#appreciate fantine

[serennes-art]

that’s a wrap on emblemcon day 1! see y’all tomorrow zzz

[aurora-boring-alis]

[past-the-dawn]

[pathetic-gamer]

Happy FE Engage Day! The Blue Lions Class of 1181 signed ur yearbook to commemorate a horrific six years wonderful year at the Officer’s Academy :)

[simonetheestan]

Music Artists That The Blue Lions Would Listen to 🎶:

Dimitri: Mitsuki, Peter Gabriel, Dionne Warwick, Adele, Queen, Whitney Houston, Billy Joel, Beyonce, SZA, Chloe and Halle, Usher

Felix: Rina Sawayama, My Chemical Romance, Kendrick Lamar, the Weeknd, Jack White, KISS, Thin Lizzy, Eminem

Sylvain: Drake, Sexy Redd, Ice Spice, Yung Gravy, Macklemore, Doja Cat, Latto, Tyler The Creator, the Weeknd, Britney Spears, Cardi B

Dedue: Steve Lacy, Adele, SZA, Whitney Houston, Mickey Guyton, Mariah Carey, Billy Joel, The Temptations

Ashe: Blackpink, TWICE, Red Velvet, Sabrina Carpenter, aespa, BTS, TXT, NewJeans, Le Sserafim

Ingrid: Taylor Swift, Chappell Roan, Luke Combs, Carrie Underwood, Miley Cyrus, Ellie Goulding, Reba McEntire

Annette: BTS, Taylor Swift, TWICE, Katy Perry, Ariana Grande, Olivia Rodrigo, Sabrina Carpenter, Marina, Mitsuki, Madison Beer, Harry Styles

Mercedes: TWICE, Marina, Adele, Beyonce, Taylor Swift, BTS, Dolly Parton, Chappelle Roan, Renée Rapp, Megan Thee Stallion, Janelle Monae

[collectionstilllife]

Henri Fantin-Latour (French) • Flowers and Fruit • 1866 • Toledo Museum of Art, Toledo, Ohio

[bardengarde]

Taking everything in me to not write a short little oneshot for Les Mis where after Fantine gets laid off she returns to the Thénardiers Inn for Cosette and when she realizes how her daughter was treated and what was done to her, nothing can save the Thénardiers from her

Call it some Hugo-ified version of "Hell Hath No Fury Like An Angry Mother" -- "In Which Is Learned The Flames of Hell Are But Embers Compared To A Mother's Wrath" ????

[autumnalmess]

I hope you all know that this is the best version of Les mis ever recorded and I will not be taking criticism on that point.

I don't care that it's in french, get yourselves on Duolingo if you've got a problem with it.

In this essay I will ���️

I hope you're all appreciating the chord changing to a major on the line "je prefer quitter ce monde" in Javerts suicide that symbolises his resolution because not only does it send instant chills but it makes it SO MUCH SADDER because he's completely resigned himself to his fate.

The whole album is incredible musically and has so many elements added in that aren't in any of the English versions. And all of the Amis voices are super sexy so it's a win win situation. (Esp enjolras 😫). De plus, no one has a weird voice so you don't have to put up with anyone's strange singing

Also there's a buildup in 'Seul devant ces tables vides' (empty chairs at empty tables) like I've never heard before it's insane.

ALSO the way that fantine sings j'avais rêvé is so tender and she just sounds so broken it's SO GOOD.

ALSO so obviously the English is not directly translated from the french so you get a lot of variation in lyrics and I could talk for days about this but one thing I'll point out is that in drink with me, Marius says 'j'attends, comme le délivrance, la balle qui m'est destinée' (I await, like deliverance, the bullet intended for me), which is insane because it gets across a side of Marius we see in the book of his absolute resignation to death that we hardly ever see in the English musical. And then instead of WOULD you cry if I were to fall, he goes will you cry. Which is super sad

I could talk about this album for YEARS

Anyway go listen to it if you haven't

[tjjamess]

watching les mis bootlegs everyday

Day 3

okay so this was meant to be a daily thing but I literally passed out from exhaustion half way through this performance then was immediately sick the next two days. This may be a sign from the universe, however, this sign can’t stop me cause I can’t read.

