Les Miserables Reviews

Andie Ptak from Seattle, Washington

POOR SOUND DESIGN SPOILED THE SHOW

To start, I last saw this show from G-center with the original Broadway cast, so this production had a tough act to follow, but I knew that going in. As with many other reviewers, I found this production to be marred by poor sound design—specifically for numbers that were backed by full, loud orchestration. That meant that the large chorus numbers and most of the men's numbers were nearly unintelligable. Thankfully, the wonderful solo ballads by the highly skilled performers accompanied by softer orchestration were wonderful. Eponine's "On My On" and Fontine's "I Dreamed a Dream" were, of course, particular stand-outs, as was "Bring Him Home." It's a shame that so much of the show was so hard to hear. I highly recommend that anyone who has tickets listen to the cast album in its entirity BEFORE you go. I wish I had pulled my vintage vinyl out of the stacks and done so.

D. Bissonnette from Madison, Wisconsin

GREAT VOICES ...LIGHTING, TOO DARK!

This was my third time seeing Les Mis. I know that nothing will ever compare with the first time in Chicago in the late 80's. I cannot fault the singing. the voices were terrific but if I had not already known the story, I would not have gleaned it from the words and actions I observed. The stage was very dark without good spotlighting of those who were singing or where the action was actually taking place. The songs seemed rushed and the words frequently garbled. And where was Gavroche's "little people" song? We ate at the downtown Eno Vino. It was great!

Loyal Proctors Patron from Valley Falls, New York

IT WAS OKAY BUT NOT AS GOOD AS I EXPECTED

I saw Les Miserables Saturday night at Proctors in Schenectady NY. It was good but disappointing. I had seen it a few years ago at Proctors and it was fantastic. This time around it was only okay. The music seemed off tempo. Some of the actors were lackluster. I agree with another reviewer who said they had a hard time understanding the songs even though I’ve listened to them many times. It just felt that the whole performance was off. Sad because it is one of my favorite shows. I won’t see again if this is the kind of performance it will be.

from Little Rock, Arkansas

A

I've never had such trouble understanding the words in a musical at Robinson. I've heard from several friends who have said the same thing. The problems were not isolated to the performance in Little Rock. Here's a quote from an October review of the Hartford, CT performance by the same touring company: "I also had some issues with the sound designed by Mick Potter. I know the lyrics of much of the show, but I had a lot of trouble understanding much of what I did not remember from the recording....I would expect flawless sound overall for a national tour." The lights, staging, and singing were outstanding. But we did not fully experience the performance because of the poor quality sound. With this tour's ongoing problems, they should have found a solution or projected the text.

Liz from Boston, Massachusetts

HARD TO FOLLOW THE STORY

I have seen Les Mis twice in London, and I found this show very hard to follow. Several of the actors seemed to overplay the dramatics and breathlessness of parts of the story and the lyrics were lost. I don't think it was because it was too loud, as other reviewers have indicated, although a fellow theatre goer did make exactly that comment as we were leaving. I am listening to the original cast right now, and it is SO much easier to hear the words. Overall, it's a good show, and I liked the staging and lighting. Other people in the audience seemed to love it, so maybe it's just me!

Nunzio Gregorio from Boston, Massachusetts

FLAWED

The story is the same but the words and music were not accompanied by the same production touches to make it enjoyable to new viewers. I went with 3 couples that have not seen it before and the word "confusing" was used by most. The production did not use the typical town and years on thee screen to show when 10 years pass. The lighting was very poor and the stage was always dark. You could not see colors of costumes or who was singing. The producers made changes to the sets that were not for the better. Maybe it was the narrow stage of the Opera house. The orchestra was right on and true to the original score. The singers were a mixed bag. Valjean's voice did not have the range to match his age always sounding youthful. Eponine had an unusual voice and I did not feel the emotion her songs typically yield., Marius was fantastic as was Fantine. Les Mis is a classic i'll always enjoy but when asked by my friend where it ranked amongst all i've seen my response was it was last.

Elizabeth from Boston, Massachusetts

ENTERTAINING BUT NOT WOWED

I might be biased having seen it performed 5+ times in London. The actors, especially Jean Valjean and Javert, were wonderful. The stage direction and some of the songs felt so rushed and the lighting was so dark. You’d think France only knew nighttime.

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