Volume 67, Issue 3

The Barricades Are Fallen:
Les Misérables to Close March 15^th

by Jessica Russak

“I have realized that I can't have a crack at the Tony for best revival until I close the first production,” producer Cameron Mackintosh exclaimed about “Les Misérables.” The award-winning Broadway musical is finally calling it quits on its “first Broadway reign,” as Mackintosh refers to the 16-year run of 6,612 performances, with its finale at the Imperial Theatre on Saturday evening, March 15^th of next year.

“Les Miz”, as it has been nicknamed over the years (even by its own producer), has had one of the longest runs on Broadway, second only to “Cats.” Premiering March 12^th, 1987, “Les Miz” has always been considered more than just a musical. It is a classic, filled with elegance, history, and culture. This show is about hope, love, philanthropy, and dignity. It tells of a time when though there are so many who are miserable, as the title implies, human nature’s more wonderful features somehow manage to shine through.

The story, written originally by Victor Hugo in his 1862 novel, tells of the lesser-known French Revolution in the mid-1800s. The main characters are Jean Valjean, an ex-convict who breaks his parole and then changes his name; Javert, the “parole officer” who is obsessed with finding him; Fantine, a peasant woman who works in Valjean’s factory and loses her job; Thenardier, with whom Fantine had left her daughter, Cosette, since she could not afford to support her; Marius, a revolutionary who falls in love with Cosette when she is older while he participates in the revolution; and Eponine, Thenardier’s daughter, a peasant girl who is in love with Marius and loses her life in battle.  Through the years, their lives are intertwined, and their stories all come down to the quest to achieve happiness.

The novel was adapted to a musical by Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schonberg. Its music ranges from humorous, with “Master of the House,” to the all-important, tear-inspiring “On My Own.” Every song in between is absolutely breathtaking, and the voices are always perfect. Every Broadway performer craves the part of Eponine. Lea Salonga, of “Miss Saigon” fame, who is now starring in “Flower Drum Song,” served as the voice of Eponine some years ago; somehow they managed to make her Asian features appear generically Caucasian, and her voice was so powerful, it ripped through the theater. Surprisingly enough, Debbie Gibson was one of the first to play this role. But I must say, seeing Lea Salonga as Eponine surpassed any performance I’d ever seen on Broadway.

The show has always been a hit, even before Broadway. It premiered at the Royal Shakespeare Company’s Barbican Theatre in London in October 1985. A few months later it moved to the Palace Theatre, where it is still running. It is only being closed on Broadway. So if you want to see the show after March 15^th, fly to England. Shouldn’t be too difficult.

However, if you’re planning on catching to show here in New York before it closes, know that top ticket prices are dropping to their original prices from 1987 of $47.50 between October 3^rd and December 20^th, calling it The Au Revoir and Thank You Price Scale. This includes a $25 price for rear mezzanine seats. Afterward they’ll return to their current price, and Mackintosh is unsure how expensive they will be in the last two weeks of the show. It will all depend on who they bring back to star in those last few performances. I’m betting on Lea Salonga taking a brief hiatus from “Flower Drum Song” and gracing us with her emotional “A Little Fall of Rain.”

I am personally surprised that the show is closing, since the show cost $4.5 million to produce over the years, and has grossed more than $390 million. But Mackintosh says that ticket sales are down since September 11^th.

“Though the show has always remained profitable except during those extraordinary recent times that affected the industry as a whole, I want ‘Les Miz’’s first Broadway reign to conclude with the same kind of excitement and celebration that was enjoyed by my productions of ‘Cats’ and ‘Miss Saigon,’ with audiences again fighting for tickets,” Mackintosh said. Indeed, I am already gathering a group of friends together to see the show before tickets are impossible to come by.

“Although Broadway will be less ‘miserable’ for a while,” Mackintosh continued, “the show will continue to live on around the world in a variety of incarnations, including tours, international stadium concerts, regional productions, and most importantly, performed by hundreds of schools. Will I be sad when ‘Les Miz’ ends its run? A little…but after all, au revoir does not mean goodbye.”

Indeed it doesn’t, for some shows have flourished in the wake of September 11^th, while others, like “Les Miz,” have suffered. “42^nd Street,” for instance, has managed to make a successful comeback since the terrorist attacks last year. Hopefully, a slow comeback of attendance on Broadway will call for the revival of major musicals like “Les Miz.”

“While Broadway and New York have begun to come back, we need to do everything we can do to make our shared recovery real and sustained. Prior to September 11th, 50 percent of all tickets were purchased one month or more in advance. Currently, only 15 percent of tickets are purchased that far in advance,” said Governer George E. Pataki back in January, calling for New Yorkers and tourists to frequent suffering Broadway shows. At “Les Miz,” according to numerous surveys, about 40% of the audience at every performance has seen the show previously.

To list all the productions of “Les Miz” worldwide would be an insane feat, for there have so far been 53 productions in 34 countries in 20 different languages, and it’s still going. Additionally, concert tours travel the world, performing just the music from the show.

Schools will be able to perform “Les Miz” at any time once the show goes off Broadway. Between July 2002 and July 2003, 260 schools in the United States are expected to perform “Les Misérables, school edition.” However, I highly recommend catching this show on Broadway and not seeing it for the first time at your little sister’s middle-school production.

“Les Misérables” plays Monday through Saturday evenings at 8PM, with matinees Wednesday and Saturday at 2PM. For tickets call Tele-charge at (212) 239-6200 or visit www.telecharge.com. For complete “Les Misérables” information on Broadway, the U.S. Tour and around the world, visit the official website at www.lesmis.com.

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