Say, Do You Hear the Distant Drums?

In honor of Barricade Day, another rare and intriguing find for Les Mis musical fans.

A highlights reel from the US 3rd National Tour, 1993.

Most notably, it features a 30-year-old Alice Ripley as Fantine. Meanwhile, the rest of the cast includes Donn Cook (Jean Valjean), David Masenheimer (Javert), Ron Sharpe (Marius), Angela Pupello (Éponine), Barbra Russell (Cosette), Gary Mauer (Enjolras), J.P. Dougherty (Thénardier), Gina Farrell (Mme. Thénardier), and Jamie Cronin (Young Cosette). And if I'm not mistaken, Courfeyrac, whom we get to hear sing one line ("Then join in the fight that will give you the right to be free!") is none other than Brian d'Arcy James.

“Every Day,” Broadway, 1993. Jennifer Lee Andrews as Cosette, Eric Kunze as Marius, Mark McKerracher as Jean Valjean.

A lovely rendition overall. Jennifer’s voice is slightly fluttery, but still a basically sweet, pretty soprano, while Eric’s Marius is silky-voiced, tender and passionate, and Mark’s quietly pained yet resigned Valjean provides the perfect poignant counterpoint.

“Castle on a Cloud,” Broadway, 1993. Lacey Chabert as Young Cosette, Evalyn Baron as Mme. Thénardier.

Two years before Party of Five and long before all her distinguished work since then, 11-year-old Lacey Chabert was a Broadway Young Cosette. This recording brings back memories for me, because as it happens, Lacey’s rendition of “Castle on a Cloud” was my introduction to Les Mis. Not in the show itself, but on the album The Broadway Kids Sing Broadway, which was one of my favorite childhood cassette tapes.

With her sweet, cute little voice, she sings the wistful little song very nicely. She also sounds very convincing as an abused child, with her terrified “It’s Madame!” and her scream when (as was customary in the staging at the time) Mme. Thénardier drags her over to the water bucket by her ear.

Her performance is helped by the fact that Evalyn’s Mme. Thénardier sounds truly ferocious. No one could come away from this performance thinking that Cosette was only neglected and made to do chores, not really abused. Evalyn’s snarling voice alone makes it clear that the little girl lives in terror.

“I Dreamed a Dream,” Broadway, 1993. Donna Kane as Fantine.

The recording is a bit hushed and fuzzy, but it’s still a decent showcase of a lesser-known Fantine.

A rich, darkly-shaded voice, typical of early Fantines like Patti LuPone and Debbie Byrne but without merely imitating the recordings, and with passion and anguish that come through despite the mediocre sound quality.

“Éponine’s Errand,” Broadway, 1993. Lea Salonga as Éponine, Eric Kunze as Marius, unknown Gavroche.

It’s nice to hear Lea’s beautiful voice in one of Éponine’s scenes that wasn’t included in the TAC. Particularly one of her playful scenes, since the concert’s cuts obscure that side of her character. Lea definitely conveys that brash, cheeky spirit, yet still finds room for poignancy too, with how quiet she becomes on “...but God knows what you see in her!” and “No, I don’t want your money, sir.”

Eric sounds like an endearing Marius, with a bright, handsome voice. By the way, I wonder if he’s related to Erich Kunz, the famous operatic bass-baritone from the mid 20th century? Or are their similar names just a coincidence?

The uncredited Gavroche sounds cute and likeable.

“I Dreamed a Dream,” Broadway, 1993. Rachel York as Fantine.

A future star in one of her early roles.

She seems to imitate a lot of Randy Graff’s phrasing from the OBC album, but maybe she was directed to do this. I’ve read that in the early years of the show, at least in the American productions, Cameron Mackintosh encouraged performers to imitate the OBC because he was so concerned about replicating its success. Still, Rachel’s voice is clearer than Randy’s, so Randy’s many haters will probably find her to be a more listenable alternative. This is a beautiful, powerful rendition of the song, if not the most original.