Kudos to The Rep

A friend and I went to see Les Miserables last Thursday night at The Arkansas Repertory Theater. We had both already seen a production of Les Mis in London back in 2001, but not together. In fact, she said her seats were so close that the actors slung sweat on them. Alas, I cannot say the same. I bought my tickets at the last minute, so I was up among the rafters, but it didn’t really matter. In those old Victorian theaters (or theatres, I should say), the seating is so steep that it’s almost perpendicular, and being at the top actually gives you a panoramic view. With a production like Les Mis, that’s not a bad thing. And besides, those old Victorian theaters are so beautiful, just looking at them is entertainment in itself.

(The Orpheum Theater in Memphis has that look, too, and, I have to admit, I can never visit there without thinking of the two old grouchy men in the Muppet Show who sit on the ornate balcony and heckle.)

Well, back to Les Mis. The first time I saw it, I was overwhelmed by the emotional impact. It’s so rare in this day and age to see a show that illustrates the beauty of religious faith, of sacrifice, of loving someone else more than yourself. One of the most moving scenes in literature has to be the one between Jean Valjean and the Bishop of Digne. And, of course, emotions raised by the story are only heightened by the beautiful music. When the play ended, there was a standing ovation, and afterwards I just sat in my seat for a while and cried.

I had always wanted to see this play again, so when I heard it was going to be at The Rep, I called my friend and we bought tickets. I’ve seen several of their productions, and they have always been really good. But, come on, this is Les Mis. And The Rep is a regional theater. I thought that it would probably be worth my time to see, but I secretly doubted that it could measure up. Most especially, I thought that the singing could never match the star quality of the London performance. I fully expected to leave the theater at least slightly disappointed. (My friend confessed after the show that she’d had the same doubts .)

We could not have been more wrong. Of course, the cast was smaller, but the multiple roles were so well done that it was a non-issue. There were a few staging things that were done differently because of The Rep’s smaller stage, and of course I liked the way London did it better because it was so spectacular, but I was surprised at how well The Rep got across the same idea with so much less. If you had not seen the other production, you would see nothing amiss here.

And the music. Oh my. The Rep hired an orchestra twice the size that they usually use, and the actor’s voices were absolutely amazing, adults and children alike. In fact, the actor who played Valjean had actually played the character on Broadway and on the third national tour.

Often, a story seen twice loses its emotional impact, but this one didn’t. Yes, there was a standing ovation at the end. And yes, I cried.