#les miserabes

[inastarlesssky]

So I haven't read Les Miserables yet. I saw the movie years ago, and I have the ebook on my Kindle waiting to be read in some moment before I die. I just remember Marius and Cosette being a couple in the movie, or at least they end up marrying, but it was so long ago that I saw it. I just recently saw stuff that was criticizing then nature of their relationship and I was just wondering, is there something wrong with it or was that just a different opinion?

[cometomecosette]

US 3rd National Tour, Los Angeles, February 7, 2000: Part 13 ( “Valjean’s Confession” and “Wedding Chorale/Beggars at the Feast”)

Ivan Rutherford as Jean Valjean, Tim Howar as Marius, Regan Thiel as Cosette, J.P. Dougherty as Thénardier, Aymee Garcia as Mme. Thénardier.

Ivan and Tim are both spot-on in “Valjean’s Confession.” Ivan is more stoic than Hugo’s Valjean is in this scene, but this is true of his Valjean throughout, and as always, in his subtle way he still conveys his struggle and pain. I’ve heard other Valjeans be more forceful and demanding on “Promise me, M’sieur, Cosette will never know!” but the way Ivan’s voice becomes so soft and pleading instead is probably even more disarming to Marius.

Moving on to the wedding, it’s so nice to hear Marius’s exchange with the Thénardiers uncut. Éponine is remembered, her parents earn more hate with their cold, selfish response, and they build up their revelation about Valjean with just the right preamble to entice Marius – even if they do have to chase him around the ballroom to do it. I notice that Tim’s Marius tries to walk away before Thénardier brings up the “murder” (presumably he thinks they’re just going to reveal that Valjean is a convict, which he already knows), but a soon as Thénardier makes the murder claim, he becomes concerned and listens. This is different from Niklas Andersson’s London Marius in the same year (so far the only other video I’ve watched of the uncut scene), who stalked away in disgust after Thénardier made the murder claim, refusing to believe that Valjean could be a killer as well as a thief.

Regan’s Cosette looks appropriately startled and confused after Thénardier drags her into a wild spinning dance and then Marius punches him. I wonder if she recognized him in that moment?

J.P. and Aymee do a fine job with the Thénardiers’ final flourish. Just enough slapstick to get laughs (e.g. Aymee’s pantalette-flashing fall when she tries to curtsy, the business with the dropped silver later), but not enough to turn them into caricatures. “Beggars at the Feast” is just the right exuberant uplift (however cynical the lyrics) that we need before the finale.

[grandrsachilles]

why is nobody talking about this new look at west end les mis ? look at it!! it’s like a take on ‘Liberty Leading The People’ and I think that’s beautiful

[inspector-at-the-barricade]

[christine-enjolras]

[probably-enjolras]

Enjolras’ Anon part 3

part one   part two

I’ll start writing it at night I said. So I’m not rushing to update I said. I’ll have it up by 9pm I said. *sigh* I tried

As Enjolras rode the bus back to his apartment, he went to check Courfeyrac and Combeferre’s blogs. He didn’t prefer using mobile, but he couldn’t contain his curiosity. He really didn’t know what he was looking for, it wasn’t like this would be the answer to all his problems, and they knew he was looking. But maybe, just maybe, he could find something of interest.

Enjolras decided to go to Combeferre’s blog first. It was pretty much what he expected. It wasn’t too crazy, but it did have character to it. There wasn’t a specific topic to the posts, unless you consider information a topic. Each post looked like it wanted to inform the reader about something new. You could go from one post about Jupiter’s moons to a post about the mating patterns of lions.

Enjolras spent a solid ten minutes scrolling and searching through Combeferre’s blog to find any personal posts. Combeferre tagged every one of his posts, making sure that all topics were properly categorized. It almost felt like a digital library. Enjolras sighed and put his phone down. He didn’t think Combeferre was his anon to begin with, but he had hoped for at least some information.

Enjolras pulled out his list, the paper was becoming soft from all the times it had been crumpled. He sighed softly, trying not to let himself be disappointed. He looked down at all the names and felt an overwhelming sense of dread. How would he be able to find out who it was? While eight is a small number, it was much larger when talking about people. Especially when one of these people was keeping a secret that they wouldn’t be willing to tell.

Enjolras stuffed the paper back into his pocket and took his phone back out. Courfeyrac’s blog was almost the opposite of Combeferre’s. It did have one topic, and that topic was shit posts. He definitely wasn’t as organized as Combeferre, but he did make an effort to sort his memes into categories. Was it absurd? Yes, but maybe that was the point.

Enjolras held in a giggle. He was getting poetic over a meme page. He must have been spending too much time with Jehan. Enjolras typed Courfeyrac’s name into the search bar and almost leaped with joy when posts came up. Some posts were just random observations, but others were personal. Enjolras would have felt guilty looking at the posts if it weren’t for the fact that Courfeyrac had already told him this in person.

Finally, Enjolras found the jackpot.

It wasn’t a long post, nor was it anything that related to his anon, but it was something that could definitely cross Courfeyrac off the list. The post was two sentences, if you could even call them sentences, rambling about Combeferre and how no one could be better than him. 

