron's idea! But in the last couple weeks a few pix have been posted of him rehearsing in a tank top rocking this ripped body and now he's being talked about as this ripped, muscular guy who works out all the time. Frankly I don't remember his physique being talked about in 2010 or 2011!! Coincidence? I think not! smiley-signs066

Now the latest grab for the Hugh wannabe award is this little news about Ramin & Will Swenson (Javert) pulling out all the stops for The Confrontation scene! And in addition to upping the ante for the fight, once again it's his body that's being talked about!
t.co/xA6BHCPu9C
I guess "imitation is the sincerest form of flattery" as they say, but enough already Ramin! emoticon-cartoon-020 emoticon-cartoon-023
Sue

[jo]

Wait till Russell hears about their so-called upping the ante for THE CONFRONTATION

Ramin and Will could have attributed the change in the staging to getting ideas from how it was done in the movie ( the sword fight was Russell's idea which he suggested to Tom) - and not sound ( in the video) as if the two of them together changed it to a real confrontation.

Hey, are they changing Valjean's costume to a tank top, too?

Btw, here's a recent photo of Hugh, in his regulation Wolverine getup, enjoying the company of friends at one of his favorite NYC gyms.





Jo

[birchie]

Feb 22, 2014 15:10:29 GMT -5 jo said:

Wait till Russell hears about their so-called upping the ante for THE CONFRONTATION

Ramin and Will could have attributed the change in the staging to getting ideas from how it was done in the movie ( the sword fight was Russell's idea which he suggested to Tom) - and not sound ( in the video) as if the two of them together changed it to a real confrontation.

Hey, are they changing Valjean's costume to a tank top, too?

Btw, here's a recent photo of Hugh, in his regulation Wolverine getup, enjoying the company of friends at one of his favorite NYC gyms.



Jo

No they're not changing Valjean's costume
It was an article posted recently...maybe Broadway World...and they were all at rehearsal in casual clothes but he was in the tank top showing off his muscles and the article took notice

I totally believe that the Les Miserables movie set the standard that they are all NOW trying to achieve on stage. Too many things that harken back to the movie for it to be coincidence. Yes, I'd love to be a fly on the wall if Russell hears any of them try to take thunder away from the Hugh/Russell confrontation because, like I said, THEY (H&R) set the bar up high where the others are now reaching. I think the more they try to outdo the movie, the more likely they are to fail. After all it's Les Miserables, Hugo, 19th century...not a modern era swashbuckler.
A little goes a long way and Hugh and Russell did it perfectly.


PS: slightly off topic:
Speaking of turning something into a swashbuckler...Has anyone noticed the latest promos for Russell's Noah? It seems that Noah was a superhero/warrior back in the day. Pretty good for a 500 yr old regular guy! I would have thought he had his hands full building the damn boat, but what do I know. Of course the bible is pretty sparse on his story and even without the swashbuckling, it's a pretty fair exercise in suspending disbelief. Anyway, I was disappointed by these promos and will wait till it comes out on dvd or whatever.
Just my $.02!
Sue

[jo]

I totally believe that the Les Miserables movie set the standard that they are all NOW trying to achieve on stage. Too many things that harken back to the movie for it to be coincidence.

My greatest wish is for the new stage revival to include SUDDENLY in the staging. It wasn't done in Toronto, but I am hoping that it will be a surprise when the show reopens on Broadway.

Re NOAH - that must have been Aronofsky's entire idea, to cast Noah as a biblical superhero


Jo

[carouselkathy]

Sue,

I'm waiting for the Noah action figures. (Of course, my favorite version of the story is Bill Cosby's famous routine.)

[birchie]

Feb 22, 2014 21:30:44 GMT -5 carouselkathy said:

Sue,

I'm waiting for the Noah action figures. (Of course, my favorite version of the story is Bill Cosby's famous routine.)

I remember that!
Here's something for those who never heard it:
Full version from the album is the best:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zyc1315KawQ
Short version from TV:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=bputeFGXEjA
PS: Sadly there probably will really be action figures smiley-rolleyes010
Sue

[carouselkathy]

Thanks for finding those, Sue!

[jo]

During the frenetic time when they were about to release Les Miserables, a lot of video clips were uploaded.

This one, which was paused at the right place, has Hugh playing the role of Enjolras!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=VChDt-2OCus#t=734

I thought if the film adaptation had been done right after he debuted in Oklahoma!, Hugh could still pass for the Apollo-esque Enjolras!

Eat your heart out, Aaron Tveit


Jo

[JH4HJ]

Just couldn't resist . . .
Sesame Street: Les Mousserables (Les Mis Parody)

Jean Bon-Bon is a very sad French guy in pursuit of cookies in the streets of Paris. He must figure out a way to survive and help his fellow Parisians find cookies.

