Say, Do You Hear the Distant Drums?

“Drink With Me,” London, 2008. David Thaxton as Enjolras, Keith Anthony Higham as Grantaire, Jon Robyns as Marius.

In honor of Barricade Day, I’d like to share one of the most “Enjoltaire” performances of “Drink With Me” ever seen.

The beginning is very good in a standard way, with David’s Enjolras being his rich-voiced, stately, quietly impassioned self, and Feuilly, Prouvaire and Joly singing their contributions nicely.

Then comes Grantaire’s solo, which Keith infuses with poignant despair. Enjolras approaches him and listens, gently waves aside the upset Feuilly who evidently wants him to tell Grantaire off, and then kneels down beside Grantaire, not angry, but with a look of confusion, shaking his head, seemingly asking him why he’s at the barricade if it’s all “just one more lie” to him. Grantaire replies by pulling Enjolras into a passionate hug... and after a moment of shock, Enjolras hugs him back. Then we have Grantaire handing over his bottle to Enjolras, seemingly renouncing his cynicism in favor of firm loyalty, and Enjolras responding by pressing his forehead to Grantaire’s, stroking his head and patting his shoulder.

I still remember reading the reviews of this cast back in 2008 and feeling the shockwaves this moment sent through the fandom. I don’t think any production before this one had given Enjolras and Grantaire such an emotional reconciliation with such open affection between them. Even though other actors since then have taken a similar approach to this scene, very few seem to have made it as heartfelt and poignant as David and Keith do here.

It’s too bad that Grantaire just walks away in annoyance when Marius tries to pour out his heart to him, but then it’s also too bad that Marius seemingly doesn’t notice the profound moment Grantaire shares with Enjolras and assails him with his own romantic woes directly afterwards. At any rate, Jon’s robust-voiced, unusually manly Marius brings effective anger and anguish to his brief lines, nicely rounding out this touching scene.

“Look Down” and “The Robbery,” London, 2008. David Thaxton as Enjolras, Jon Robyns as Marius, Jimmy Johnston as Thénardier, Jackie Marks as Mme. Thénardier, Nancy Sullivan as Éponine, Drew Sarich as Jean Valjean, Leanne Dobinson as Cosette, Richard Woodford as Javert, Liam McKean as Gavroche.

In honor of the upcoming Barricade Day, I’ll be sharing YouTube videos from now through June 7th that showcase all the scenes in Les Mis that take place on the corresponding dates in history. I’ll start with Look Down/The Robbery, because if we assume that the sequence of Paris scenes that spans from Look Down through Red and Black takes place either on the day of General Lamarque’s death or the day after, then they take place on either June 1st or June 2nd.

This is always one of my favorite scenes to review. So many things happen and it’s a showcase for so many characters!

Liam’s Gavroche makes a good impression, with a nice strong voice and laid-back yet tough demeanor.

David’s legendary Enjolras makes only a brief appearance here, but it’s an impressive one. His rich, piercing voice is captivating.

Jon‘s Marius I remember hearing described as being more like Courfeyrac than like Marius as Hugo wrote him, and I can see some truth in that, but for the character of musical-Marius it works well. His looks, voice and demeanor all paint the picture of a sturdy, dignified young man dedicated to revolution; his interaction with Éponine blends brotherly fondness with brotherly exasperation at her teasing, and in defense of Cosette he even punches the knife-wielding Montparnasse to the ground! This might not be Hugo’s Marius, but it’s still a likeable characterization.

Nancy’s Éponine is a true street rat in the best way: wild, brash, exuberantly playful, and yet fierce as she smacks and beats off Montparnasse’s advances and as she wrenches away from Marius just before the robbery. I especially like the way she refuses to let go of Marius’s book, creating a would-be romantic moment as she makes him pull her up to his chest and then takes the opportunity to touch his hair, and the protective way she shields Marius as her mother sings “Here’s the old boy...” Even though Jon’s Marius is much less frail and boyish than others, she still seems to view him as a delicate bourgeois flower in need of her protection.

Jimmy’s Thénardier is excellent, both in his humor (e.g. his sobbing pleas as the “beggar man,” and his running left and right and then bumping into his wife when Javert arrives) and in his darker edge. His furious “HE’S THE ONE YOU SHOULD ARREST!” reveals the “deep furnace of hatred” of Hugo’s Thénardier. Jackie’s Mme. T. is understated yet funny in her own way, with the single “Waah!” she utters for her fake baby at a nudge from her husband, both before and after which she looks apathetic. It seems that while this Thénardier enjoys his role-playing and victim-baiting, this Mme. T. cares less for all that and is more impatient for the end results.