14/6/2014 West End Production

Https://youtu.be/ucpfyLQKif8?si=AURouDP1jYXb5ZFl

To preface, this is incredibly biased because this is a rewatch of the first bootleg I ever watched of Les Mis and was literally my introduction to Les mis

it holds a very very very special place in my heart

first off literally one of the most powerful singing from Valjean I’ve heard

Incredible!!

oml Na-Young Jeon plays Fantine and she is literally my favourite Fantine ever I love her so my she is how I have always and will always picture Fantine she is literally the greatest

she’s gorgeous like just look at her

She has a power in her voice that I don’t hear often in other Fantine’s

she’s literally perfect

theres a moment in at the end of the day where she attempts to stop Valjean from leaving cause she knows what’s going to happen

Carrie Hope Fletcher as Eponine!!!

Amazing of course

She’s an icon she’s a legend

a little fall of rain actually hurt my soul so much

She’s such a good actress I will literally shout it from the rooftops

Cosette oh Cosette i cannot speak enough about her

her acting was actually incredible especially in the finale and her face is so expressive I can’t even

this post is just turning into actress appreciation at this point

Marius was such a Little loser this performance

At least he can sing

empty chairs and empty tables broke me

Enjolras had a little bow in his ponytail

Im pretty sure Javert gets a little bow in his hair at some point later as well

but you cannot tell me this is not one of the most Enjolras looking Enjolrases to even Enjolras

He gets all up close and personal with Javert

now for my little Grantaire tangent

i absolutely loved Grantaire in this performance I think this was my favourite portrayal of him ever

he as a really good relationship with Gavroche it’s so cute

When Gavroche is accusing Javert he flings his arms around and almost knocks Grantaire in the face

Grantaire holds onto Gavroche to keep him away from the guns

My sillies

and when Gavroche dies and the set spins to return to the barricade boys the spotlight is on Grantaire as he slowly sits down after witnessing it

:)

After a little fall of rain Enjolras steps forward to speak to Marius but Grantaire steps between them stopping him from getting any closer before comforting Marius

In Drink with me Grantaire tries to (or does I can’t tell) kiss Joly

Then he fucking sobs through his solo and hugs Enjolras who sits him down and takes away his drink

then he REACHES OUT TO ENJOLRAS

i cant do this

and on the Barricade Enjolras runs all the way down from the top to see Grantaire then they both climb back up together

also he’s either wearing eyeliner or it just looks like he’s wearing eyeliner

his actor was just really really good in general

and that is why I love Grantaire thank you for coming to my Ted talk

After the finale battle Javert tried to open the sewer grate then GROWLS ‘Valjean’

like actually

through out the entire show this man is just full on GROWLING

Javert’s soliloquy was a masterpiece genuinely

his transition from the bridge to the ground was so smooth I have no clue how they did that

i mean…he kinda… *gets spritzed with water and starts melting like that witch*

The Thenadiers are like exactly how I pictured them to look

plus they were both real good

^^Now I know you can’t tell, but this here is a picture of Feuilly holding Enjolras by the waist (it’s canon fr fr)

shout out to this random woman and barricade boy who are being adorable in the background while Marius is lamenting about his sad sad life

time for my lighting nerd moment!

the majority of especially the first part of the performance the stage is like entirely dark with a single spotlight

particularly with individual songs but for like most of the songs that aren’t group songs (red and black or one day more ect)

It’s done SO well and looks SO good

it’s very impressive how exact the spotlights are

It feels like this performance is very character focused rather than set

especially because the person filming tends to zoom in on the actors faces to capture their expressions

They make really good use of smoke the whole performance it’s very nice

I like how they used smoke with coloured lighting at the beginning of at the end of the day

The sequence was very nice

and in the sewers they used a bunch of spotlights to show Valjean and Marius travelling

they also use a grate light for the sewers and dog eats dog which worked really well imo

if you want the full stage the whole time you absolutely will not get that for most of the performance

the person filming is actually pretty good at catching faces

Overall the performance was so incredible

i am very biased so take everything with a grain of salt

but definitely one of, if not my favourite bootleg

now I leave you with two of my favourite screenshots

If you have suggestions for other good bootlegs please let me know (YouTube only)

[bogusbyron]

NOW THAT I'M HOME:

