Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert
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Release date 17 November 1998 Tagline The Musical that Swept the World | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Les Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert (1995), also titled Les Misérables in Concert, is a concert version of the musical Les Misérables, produced to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the West End production. It was filmed in October 1995 at the Royal Albert Hall and released on DVD, VHS and LD in 1998 and re-released on DVD in North America in 2008. The latest DVD presents the concert in its original 16x9 ratio. Although filmed with HD cameras, a Blu-ray edition has not been released yet. The 10th Anniversary cast stars Colm Wilkinson as Jean Valjean, Philip Quast as Inspector Javert, Michael Ball as Marius Pontmercy, Lea Salonga as Éponine, Judy Kuhn as Cosette, Ruthie Henshall as Fantine, Michael Maguire as Enjolras, Alun Armstrong as Thénardier, Jenny Galloway as Madame Thénardier, Adam Searles as Gavroche, Hannah Chick as Young Cosette, and several others, and was directed by John Caird. The performers were chosen from the London, Broadway and Australian productions of the show and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra was conducted by David Charles Abell. It also aired on PBS part of the Great Performances series.
Contents
Production
The 10th anniversary concert of Les Miserables is known as the 'Dream Cast in Concert' because of the hand selected cast. Colm Wilkinson reprised his role as Valjean after starring in the original West End and Broadway productions. Philip Quast was cast as Inspector Javert after the producers of the show witnessed his performance in a musical production in his hometown of Australia. Wilkinson and Quast are widely recognized as the 'Dream Casting' of the idolized roles of Valjean and Javert.
This presentation uses a "modernised" and more heavily orchestrated score than that of the original musical. It follows the traditional "musicals-in-concert" format with the cast lined up against a set of microphones with the orchestra and chorus behind them. The entire company wear costumes and use only necessary props (such as Javert's baton, Thénardier's notebook, etc.). Apart from minor movement on the concert stage, the performers do not participate in major action scenes. Where necessary, the video switches to action from the stage production.
A few action-based scenes from the musical are not included in the concert, such as the street brawl broken up by Javert, Gavroche's death, and the confrontation between Marius and Thénardier at the wedding feast, to name a few. Some musical numbers, such as 'At the End of the Day', 'The Runaway Cart' and 'Turning', were also shortened.
Notable Events
During the performance, while Hannah Chick was singing the line "Crying at all is not allowed" from the song 'Castle on a Cloud', a balloon stored in the ceiling that was to be released at the end of the show, accidentally popped. It visibly startled her, as seen by her sudden flinch, but she recovered immediately and continued on with the song.
The five international English-speaking Valjeans featured in the encore song played the convicts in the opening number 'Look Down'.
Encore
The programme ends with an encore in which seventeen actors who portray Jean Valjean in seventeen different nations join Wilkinson on stage to each sing a few bars of "Do You Hear the People Sing?" in their native languages. They are then joined by the entire cast and choir to sing the last verse of "One Day More!", receiving applause and a standing ovation. Red, white, and blue balloons and confetti fall from the ceiling and sparklers erupt on stage as the show finishes.
The seventeen Valjeans
The following are the seventeen Valjeans who participated in the second encore (in order):
Burgess, Schulman, Guest, Cavill, and Leyton also appeared as the five principal convicts in 'Look Down' at the beginning of Act 1.
DVD release
The DVD was released by Sony Pictures on 17 November 1998. This Region 1 fullscreen DVD is now out of print. It has a run time of 159 minutes.
A two-disc widescreen collector's edition was released by BBC Video in Region 1 territories on 19 February 2008. Viewers have reported that a segment of "Little People," is inexplicably removed. This release also does not contain the speeches. The second disc contains Les Misérables: Stage by Stage, a documentary from 1989.
Recent versions of the DVD include the missing segment of Little People.
A remastered special edition DVD of the concert was released on November 20, 2012.