Interview: Richard Bermudez And Peyton Crim of 5 Star Theatrical's LES MISERABLES

Few musical theater roles come with the expectations of Jean Valjean and Inspector Javert in Les Misérables.

For LA actors Richard Bermudez and Peyton Crim, stepping into the iconic roles in Five Star Theatricals’ upcoming production of the epic musical comes just months after the two shared the stage in McCoy Rigby Entertainment’s Anastasia at La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts.

Bermudez, who played Gleb in Anastasia, takes on a longtime bucket-list role as Jean Valjean, following recent turns as Don Quixote in Man of La Mancha and the title characters in Jekyll & Hyde. Crim, who played Vlad in Anastasia, now steps into the role of Inspector Javert.

BroadwayWorld caught up with the two actors as rehearsals were getting underway to talk about taking on two of musical theater’s most iconic roles, reuniting onstage and bringing the epic scale of Les Misérables to Thousand Oaks.

This is a big show! How's it going with rehearsals?

Richard: This is material that some amazing performers have sung for decades, and as an actor who's finally doing what I consider probably my all-time bucket list, I feel so fortunate. 

I think there's a healthy amount of fear and respect that goes into that, that you're going to do service to the piece and service to the story. But at the same time I have to really focus on keeping myself grounded. I'm not going to reinvent it . . . I just want to add the essence of a bit of who I am to that and whatever specialness that makes it Richard Bermudez that I can imbue into that character to make it my own.

It's kind of ironic because I'm literally the same age that Valjean was when he was released from prison in the novel. Some people have told me, they've reacted like, "Oh my God, you're old enough to play Valjean now?" And I said, "Yeah. Yeah, I am." I guess that's a good and a bad thing in a way. I'm at the age in my life where I'm finally starting to play these really, really fun meaty characters.

You and Peyton just finished working together on Anastasia. What it’s like to turn around and tackle another huge musical together so soon!

Richard: Honestly, we had a blast. We immediately connected because we're both gamers — even though I don't have a lot of time to do it because I do juggle two full-time lives as well as being a dad, but I do love video games and he's a huge, huge gamer, and so we immediately bonded on that and we got our gamer tags together, and we message each other and have played a little bit of online gaming.

It's nice because at times we know we have to be so serious on stage and it's really nice just to go offstage and just talk about something completely unrelated. He and I have that nice rapport where we can just be like little 12-year-old boys talking about our favorite video games, and so I really appreciated that relationship with him.

Peyton: In Anastasia I played a lovable father figure bumbling from historical event to historical event, chased by an officer with a misguided sense of duty informed by childhood trauma; and in Les Misérables, Richard will play a lovable father figure bumbling from historical event to historical event, chased by an officer with a misguided sense of duty informed by childhood trauma. We're getting increasingly good at it. 

We had spoken at length during the former rehearsal process about how fun it would be to do this show together, but we assumed it wouldn't happen for quite some time. We were both pleasantly surprised to see the cast list!

Richard: They asked me to come and audition, and I saw Peyton there at the audition, and I said, "Oh my gosh, this would be really great to do this together." And as fate would have it, we were both cast in these roles.

So while I originally had thought conceptually we might do it next year together, we're getting a very early crack at it.  

Does having that personal friendship make it easier or more complicated to play characters who are so deeply at odds with one another?

Richard: I think it's great having a friendship off the stage with someone that you have an adversarial relationship with onstage, because there's a level of trust there. And I really trust Peyton because we've been onstage together. I know how talented and focused, and I know how badly he wants this to be a great production.

I think as actors, it is really nice when you're not worried about what the other actor's going to do. You know they're going to make smart choices, and you know that they trust you. And so I really appreciate that I have that with him.

Is it intimidating to step into these iconic roles?  

Richard: Hell yes, it is intimidating to step into a role as iconic as Jean Valjean! Like anybody else I'm sure who has done this, there are so many predecessors who've given us great examples and great moments, and that's the beauty.

I grew up with this. I'm old enough to remember when this first came out, and it took me years to really familiarize myself with the piece. But I remember being in college in New York and really just sitting down with this album and just absolutely playing it to death.