Enjolras smiled to himself, happy that he had made some progress in figuring out his mystery anon. He took his paper back out and crossed off Courfeyrac’s name. He also added a small note to help Courfeyrac with his crush on Combeferre when all of this was over.

Enjolras put away his phone and paper, opting to look out the window for the rest of the bus ride. There weren’t many stops left, Enjolras was always the last stop on the line, and the bus was nearly empty. Enjolras let his mind wonder as the bus drove through town. 

How could he figure out who his anon was without raising too much suspicion? Combeferre definitely seemed confused as he asked his round of questions at the meeting. Even so, there were problems in that plan to begin with. For starters, not only did the person know he was looking on their social media, they had time to prepare before Enjolras saw anything. 

Enjolras sighed softly, letting the thought go. He’ll try to think of a better plan later, now wasn’t the best time. It’s not like he has a time limit to figure out who it was anyway. There’s no bomb that’s going to go off if he doesn’t find out.

The bus came to a stop and Enjolras stood to leave. He made it to his apartment without having to interact with any of his neighbors, which was nice because the woman next door was always very talkative. Enjolras took out his computer, logging back into Tumblr again.

Enjolras mentally kicked himself for devoting so much of his time to this silly quest. How would he even know if the anon would come back again? Or if the anon was even one of his friends? Nevertheless, Enjolras continued onto his dash. 

He smiled as he saw the number three over his ask box. It wasn’t until the third post that he found his anon. 

(passionate guy anon) he’s being weird again. like, he’s looking more into our personal lives. he hasn’t approached me yet and I don’t know what I’m going to do when he does. delete my tumblr? no, I can’t do that. I can’t help but wonder what he’s looking for. i hope he finds it soon, i miss the old version of him

“You and me both,” Enjolras said aloud. He read the ask one more time before posting it to his blog. He took out the crumpled paper and crossed off Combeferre’s name. The anon had said that they hadn’t been asked yet. Two down, six more to go.

IT’S NOT NINE O’CLOCK YET I DID IT I REACHED MY GOAL OF POSTING BEFORE NINE YAY

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[lesmis-plus-textposts-blog]

les misérables + text posts: 16/?

[cometomecosette]

US 3rd National Tour, Los Angeles, February 7, 2000: Part 11 (“Bring Him Home,” “Dawn of Anguish,” “Second Attack (Death of Gavroche),” “The Final Battle” and “Dog Eats Dog”)

Ivan Rutherford as Jean Valjean, Kevin Earley as Enjolas, Tim Howar as Marius, Christopher Carlson as Gavroche, Trent Blanton as Grantaire, Stephen Bishop as Javert, J.P. Dougherty as Thénardier

Ivan’s “Bring Him Home” is beautiful.

I hope that someday, somehow I see a production of Les Mis that includes the “Drink With Me” reprise. It add so much more emotional weight than there is when the women simply hurry off and the battle commences. By the way, here’s a question for people who were fans before the cuts were made. Did the “Drink With Me” reprise always end with Enjolras and Marius clasping arms at the top of the barricade? Was this a universal part of Nunn and Caird’s staging? It’s a beautiful reinforcement of Enjolras and Marius’s friendship and Marius’s now-unwavering loyalty to his friends, but still, if I were to direct a new production, I'd be tempted to have Grantaire share that moment with Enjolras instead. I think it might be a better moment for their reconciliation than “Drink With Me.”

Christopher’s Gavroche is still less vivid than others I’ve seen, and the moment of his death looks slightly unconvincing (he breaks the fall with his hands a bit too obviously), but he still gives a solid performance overall.

To the very end, Kevin’s Enjolras is fully believable as the staunch, dignified, heroic leader, yet still a human being. His slow descent from the barricade after Gavroche’s death – the only movement onstage while everyone else is frozen in shock and grief – and seeming obliviousness to the offstage officer’s voice as he stands and ponders what’s happened and what’s to come is both poignant and true to the spirit of Hugo’s Enjolras. We can sense his pain, yet he faces it with stoic dignity and undying courage. His “Let others rise...” is powerful, even though he neither shouts nor goes for the high note on “...is free!”

And then there’s the heartbreaking moment after Marius falls, when Enjolras hurries to him, throws poor Grantaire aside, and tries vainly and irrationally to revive his seemingly dead friend before rushing off to his own death. Some might argue that this is out of character for Hugo’s Enjolras, and it’s definitely not realistic for the middle of a battle when, as Hugo repeatedly writes, you can’t stop for anything. But it’s moving, although I would have liked a more meaningful last interaction with Grantaire than just a quick glance.

The fall of the barricade and the tableau of Enjolras’s body on the barricade are epic and heartbreaking, as always. No other staging can surpass the original.

J.P.’s Thénardier definitely feels more alive in his sinister scenes than in the comedy scenes. I’m not quite sure why I always remembered him as being mainly a comic Thénardier. It was probably his looks, I’m sorry to say – it was too easy to mentally pigeonhole him as “the funny fat guy.” At any rate, his “Dog Eats Dog” is deliciously dark and mocking.