[mamaleh]

My favorite song: "One Day S'more." Very cute and clever.

Ellen

[jo]

Who me am?

I'm Jean Bonbon!

Tres bon, Sesame Street smiley-happy096

Jo

[jo]

Excerpts from a recent Trevor Nunn interview ( although you may want to read it in full, as it's quite an insightful one on Sir Trevor) --

www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/2/9f8d6a02-98fc-11e3-a32f-00144feab7de.html#axzz2ty2K66dk

(To Sir Trevor) Purists have criticised you for being a great Shakespearean director who devalues the currency by directing musicals. I wonder if the skills you need as a director are the same for both?

Sir T: Curiously, they are not as opposite as one might expect. With Shakespeare, you are making people aware of and comfortable with rhythmic and heightened language, timing, phrasing, sensing a beat . . . You’re also making major staging decisions because you’re wanting an audience to see the play in a new way. With a musical project you’re also dealing with rhythmic language – and want your work to feel now. So, actually, there isn’t that much of a disconnection . . . 


LK (Interrupting) One of the most exciting nights of my life was going to see Cats when it opened in 1981. I wept when Elaine Paige sang “Memory” – I hadn’t realised you wrote the lyrics. I listened to it again this morning and can’t get it out of my head. I’ve been belting out – “Touch me! It’s so easy to leave me!” – as I cycled here.

Sir T :I’ve just written the history of this. It’s supposed to be part of the book that eventually I’m going to publish . . . (Talks at great length)



LK (Aside to audience) In summary: Sir Trevor sacks two lyricists for straying too far from TS Eliot’s poems and, over one weekend, sits down and writes the words himself.

(To Nunn) Did you end up making more money from the lyrics you wrote that weekend than you’ve made in the rest of your life put together?

Sir T : Oh, dear, no . . . (Gives an indulgent little laugh) All I can do to respond and get your imagination going is say it went to number one worldwide.

(Pause) I wrote another lyric in music theatre that gets sung a lot and didn’t take credit for it at the time.


LK What was it?

Sir T :“On My Own” in Les Misérables.



LK What did you think of Les Mis the film?

Sir T : (Shaking head and putting equal emphasis on each word) I am not going to go there.



LK So, you thought it was sentimental twaddle?

(Aside to audience) I rather liked it.

Sir T: I’m not going to go there in any way, shape or form and you must not put those words into my mouth. I’m not being mean-spirited. All I’m saying is that it’s a very different version to the one that became world-famous onstage.

I wonder why Herbert Kretzmer allowed people to think that the English lyrics to ON MY OWN came from him? People know that Trevor wrote the lyrics to MEMORY ( from CATS) so it was not inconceivable that he could also write the lyrics to On My Own.

I wonder if his reaction ( not expressedly voiced, but the interviewer seemed to sense something not complimentary?) to the film was purely from artistic reasons ( the difference in approach?) or was it partly because of his feud with Cameron Mackintosh( arising from the re-staging of the musical onstage with Trevor Nunn completely bypassed -- was he even consulted for his views on the film adaptation or even invited to the film premieres?)? Or was he a bit jealous of Tom Hooper? Maybe he refrained from giving outright comments as a professional director because he knows that the cinematic vision of a film director can be very different from the artistic outlook of a stage director? The stage may be the actor's medium but the director's vision rules in a film adaptation. It would be interesting to find out if he and Hugh ever got together or in touch after the movie version was released and if they did compare notes?

Elsewhere I've read that he hopes to complete the staging of the entire works of Shakespeare before he retires. It seems he has already staged 32 of 37 Shakespearean plays in his long career (he was Artistic Director for the Royal Shakespeare Company for some 18 years and about 6 six years for The Royal National Theatre). I wonder if Hugh will ever have a chance to work with him in a Shakespeare drama or comedy?

On an aside, I will forever appreciate how he worked hard to get the RNT OKLAHOMA! filmed -- it took him several months to get the funding ( and other requirements) ready -- but it was excellent foresight, as it turned out to be!


Jo

[jo]

Not sure if we ever got this upload ( at least of better quality?) of Hugh singing WHO AM I, if I am not mistaken, at the Walmart event?


www.youtube.com/watch?v=SRMUNVx-qzE

As usual, I get annoyed ( LOL!) when I read comments criticizing the film adaptation version of this song. I think many have misunderstood that the cinematic vision is to tell the story, in the most powerful and masterful way, giving us full characterizations ( with the actors performing emotive singing, and in this case as Valjean goes through a mental and moral conflict -- and not just letting the notes go!). Some also critized Hugh for wrong lyrics -- not realizing that the film script changed the " Javert" to "Your Honour" because it was the magistrate to whom Valjean sang the last lines to. I thought WHO AM I was so very well done in the film!