Copy pasting les mis notes from today's matinee (30th may) here instead of posting screenshots from my notes app like last time cause i think thisll be easier to read.... There's 73 points and it's LONG so i'll put it under a read more . Go wild hope you find them somewhat interesting. Ignore any errors puhlease 😭🙏

1) Jordan Simon Pollard was on as Javert and he is. Fucking massive. Very imposing. His silhouette on the top of the boat is crazy good

2) Harry Lake as Marius, saw him on may 14th schools matinée, god his voice is gorgeous. As usual amazing

3) the guitar riff in Work Song kind of gets me lol

4) Valjean (Chris Jacobsen) flinching when Javert lifted his hand to pass him the slip. Additionally he has a GREAT voice. Quite gentle

5) The fight where Valjean gets beaten up was a bit awkward lmfao

6) More valjean flinching when the Bishop goes to touch his shoulder

7) chris spitting "thanked him like i should" interesting delivery, quite liked it.... his "took my flight" wasnt as strong is Milan's but whateverrrrrr

8) WILL ALWAYS BE STUNNED BY ADAM PEARCE'S VOICE🔥 THE LOW NOTE ON "BOUGHT YOUR SOUL FOR GOD" YUMM

9) The "I missed" on "I missed it 20 long years ago" was very harsh, as was "mouthful" in "mouthful of bread. LOOOVE thankyou Chris. "any other" in "treated me like any other" apparently was very gorgeous. I dont remember how but thats what I have written. Then i just wrote "Holy shit". He also was sobbing a little bit between "One word from him" and "offers me my freedom" which was lovely. Then i wrote "Chris ate jesus" so thats a high commendment

10) the bassline in At The End Of The Day is so delicious always

11) I kept seeing tom hext and harry lake in the ensemble (it was, uh, a bit thin  male ensemble-wise)

12) synth tones as usual heavenly I LOVE SYNTHESISERS!!!

13) the foreman was northern which was kind of funny #northrepresent

14) i think someone dropped somethijg offstage just before I Dreamed A Dream lmfao

15) Now i know that Fantine's wig cost £4000 i kind of appreciate it more. Doing my part

16) KATIE'S VOICE IS DIVIIIINE the low note she hits on "tear your hope apart" is ssoosooooooo goooode i get goosebumps bro

17) harry lake was the 2nd guy in lovely ladies though thought that was funny. He got his arse slapped on the "if you want to take all year" line . Giggled

18) javert big ass hat with the feather 😭😭😭😭😭

19) he was throwing some bitchy ass glances at the other policeman (who was harry lake. Btw) when fantine was begging whats his problem. His faces were so fun to watch hes so expressive. Hes also delightfully imposing

20)  not very homoerotic at the cart although they did get dangerously close on "brand upon his skin".

21) i loved Jordan's performance honestly, he was very curt and harsh in his lines. Makes you want to cower away when he speaks

22) i cant remember when, but Chris spat a lil during Who Am I ans i wrote "spittin a bit there Chris. Hit that shit"

23) Katie was so wonderfully and convincingly weak for Come To Me ouuhhh my heart

24) I liked the little detail of Valjean looking over his shoulder a lot when he was with Fantine... ughhhghhhhhh

25) THE LOW NOTE JORDAN HIT 🤤🤤🤤🤤 different chainn

26) good strangle. Didnt fuck it up! He was stood up rather than knelt or laid like javert usually is but thats probably a Jordan thing since ive seen Stewart thebother times. He stood up quite fast rather than writing around a bit like stewart does and thenWIPED HIS MOUTH cool whagever. Then valjean kneed him in the balls at the tousle at the end lmfao

27) TOMMMM😍😍😍 i love his thenardier withbhis gruff voice lol. He did a little shimmy on "content to be" looove. I love his gay little dance he does with his pointed toes. And he flashed the gentleman guest at the start. As usual he does the bisexual thing. He flashes everyone again after mme thenardier's "whats happened since" someones gotta stop him bro

28) chris was so gentle with cosette i could cry .

