Laura and Samara spend their days as non-profit unicorns and fill every spare minute exploring the world of musical theatre as BFFs (that’s Broadway Friends Forever). Follow @bffs613 on X, Instagram and Facebook.
Les Misérables is a worldwide hit, produced in many languages, and has been part of our collective pop culture for decades. And for good reason. Even if you’ve never seen a movie or theatre production of the musical, you certainly already know many of the heavy-hitting songs like “I Dreamed a Dream” or “Do You Hear the People Sing?“.
Broadway Across Canada brings us the show at the National Arts Centre this week, which is fantastic, because this production is meant to be seen on a grand stage, with a huge cast (we counted 31!), live orchestra, moving sets and costumes. Based on the novel by Victor Hugo, the show covers a sweeping saga of love, passion, sacrifice and redemption set in France in the early 19th century – a time of upheaval for the country, but also struggle for the working class.
It would be difficult to list the standout cast as every actor on stage from lead to ensemble members was outstanding and had stellar voices that perfectly captured the difficult and dense score. It’s a very fast-moving show, with a winding tale told over many years, so the audience needs to pay attention to the lyrics and story because before you know it, you’re into the next scene and plot line, which these actors pull off effortlessly. The orchestra was beautiful and powerful, with such well-known songs adding to the grandeur, pace and emotion of the story.
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This show also has sweeping staging, with grand scenes where actors encompass the entire stage. There are countless famous ballads and solos, where the actors may be alone on stage their voice engulfs the entire theatre, however, some of Les Misérables best moments are the imposing large scenes where the lighting and sound combine to pull the audience into the moment.
There’s a reason this show is considered one of the best musicals of all time. There’s an energy to a live performance that cannot be matched by a movie. Don’t wait “One Day More” and see if you can grab tickets to this nearly sold-out show. “At the End of the Day,” subscribing to Broadway Across Canada’s season ensures you don’t miss out on stellar shows like this when they inevitably sell out. Next season is filled with big hits so you’ll want to get on that before you have a “Confrontation” and miss out again!
Broadway Across Canada’s presentation of Les Misérables takes place until Aug. 11 with 8 pm evening performances from Tuesday to Saturday and 7:30 pm on Sunday. Matinee performances are at 2 pm on Saturday and 1:30 pm on Sunday. Les Misérables runs for 2 hours and 55 minutes with one intermission.