Would we have wanted to see this performance in the movie instead --

www.youtube.com/watch?v=oAXlynjt1GQ

Sorry, Alfie, but you sound like an Italian tenor on an opera stage ...You have a nice singing voice but there is no memorable portrayal of the conflict that Valjean is going through, in this final act of redemption of the reformed convict.


Jo

[mamaleh]

Hey, no fair. How come Hugh and Russell didn't get to pose for Vanity Fair?

www.broadwayworld.com/article/Photo-Flash-LES-MISERABLESs-Ramin-Karimloo-and-Will-Swenson-Pose-for-Vanity-Fair-20140314#.UyRTC17_Pyw

Ellen

[jo]

Ellen,

Your comment on the Vanity Fair feature started me off on a long journey ( 20 pages worth of reading on this board) on the promotion and publicity surrounding the Les Miserables film adaptation.

Other than realizing once again the amount of promotion that Universal had showered on this movie ( and how well the cast has worked on it) -- I have enjoyed reading many of the interviews once again. It also made me feel a little better about the I-hate-Les-Mis-the-movie comments since then ( some people will never or will refuse to understand any deviation from the stage musical format!).

The efforts and dedication ( esp Hugh -- do read his interviews all over again) of the cast and the creatives to bring out their own unique brand of this musical and literary masterpiece ...and what this piece of filmmaking art meant to them...makes me appreciate re-watching the home video even better. Lately, I have been going back to it, almost on a whim. I must have rewatched it a few times in the last two weeks


As to Vanity Fair- pfft!!! For one, it looks like Ramin and Will are trying to create a more macho image of the confrontational pair! More like the Jackman Valjean and the Crowe Javert! Hmmm... a glimpse of his chest hair in that scene with Amanda was the only scene that hints at Valjean's sexuality ( aka Hugh Jackman's sex appeal...whose ability to appeal is effortless!) but it seems Karim wants to shout it to the world - hehe!


And who cares about VFair, when Annie Leibovitz gave us that fantastic spread on Vogue for the film adaptation! Not self-indulgently posed! Not just photo clips from the movie... but memorable portraits and distinct images, as if they just came out from the pages of Victor Hugo's novel!


Jo

[jo]

And one of those distinct images of Valjean and Cosette ( forget Hugh and Isabelle) --






Beautiful!


Jo

[jo]

While skimming through 20 pages of the thread on the promotion and publicity of Les Miserables, I came across this interview with Nina Gold, casting director...on how it all started --

carpetbagger.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/01/18/in-a-dingy-room-making-hugh-jackman-audition/


January 18, 2013, 3:32 pmComment

In a Dingy Studio, Making Hugh Jackman Audition

By MELENA RYZIK


No matter where the “Les Misérables” folks end up on the Oscar stage, it will be a long ways from their humble beginnings with the movie. Yes, humble: All of the marquee singer-actors – even Hugh Jackman, known Broadway star – auditioned live for Tom Hooper’s film, in a variety of rundown, run-of-the-mill audition studios.

“You know, you’ve got Tap Dance 2 in one studio and Jujitsu 3 in the other studio, and Hugh Jackman and me and Tom in the other one,” said the casting director, Nina Gold. “There’s different dingy rooms all over the world, but they were all really, really repulsive.”

It didn’t faze Mr. Jackman, though, as he tried out for Valjean in New York (eventually winning the part and a best-actor Oscar nomination). Casting that part was the lynchpin of the movie, said Ms. Gold, who has worked with Mr. Hooper since he was fresh out of college and directing commercials.

“We know each other so well that we don’t have any problem talking to each other very, very directly,” she said. Which meant that they had no trouble vocalizing their worry that they wouldn’t find a Valjean. “There was no one in the world who could do it — well, there is obviously Hugh Jackman, but he’d never sung in that register before,” Ms. Gold said.

His audition lasted three hours. “We had the pianist there, and he said, ‘O.K., let’s just mess around with this,’” she recalled. “And he opened his mouth and sang, and literally, you felt like you were going to be blown out of the window. It felt like my hair was on fire.” Ms. Gold said that “until that moment, you just thought, ‘Is it actually possible to do this?’ ”

Hugh can sing, albeit he does not have the prettiest of singing voices -- but did you feel how Nina and the rest of the creatives ( I remember that Hooper, Mackintosh, Boublil and Schonberg were in that audition panel) felt upon hearing Hugh sing?

I did have that wonderful feeling of discovery -- when I heard that cowboy started singing in Oklahoma! live onstage in London. That was in April 1999. My template was Michael Ball...and this Curley sounded as great to me onstage -- the power of his lungs, his way with the lyrics, his vibrato ( I cannot understand why people find fault with it in Les Miserables) which I ordinarily find in musical theatre : "That's it ...he sounds like a legitimate stage voice!" and I came away with the memory of that voice that led me to a fandom that has lasted up to today ( some 15 years!).