29) tom hext thenardier does this thing where he's asleep when valjean comes in until he says "pay" at which he wakes up with a snort. Love

30) cosette runs to valjean  when he starts reassuring her when the thenardiers are trying to get him to spend more money snd it warmed my heart

31) tom squeaking "monsieur" in "one of our own monsieur" tickled me hes so funny. Also the jazz hands after "christians must do". I did keep getting blinded by his shiny shoe buckles though

32) chris was delightfully harsh on "too long to Forget" get his ass valjean

33) THE HUG AFTERWARDS WAS SOOOOO CUTE VALJEAN WAS CLEARLY SO TOUCHED UGGHHH IT WAS SO LOVELY I LOVETHAT SCENE SO MUCH

34) LOVE YOU HARRIUS his face when he sees cosette is so nice hes so good bruh

35) JAVERT IS HUUGE ITS CRAZZYZYYYYY especially  in that coat and the hat ohmt god dude

36) when thenardier pipes up after valjean runs off from javert he steps forward and gets choked a little itwas great. The way he goes up to javert to lean on him and the slide on his voice on "told you so" as well when he walks backwards lmfaoaoooo

37) stars was GORGEOUS . I mainly made very messy notes on Jordan's inflections during the song because i like the different delivery choices.... "face to face" was quite soft which i liked. The quick slide on "fall in flames" was delish.. hissed "scarce" and "silent" on "silent and sure". HOLY SHIT also his expressions, so good. Stewart is largely kind of deadpan just with a furrowed brow but jordan's face is all over the place its delightful. Also "bars" in "safe behind bars" was SO powerful and low ohhhhh his voice bruh. Bloody hell

38) marius' blank ass stupid ass smile when he offers the money to eponine its so fucking funny

39) i think the foreman is rhe ssame guy as grantaire but i do Not know. He did a silly giggle after "some wine and say what's going on" which i liked

40) i wrote "marius is so [see below image]" which lke ueah he was. Nothing behind his eyes at all. Love you harrius

41) i absolutely LOVE djavan as enjolras hes very engaging and shit i LOVE him . Dont even care about les amis that much but djavan is great at getting me to gaf about enjolras i cant lie. Hes so good

42) i wrote "harmonies. I came" do you hear the people sing getting me good as always

43) cosette was still shaky im so sorry girl i dont like her voice very much😭 great voice very talented her vibrato is just all over im so sorry

44) shamefully, i had to write "cosette your dad fit as fuck"  when he appeared for heart full of love lmfao

45) he was quite harsh on "better unsaid" ..😔 contrasted the otherwise gentle deljveries for the rest kf the show

46) marius looks constantly, like, aghast and bewildered and stunned by the fact that cosette is looking at him and i loved that. Bless him. Love you harry

47) babet always cracks me up whats his deal. Also in attack on rue plumet there was a guitar riff after "why's she hanging about you" giggled

48) felt a bit 4th wall-y when valjean was saying his plan to escape idk. Hello vro❤

49) enjolras' bit in one day more will always fuck. I got goosebumps so bad when he came in bruhhhh. FUUUUUUCCCCKKK I LOVE ONE DAY MORE

ACT 2

50) not much exr chemistry  surprisingly. Tom hext clearly doing the heavy lifting for the enjoltaire fandom

51) AMENA I LOVEYOUUUUUUU GOD HER VOICE IS SO GORGEOUS I LOVE HEERRRRRR goosebumbppsss

52) never getting over the barricade reveal . As a techie the lighting makes me geek the fuck out bro. Id say it gave me a boner but would that be going too far. Anyway the lights were bright and i could finally see clearly what i was writing for a bit lol

53) i wrote "byron for army general 2025 i dont know why because my voice is nowhere as good as that. I am the biggest fan of those bits though its so catchy i love it. They really went harsh on the Guns or DIE!!!!!! looove

54) the only one taller than javert is enjolras and i find this hilarious

55) JAVERT WITH THE DARK RED RIBBON IN HIS HAIR i said "dorothycore" later in the evening. Also his sideeye to gavroche when he was being ratted out was funny

56) HARRY SO GENTLE IN FALL OF RAIN OHHMY GOD DUDE THEIR DUET WAS SO TENDER AND HIS FACE OF DISBELIEF AND SHOCK WHEN EPONINE DIES WAS SO HEARTBREAKING FUCCKKKKK

57) "javert slutty red waistcoat" he had a deep red waistcoat to match his hair ribbon. Ir was kinda unbuttoned off his shoulder when he was dragged back out okayyyyyyyy

58) chris delightfully harsh when he says "give me the spy" yesssss bro yessss

59) NOT AS HOMOEROTIC AS ID LIKED BUT AGAIN  SCHOOLS MATINÉE TUESDAY REALLY SET THE BAR HIGH😭 valjean did grab javert lapels though and hold them until "i'm a man. Held out hope in my soul my psychic mind beams would cause them to kiss like my comic but alas! Also as usual javert very expressive. Yummm.