And if somebody asks you what my favorite show is, I think it's a coin flip between this and Ragtime.

Peyton: The good thing about everyone having a favorite interpretation is that that frees me up from having to top it, because I can't. I can just do the best work that I can. If anything is intimidating, it's that, being a bass-baritone, you spend the first 20 years of your career having people tell you, "Can't wait to hear you sing x-y-z when you're older!" And now I'm older, so I guess I have to put up or shut up. 

What’s the most challenging aspect of playing these characters—vocally, emotionally or otherwise?

Richard: Obviously, vocally the show is an absolute beast . . . I was telling the director yesterday that a lot of it on my part is just learning, building up that stamina, learning when it's better to pace myself a bit and not go full out, and when I really want to lean into it, and the moments where I just want to give everything.

And just finding that balance where I feel even though I'm emoting at a very, very high level, I'm still in a place of control so that I'm not exhausted. Because the last thing you ever want to do is redline as an actor and go into that zone where you're just spent and you don't have anything left for the next scene.

And so I've had to do a lot of really hard roles in my life, and so this is just the next one.

Peyton: In studying the show the last several weeks, I've realized most of Javert's "track" is barging on stage and yelling, "Now what's goin' on in here?", so I anticipate keeping straight what scene I'm in will be the hardest part.

Tell me one thing that you really want audiences to notice when they see the show. 

Peyton: I think what has been most striking for me is how Les Misérables plays in 2026 versus when it opened in NYC in 1987. In '87, we were at the height of the Reagan era; our "end of history" period. Looking back, it's clear to me that all of the revolutionary songs must have felt like a pat on the back—”We did it! This is the end result of our own revolution!" 

But in 2026, we have positioned ourselves much like 1830's France; a nation unsure of its next step, falling back on things that feel comfortable, faced with a growing population who will endure total financial ruin with one misstep and ready to punish them severely if they do. 

The show is more alive and relatable now than at any point in its 40 years!

Les Misérables is, in a word, BIG. How does it feel to be a part of that, and how are they able to translate that BIG-ness to a regional stage?

Peyton: By doing just that. You are getting the full Les Misérables experience at 5 Star this year. Big sets, big baguettes, even bigger voices. The Les Mis you know and love will be on full, shimmering display in Thousand Oaks.  

Richard: We have an enormous cast. I was sitting there last night, and I was absolutely just gobsmacked by how big this cast is . . . so for a show like this, that size is perfect because you can really have these big, huge numbers like "One Day More," and we're going to fill that auditorium with just a wall of sound. And for a show that is so grand and sweeping in scope, it's nice to see 15, 20, 30 bodies on stage all moving at once because it really translates into that bigness.

Richard, you have an interesting double life. Tell us about that. 

Richard: I very much have what we refer to as a “muggle job.” I work in the insurance industry in a desk job that is about as antithetical and as opposite of stage performing as humanly possible . . . Here I am in my forties and I find myself basically having two full-time careers because I work and I do stage performing pretty much full-time.

I tell people I'm a little schizophrenic because my associates at my daytime job—half of them don't know what I do in my free time—and people in my theater life have no idea what I do in my day job. Occasionally those two sides meet, and they're always really shocked at how I can balance the two, but here I am.

I'm also a proud father of a little five-year-old that I adore and love. His name is Barrett, and he's my absolute life and the reason why I work so hard.

NOTE: Richard called BroadwayWorld back after this interview to add one very important—and adorable—note (and he sent us the photo below!).

Richard: One more thing I forgot to mention: My family and I recently adopted a little feral cat that was visiting our backyard. We have cameras back there, and she originally had a family: a mother and a sibling. And unfortunately, one night a coyote snuck into our backyard, and it appeared to have sadly gotten the mother, and we're not sure what happened to the other sibling.  

Really sad story, but we managed to catch the one remaining little kitten, and she's slowly acclimating to being in our family because she was feral for probably a couple of months.

We thought it was only appropriate to name her Cosette because she lost her mother, and I promised to take care of her for the rest of her life.