Jo

[suefb]

Thanks for reposting this, jo. I definitely felt the same way as Ms. Gold did, but upon seeing the movie for the first time:

“And he opened his mouth and sang, and literally, you felt like you were going to be blown out of the window. It felt like my hair was on fire.”

Rest assured, despite the film's naysayers (so irksome because of their smugness), that there were many MANY people affected by his performance as JVJ in exactly this same way, as indeed you were when you were lucky enough to have the same experience with Oklahoma, years ago.

[jo]

Cameron Mackintosh was interviewed re the new revival of Les Miserables in Australia...and has some interesting things to say about the casting of the Les Miserables film adaptation --

www.smh.com.au/entertainment/musicals/the-secret-to-breathing-new-life-into-les-miserables-20140325-35ff9.html

...It was Gleeson's "inner spirituality", Mackintosh explains, that sealed the deal.

"All the best Jean Valjeans have it," he says. "It was the same with Colm Wilkinson (the original Jean Valjean) and Ramin Karimloo (star of the new Broadway version).


"They have a serenity and calmness to them. When you talk to them, they're grounded people."

In contrast, those who have best portrayed Valjean's nemesis Javert "have been able to call on a darker side of their soul; a corner they don't want to reveal ... they're not straightforward 'Here I am, mate' kind of actors."

The casting for his 2012 film adaptation of Les Miserables is a case in point.

"I was thinking of Hugh Jackman as Javert but actually, he was born to play Jean Valjean because he has one of the most generous souls in the world," Mackintosh says. "Though Russell Crowe said me, 'Jean Valjean would be a good role' but I said, a) You can't sing it, Russell, and b) You were born to play to Javert! And the moment they met, the pair of them hit it off and they were wonderful."

Hmmm... I wonder when Russell expressed the desire to play Valjean? I remember when Russell went to see Les Miserables in London with Cameron Mackintosh and Tom Hooper, even before any speculations started and even before any auditions happened. I can understand why a fine actor like Russell would be interested in the more multi-dimensional role of Valjean, compared to Javert.

Maybe in the same time frame, Patrick Whitesell had already been working out a strategy with Hugh on how Hugh could make a solid pitch for the role?

If I remember right, when he was still a musical theatre actor in Australia ( even before Oklahoma! came along) Hugh was initially offered the role of Javert, but he declined the offer.

I think Cameron Mackintosh had some initial preferences on who should be Valjean in the film adaptation ( he wanted Boe initially when the film project was still in the very early stage), but he must have been talked out of it by Hooper and Working Title ( maybe because parent company Universal Studios, which would finance and distribute the movie, wanted Hugh and Russell for the two main roles).

Re the aura of spirituality - can you really see it in a person unless you truly know what kind of a person he is? I wonder?

Jo

[mamaleh]

We all learned long ago that "Stars"--probably my favorite song in the LES MIZ score--was Hugh's audition song of choice. I wish an audio tape of that existed. I'd really love to hear his interpretation.

Ellen

[jo]

I may be wrong, but isn't STARS ( for a long time, one of the audition songs of choice in musical theatre for actors) the song that he sang for his audition for BEAUTY AND THE BEAST? Interestingly, the musical director did not think this was a right song for him. I wonder why? Could it be because Hugh is able to project the emotional strengths of a song delivery that the MD thought a song like STARS did not do his talent justice?

Hugh is a baritone and the song should suit his vocal range better. It is a song of power and paints the character of the morally-rigid Javert exceptionally well, albeit it lacks the emotional punch of say EMPTY CHAIRS AT EMPTY TABLES or DO YOUR HEAR THE PEOPLE SING. But since Hugh is a high-baritone and could stretch his range to some tenor songs, he is really more flexible in the role choices. Eventually, it was probably his assessment that the more multi-dimensional character of Valjean( more so in the novel) would be the more challenging role for him, with more emphasis on the acting requirements rather than simply being able to sing the range .


Jo

[jo]

In the world of radio and the internet lately --

www.youtube.com/watch?v=EvRtKMxc88Q


Compare with the original

www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2sanq2SM0k


Jo

[carouselkathy]

Mar 29, 2014 20:01:52 GMT -5 jo said:

In the world of radio and the internet lately --

www.youtube.com/watch?v=EvRtKMxc88Q


Compare with the original

www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2sanq2SM0k


Jo

The big differences between the high note endings of these 2 versions are time of day perhaps, singing with no warm up of course, and last, but not least, the syllable he has to sing. WOL-VER-INE! ends with the more difficult "eeeeee" sound, while TWO FOUR SIX O ONE! has the open throat "ahhhhhh!" You could tell Hugh knew it by the way he took a huge breath in the middle of the word, "WOL------VER-IIINE!" It almost worked. Bravo for the effort, big guy! smiley-happy096