60) gavroche and grantaire's friendship for evarrrrr. Theyr so fire

61) chris was so lovelyand delightfully soft for bring him home HE ABSOLUTELY HIT THAT SHIT, IF I DIE... BROOO... i thimk i prefer milan still but chris absokutelt did NOT disappoint.

62) did not shit myself this time when gavroche died. Winning

63) djavan's voice as always insanely good its insane dude holee fuck hes so good brugh

64) when grantaire died he qas kinda hanging off the side in a really awkward spot and i think javert stood on him a lil when climbing down the barricade lol. On that note hes still so fucking big its crazy im obsessed. Also Again with the cross over gavroche's body though godbless

65) kind of looked like tom's mic wasnt on his head properly in the sewers but whatever thats just a techie nitpick of mine. He sounded great as usual though no problems just looked a bit odd lol. He kicks marius on "stiffs at my feet" poor guy

66) javert raised his brows and bulged his eyes on "i wont be swayed" i just had to note that because of how good it was. His expressions seriously so enchanting

67) the heavy breathing and kinda growling before soliloquy dude ohhmy gourd. Hell yes brother. His hair was so good too his wig is slightly curly and its like all over his shoulders and shit whenever he brought his chin back it kind of cowled his face and it was delectable . His EYES .............. as a bulging eyes javert truther it was sso good. Great inflection on "i am the law", "valjean", "dominion", "insTEAD"..... soft on "gave me my life" which i LOVED, as well as delivering "heart of stone" in such a deeply sad tone which was so good bro ohhmy god. "Killed me" was very harsh LOVE! he absolutely GROWLED "world of jean valjean" hellooooooooo bruhhh

68) HARRY LAKE WHEN I GET YOU HARRY LAKE. the low notes on "tomorrow never came" get outtttt. "Theres a grief that cant be spoken" whole line got my heart torn apart . He deliverwd it SO emotionally it got me screaminf crying. Also he was kind of harsh on "don't ask me" which i LOOOVED.

69) dont really know how to describe it but chris' valjean i liked himmmm he felt like ? Quite .. mature ? Well duh cause hes like old ass man . He played it wonderfully anguished as he was confessing to marius, got more anguished as he went on until the "who am i" ouuughhhhhhh . He was delightfully desperate and frantic when he was asking marius to keep the secret too, shaking his shoulders a little and all bro ohhhmy

70) HARRY SO HANDSOME IN HIS SUIT 😊😊😊😊🥰 HIS SMILE ALSO i might be a little bit in love with him but what evarrrr lol

71) THE THENARDIERS AS ALWAYS DELIGHTFUL stole the show. Tom's spin when he gets punched by marius omg so good . GAY ASS DANCING .... plus return of the funny little toe dance he does in master of the house. He did a little pose on "paris at my feet" which i loved. The pose:

72) chris' frail voice OUCH. so gentle. He was like muttering into cosette's hair when she kneeled in front of him i was going craaaaaazzzzyyyyyyyyy bro kmsss. The way he delivered the "i will try" was so fucking heartwrenching cause he sounded so earnest and final  and like the smile he gave her ohmy god i was tweaking so bad HRURRYUYYGGGHHHHHH he whuspered "its a story" as he handed her the book. Suicide tomorrow gang⁉️

73) nearly cried i cant lie. NEARLY. i didnt but nearly. Goosebumps on that final note ugh OUGH eugghhh. Anyway yeah final  verdict this cast fucked amen 🌈🌈 harrius and tomardier on top

[cliozaur]

When you run out of your canon-era fanfics, you start looking for AUs and crossovers. And it’s such an enormous topic to discuss! I would like to start with some recs (we're talking Valvert fanfics, of course). Some authors are just so good and creative when it comes to AUs.

