BWW Reviews: Do You Hear the People Sing Bravo? LES MISERABLES at Memorial Opera House

On Saturday February 28th, I had the privilege to travel to Valparaiso, Indiana to see the third weekend of "Les Miserables" at the Memorial Opera House. This sung through musical based on the novel written by French Poet and Novelist, Victor Hugo, brought the house down with the amazing vocals, and set of this production. As popular as this musical is in the community theater world, Memorial Opera House put their own twist on it and made it a very good production.

LES MISERABLES, has a score and book by Claude-Michel Schonberg, and is set in early 19th-century France, with the story of Jean Valjean, a French peasant, who is on a quest of redemption after serving nineteen years in jail for having stolen a loaf of bread. Valjean decides to break his parole and start his life anew after a kindly bishop inspires him by a tremendous act of mercy. But a police inspector, Javert, relentlessly tracks him down. Along the way, Valjean and a host of characters are swept into a revolutionary period in France, where a group of young idealists make their last stand at a street barricade. This story packs an emotional wallop that has thrilled audiences all over the world.

The vocal direction of this show by David Markley and Molly Vass was simply amazing. My favorite part of this show was simply the all ensemble numbers such as, "One Day More", and "The People's Song". I had goose bumps come over me at these huge moments and I absolutely loved it. The Male ensemble in "The ABC Café" was great. It made me want to jump on stage, grab a prop gun, and sing with them. The passion and presence of the ensemble was great, and really made the show so much better.

The leading character, Jean Valjean, played by elementary school principal JJ Boylan, was fantastic. His vocals and stage presence improved every single moment he was on stage. "Bring Him Home" was one of my favorite moments in the whole show. The mix between head voice and full voice was great and made the song perfect. Other leading man, Jordan Chaddock, had great vocals for the role of Javier. I would of liked to seen more acting and expression from Chaddock at times during the show. There were moments that were good, but I felt I got the same expression from Chaddock the whole show. Overall, these two led the show well, and kept the show rolling. Marius, played by Andy Polomchak, and Enjolras, played by Derek DeRoo were absolutely stunning. They led the band of brothers very well, and if it was a vocal war they were in, they would of defeated the other side no problem.

The talent of Fantine played by Trinidad Snider absolutely amazed me. Wow! What a voice! Not only her voice was great but also her stage presence and acting was top notch. Amazing job by Snider to rock the roll of Fantine. Now let's take a moment and fan girl over Cosette played by Josie Nelson. Nelson has a absolutely gorgeous voice and I fell in love with it. Excited to see where she goes in the future. Expecting great things out of both of the leading ladies.

The comedic relief of the show, the Innkeeper and his wife, played by Dean Perrine and Amanda Dietrich were simply amazing and hilarious. This dynamic duo displayed amazing stage presence and brought some stellar talent to the show. "Master of the House" was one of my favorite numbers of the show, and along with Perrine and Dietrich the ensemble was just great in that number. Bravo!

Overall I liked the direction of this show by Scot MacDonald. I felt at times the emotional development of the story moved a little too quickly, but it presents a challenge to slow it down because of the sing-thru musical aspect. Sometimes there is power in silence, and I would of liked to see more time between songs and scenes. There were a few moments in the beginning of the show where fake props were used in numbers and that bothered me, especially cause props were used in the rest of the show. I would of liked to see better costumes as well. I felt some costume pieces were not time period appropriate. Overall, the production was great and I really enjoyed it. We all have something to improve on, but I think Memorial Opera House was on the right track with this production.

Tech wise I loved everything the show had to offer. The set was presented with platforms across the back of the stage with steps down, and a backdrop showing the underbelly of London. The side entrances through flats were great, and added a cool view to the scenery. I absolutely loved the side lighting through the flats. I thought the barricade was awesome as well. It came out on casters from the side, and was very easy to move and quick to get off stage. Very nice job designers!

"Les Miserables" at Memorial Opera House turned out to be a great production. As always, there are aspects that can be improved, but the great ensemble work and the great work done by leads trumped the negatives of the show. This production has one more weekend left, March 6-8th. If you would like tickets to see this production, visit the theater's website, www.memorialoperahouse.com for more info. Overall a very nice job done by the Memorial Opera House on their production of, "Les Miserables"!

To post a comment, you must register and login.

 

---

Join Team BroadwayWorld

Are you an avid theatergoer? We're looking for people like you to share your thoughts and insights with our readers. Team BroadwayWorld members get access to shows to review, conduct interviews with artists, and the opportunity to meet and network with fellow theatre lovers and arts workers.

Interested? Learn more here.

---