Well, I won’t get into the debate about whether this or Phantom is the most popular show in the world (ok, Stacy? :-), but I have to say that if this show isn’t the most popular, it comes pretty close. And for good reason.
Random Thoughts on the CDs:
I own four versions of Les Mis, and each has its weaknesses and strengths. I’ll briefly run down each one, and give why I think it works and doesn’t. I know, I know, like you all take my opinion as fact. :-)
The Original London Cast: this is in fact my least favourite of the versions I own, but as strong points I would have to point to Colm Wilkinson (Valjean), Michael Ball (Marius) and Frances Ruffell (Eponine). Plus, it’s kind of nice to have Rebecca Caine, a Canadian, playing Cosette. However, this CD doesn’t work for me, and I’m not really sure why. I haven’t listened to it ages, so that might be part of the problem! :-)
The Original Broadway Cast: this version is, I think, my favourite (no, I didn’t say the best, just my favourite. There’s a difference!). For strong points I point to Colm again, Frances again, and my favourite Javert, Terrence Mann. Judy Kuhn is also very strong as Cosette, and Michael Maguire is a strong Enjolras. Anthony Crivello plays Grantaire, a small part but a very important one, and while I love Anthony, I prefer him on the TAC to this recording. I guess the major drawback to this recording is that Michael Ball doesn’t reprise his role as Marius. The Marius is fine, but he’s no Michael Ball. :-)
The Complete Recording: The biggest strength of this recording is that it is complete (you probably figured that out from the title, eh? :-), and a lot of the interesting little things that don’t appear on the highlights recordings are on this one. The biggest problem I have with it is that Colm doesn’t play Valjean, and Gary Morris simply doesn’t fill his shoes, as far as I’m concerned. Major pluses to this recording are Michael Ball, again, and (yes, I’m getting there, Stacy!) Philip Quast as Javert - an amazing performance that luckily was also recorded on the TAC. This recording has one huge plus that none of the others do, though - the amazing performance of Anthony Warlow as Enjolras. He’s worth the price of the CD all by himself.
The Tenth Anniversary Concert: Many people refer to this as “the Dream Cast” and I would agree if there had only been one small change made - I would have replaced Michael Maguire with Anthony Warlow. I don’t know if Michael was just having a bad night, but he simply wasn’t of the same calibre as the rest of the cast. However, Colm, Philip Quast, Michael Ball, Judy Kuhn, Anthony Crivello and Lea Salonga (as Eponine) more than make up for him. I’m not going to get into the Lea vs Frances debate - let’s just say that I think they are both very talented performers, just in very different ways, and I enjoy them both as Eponine. If I had to recommend only one version of Les Mis it would probably be this one, although the OBC runs a close second!
Random thoughts on the show:
I've seen the show three times, and while I eventually will post some more general thoughts on the show, for now, check here for my review of my most recent experience, in Toronto this past summer.
Links to other sites on the Web
The Official Les Mis site
A great fan site
Beyond the Barricades - another fan site
The Colm Wilkinson Appreciation Society
Once again, if you have any links or suggestions or comments, I'm all ears. Just drop me a line!
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