A Change of a Bizarre Kind by M_Moonshade (set in MsM) – I will never shut up about it! It’s a crossover of Les Mis and Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. It’s written amazingly well and has a non-linear narrative. Javert fighting for control and losing it is breathtaking. One of my favourite fanfic Javerts! Caring and overprotective Valjean is what most of us love. Fantine survives and is the only reasonable person around those two. And they have adventures! Dr. Jekyll is, of course, a perfect villain! One of my favourite Valvert fanfics.

What Sort of Devil also by M_Moonshade (set in Paris). This time Valjean is a vampire, self-sacrificing and caring. Javert is exercising and excelling in self-deception. They have even more adventures, and this time Thénardier is the villain. The author’s style is, as always, excellent, and the author’s comments are hilarious.

The next three fics took me time to dare to read. AUs and descriptions can make you dumbstruck, but they turned out to be excellent pieces: well-written, thoroughly thought out. The AUs are well-designed, logical, and well-explained. Javert and Valjean both have recognizable characters, excellent at teasing each other. Their dialogues are highly entertaining and amusing. These fics are good from the point of view of historical details – if the author decides to be anachronistic, it’s for a reason, and it’s explained.

Guard’s Law, Con’s Heart by Xythia (set in Toulon, but it’s 1823). To be honest, I only risked reading it because of Toulon. It’s described as a BDSM universe, which initially did not inspire me. But I gave it a chance and never regretted it. This universe has its rules, and they are not what you expect. They influence social structure and traditions, and it’s all explained and well-used for the plot. Something bad starts happening at the beginning, but Javert arrives on time to stop and prevent it. He takes responsibilities he himself did not expect. Then Javert and Valjean interact and communicate with each other, and it’s such a pleasure and entertainment to follow their exchanges! And I usually do not appreciate OCs, but here I enjoyed them.

Winter Wolf also by Xythia (set in MsM). I already knew what to expect from the author, so even the obscure AU of Sentinels and Guides did not stop me. I had never heard of this AU, but it was not difficult to figure out what it is. A bit slow at the beginning, but then it gets excellent. Signature dialogues, development of relationships, adventures. And one of the best young Cosettes ever written. She is really an amazing little creature.

Eggy series also by Xythia (set in Toulon, and it’s again 1823). This time, one of them (Valjean) is a dragon-shapeshifter. But even as a dragon, he is unmistakably recognizable as Valjean. The world of people and dragons has its history and rules, and they are very well explained. Signature dialogues, good OCs. It really may sound strange as an AU, but it’s worth reading.

[littledemonlucina]

4/24 Pin designs of the Appreciation Project

Fantine Carmilla Carmine Voiced by: Daphne Rubin-Vega Designed by: @azmodeusart This was a tough one, but I think the devoted mother Fantine from Les Misérables is the most fitting. Also Carmilla looks great in that red dress!

Link to this listing!

Price: 22,50$ (does not include shipping costs)

[enjolrasling]

I saw the Les Miserables US tour on Tuesday and am still IN MY FEELINGS about it, so here’s a random assortment of somewhat coherent thoughts/rambles/write up/review.

(Note: I saw the entire principle cast except Randy Jeter (who was out) and two ensemble swings. Andrew Marks Maughan was pulling double duty as both the Bishop and Combferre.)

• I didn’t know anything about Nick Cartell going in, but holy fuck, that VOICE. Tone is immaculate. Lungs of fucking steel.

• “Another story must beGINNNNNN” are you kidding me Nick. Who gave you the right to be this talented. Why is this man not more famous?!

• Preston Truman Boyd as Javert - voice is great, nice deep baritone. I wanted a smidge more from him acting wise though (this improved over the course of his performance).

• Nick and Preston sound phenomenal together, their voices work SO WELL.

• Haley Dortch has the voice of an angel and I loved her portrayal of Fantine.

• I appreciated that when Fantine was attacked/arrested all of the lovely ladies kept trying to stop it/help her. A nice staging touch.

• The whole transition into the courtroom was fantastic. Nick with that ending note of “Who Am I?” 🤯 I feel like I heard a few nods to Colm’s Valjean throughout Nick’s performance, this being one, which I appreciated on a cellular level.