Even in this scene where he utters only a few words, Drew’s Valjean stands out in his originality and intelligence. Where most other Valjeans just shield Cosette when Thénardier sings “Wait a bit...” and then stand motionless in wary confusion until the gang attacks, Drew clearly recognizes Thénardier, protectively pulls Cosette away just before “Wait a bit...” and then tries to make a quick escape only to be blocked by the gang members. Then, when Javert arrives, he not only hides his face as other Valjeans do, but won’t even let Javert help him up, pulling away from his hand when he tries. All his actions seem especially fitting for a cautious ex-convict.

Despite being an understudy, Richard is a natural-born Javert. His tall, imposing figure, his dark, sumptuous baritone voice and his stern, rigidly dignified demeanor are absolutely perfect for the role.

The ensemble creates a perfect atmosphere of mass misery and anger. While the general violence is toned down compared to the London cast from 2000, there’s still enough to be disturbing, especially in the moment when the pimp slaps the young prostitute to the ground.

An outstanding performance overall.

“One Day More,” London, 2008. Drew Sarich as Jean Valjean, Jon Robyns as Marius, Leanne Dobinson as Cosette, Natalie Caswell as Éponine, David Thaxton as Enjolras, Earl Carpenter as Javert, Greg Castiglioni as Thénardier, Jackie Marks as Mme. Thénardier.

Casts come and casts go from the various long-running Les Mis productions, but certain casts seem to stand out as particularly special. The fan reviews for those specific casts are always especially glowing. The 2008 London cast definitely seems to have been one of those. I still remember all the outstanding reviews I read from fans at the time.

This excellent “One Day More” audio lives up to the praise. Even though it features understudies for Thénardier and Éponine, rather than regulars Jimmy Johnstone and the acclaimed Nancy Sullivan, the quality of the performance as a whole still shines through.

“Lovely Ladies” and “Fantine’s Arrest,” London, 2019. Carrie Hope Fletcher as Fantine, Bradley Jaden as Javert, John Robyns as Jean Valjean, unknown Bamatabois.

Is it just me, or are Marius and Enjolras actors becoming Valjeans and Javerts and are Éponines and Cosettes becoming Fantines more quickly than they used to? Of course Jon Robyns’ stints as Marius and Enjolras were 12 and 10 years ago, so the role change makes sense, but Carrie Hope Fletcher’s last performances as Éponine were just three years before she switched to Fantine and Bradley Jaden has spent the last few years going back and forth between Enjolras and Javert!

Carrie’s Fantine is good, but she still sounds like Éponine to me. Maybe it’s just that I’ve recently been listening to more “classic” Fantines like Elinore O’Connell and Carmen Cusack, but I do like to hear more richness of tone from Fantine in contrast to Éponine and Cosette’s more girlish voices. Carrie’s voice is beautiful and powerful, but she sounds like an ingenue. Still, her vocal acting is just fine. I especially like her “M’sieur, don’t mock me now, I pray...” with its raw, uncontrolled rage and anguish, and before that, I like that we hear her still begging “Please, M’sieur...” as the constables start to drag her away.

Bradley’s Javert has grown on me, as I’ve said before. His voice is light and Enjolras-like compared to other Javerts, but he uses it to cold, stern effect in a way that feels just right for the role. I especially like his spoken, quietly disdainful “Save your breath.” Meanwhile, Jon sounds like a good, solid Valjean in the few lines he has here. The Bamatabois sounds appropriately vicious, and I like his scream when Fantine scratches his face (the dandy can’t stomach what he dishes out!), but he’s probably a little over the top: his anger would have been clear enough without quite so much yelling.

The ensemble sounds excellent all around.

I’ve said it once but I’ll say it again: I don’t like that the Connor/Powell production reassigns Fantine’s “Come on, Captain, you can wear your shoes...” to two random whores, who ask her departing first customer “Tell me, Captain, did you wear your shoes?...” with Fantine herself only singing at “Easy money, lying on a bed...” While I think I understand what they were going for – enhancing the sense of Fantine’s trauma by having her stumbling speechlessly down the stairs – it lessens the effect of Fantine’s transformation than when she takes center stage and aggressively tries to sell herself further. Not to mention it robs her of agency. Connor and Powell’s take on Fantine’s character has always been a bit too much of a delicate wilting lily for my taste, at least based on the performances I’ve seen, and this reassignment of lines clinches it.

One thing I do like, though: that their production brings back “It’s the same with a tart as it is with a grocer...” It always feels like something’s missing when that passage is cut. A cut I can appreciate, though, is at the end of the scene, when they reduce Valjean’s “I will see it done!”s from three to two. If there need to be time-saving cuts at all, that’s an easy one to accept.