• Confrontation sounded sooo good. It is a little goofy looking because Nick is so much shorter/smaller than Preston, which made the whole Valjean-as-stronger-man thing a bit silly. The blocking here didn’t do much for me. But what can you do. However! The “you’ll wear a different CHAInnn!” *cue Present with the chain hitting the stage floor* was fierce.

• It took a minute but Matt Crowle really won me over as Thénardier. Acting choices were 💯 without going over the top.

• There was a lot going on during “Master of the House” and it was a lot of fun, but also hard to catch everything.

• Gavroche was delightful. As usual.

• I’m not sure why Enjolras’ blonde wig was so bad, but it was really distracting. Devin Archer does a very decent Enjolras, but man that wig was not doing him any favors.

• Marius’ entrance was forgettable. I think this was more a staging issue than a reflection on Jake David Smith maybe? All the students kind of looked the same at this time. I had a hard time telling Les Amis apart all night, honestly. Except for Enjolras and Grantaire, obviously, which brings me to….

• Kyle Adams. You freaking fan-servicing national treasure. Cards on the table, seeing reviews of Kyle’s Grantaire was the single biggest reason I decided to catch this tour, and I was really, REALLY hoping to see him in the role. I did not think anyone would ever come close to eclipsing Hadley as my R of all time, but Kyle is right up there in his orbit. Omg that scene stealing little shit. He really put his all into “the drunk one”. Blowing the kiss to E at the end of Red and Black. Continually slapping people with his coat jacket. The dick-bottle in Enjolras’ face. Constantly goofing around with Gavroche. It was all gold. I really appreciate an actor who’s done their homework, and Kyle is very obviously well versed in both the source material and the rabid E/R fan fiction. His performance is a love letter to the fans - to those of us who have cried over the brick, who have watched every musical version we’ve been able to get our hands on over and over again - and I love that for all of us.

• Anyway, back to “Red and Black”. Devin is great, really brings the sassy Enjolras energy. Marius is….kind of forgettable again. Sorry, Jake. Enjolras when he grabs that flag…Devin is really serving.

• “Do You Hear the People Sing” was wonderfully rousing, as always. One of my favorites forever. The transition to the streets was very pleasing. Again, Devin with that damn flag. I might end up shipping Enj with the flag as much as E and R, he’s that passionate with it 🤣

• Delaney Guyer was a perfectly pleasant Cosette. No criticisms, I just haven’t really ever cared about Cosette much as a character. Her songs do very little for me. But Delaney was lovely.

• Mya Rena Hunter as Eponine was somewhat “meh” for me. Her vocals are killer and “On My Own” got one of the biggest ovations of the night, but I didn’t love her acting choices. Or maybe lack there of, it didn’t seem like there were any. I dunno.

• The staging/choreo for “One Day More” was really entertaining. Much better than the underwhelming marching I saw in the 2012 production. Devin serving sassy, dramatic Enjolras with flair and a rifle is a whole ass mood.

• I fucking love the barricade set. Seeing Les Amis climb all over that thing is such a moment. Enjolras literally leaping off the set multiple times. Dude gets AIR.

• Gavroche flipping off Javert was an audience favorite.

• “A Little Falls of Rain” was underwhelming. The staging was a bit awkward and there was no scene chemistry between Jake and Mya. I really wanted to feel something. I didn’t. Just eh.

• “Drink With Me”, on the other hand, was so wonderfully emotional. Kyle’s stying of R’s verse is an angrier, grittier interpretation and I’m sooo here for it. Enjolras goes to console him and R pushes him away. The pain feels so real.

• “Bring Him Home”….Nick. Fucking. Cartell. I have no words. He cast an absolute SPELL over the theater. His breath control is super human. His last “home” note went on FOREVER. Absolutely phenomenal. Hands down best version I’ve ever heard live. Biggest ovation of the night.

• Gavroche’s death 😭 So sad, so well done. It was very striking how he was shot just as Enjolras’ hand reached up for him as he returned. The timing, the lights, sound everything was excellent. Then he crumpled onto E’s shoulder. E handed his lifeless body to R, who was just devastated. I love the relationship they created between Gavroche and R this production. The entire build up of their interactions made this moment so poignant and believable.

• Christopher Robin Sapp really took his 5 seconds of National Guard Officer/Loud Hailer time and absolutely slayed it. I want to see more of this guy in the future.

• The choreo of the final battle was very satisfying. I totally missed Marius getting injured and just mistook him for another student because again….Marius was just not catching any of my attention this tour, lol. The frantic moment between E and R in this scene was so raw and well done by both actors. R reaching for E’s face, clasping hands so very briefly. Ugh.

• Then E with the flag again. This scene is so striking and Devin gives it EVERYTHING. Then R climbing up after E once he gets shot and falls off of the barricade. The way it takes a few moments for R to die after being shot and Kyle freaking Adams makes sure the audience knows it…

• I was lucky enough to see a production with the revolving stage back in the day and I’m really glad I did, because the reveal of Enjolras’ body hanging upside down off the other side of the barricade with the flag is one of those theater moments that will haunt me forever. Enjolras’ lifeless body in the cart just doesn’t have quite that same punch, but it’s timed very nicely with the music swell, and the way his body shifts/almost falls out of the cart when it’s carried away again is quite effective.

• Ok so the sewers. That was cool. I felt like this production used just enough of the screen to really assist the set design without relying on it too much. It worked really well for the orchestration and gave depth to Valjean just dragging Marius across the stage 3 times.

• Thénardier dragging in that corpse by his ankles for “Dog Eats Dog” lol. Matt really showed up for this scene. I think he did a good job of dipping into the “comedic” aspects of Thénardier as well as balancing the really rotten parts - this was a really great rotten part. I thoroughly enjoyed his turn as the infamous innkeeper.

• Javert is such a little drama queen.

• “Stars” was A++++. One of my forever favorites anyway, but Preston took this song to church. Also, I do NOT remember this staging, if it’s what I saw in 2012 (I don’t think so?!) and holy shit. I was not expecting what they did, which got quite a few gasps from the audience. The falling/floating/reaching while holding that last “ONNNNNNN” was a fucking MOMENT. Props to this production set up. Major props to Preston. Just wow.

• The transition from “Turning” to “Empty Chairs at Empty Tables” was beautiful, and I love love love the candle choreography. When Les Amis blow their candles out….ugh 😭 This number was a bit of redemption for Jake David Smith, who until now had kept slipping into the background. I found his Marius to be a bit uninspired and unrecognizable for the most part. He did not bring much of a presence to the role until this moment. But his vocals were great here, and the anguish felt genuine.

• I don’t have much too say about “Beggars at the Feast” because I was too busy watching no one but Kyle Adams as Major Domo for the entire scene 🤷🏻‍♀️

• But omg the change of Thénardier’s lyrics from “this one’s a queer / but what can you do?” to “this one’s a queer / I might try it too” and then he dips that random wedding guest dude was a giant yes from me.

• Finale left a touch to be desired blocking/staging wise. I remember feeling that way with the 2012 production as well. Les Mis is just such a powerful musical, I feel like it deserves a bigger ending than basically everyone just standing in two lines behind Cosette and Marius. The cast’s vocals made up for the lack of production though. Truly so, so good.

• In conclusion: Nick Cartell has an otherworldly voice and Kyle Adams is the Grantaire we all deserve. I am so, SO glad I got to experience this cast.

[ferociousconscience]

Reblogs are appreciated, as always. I'd like these polls to have as much reach in the fandom as possible!

[ueinra]

No adaptations appreciate the way Fantine hits Bamatabois like the comics :

And I’ll add Arai Manga too bc as always it has everything :

Bonus to make your day better <3

[ineffable-gallimaufry]

new les mis adaptation rankings (in order of when i watched/read them):

the musical: 8/10 they did the best with what they had and it is amazing at having banger songs. i do think that certain decisions aren't my favorite and they did cut out a lot but i can understand that. it got me into les mis so for that i gotta appreciate it. petit gervais should have been there

1978: .......... i still actually cannot quantify my opinions on this movie. it is a whole fucking experience. it's both bad and really good. perkinsvert is my heart and soul. i can't give it a number. maybe 1000000/10.

1998: 4/10 it's baddd okay. i think they had a good start and i did like jean valjean's relationship with fantine in this one. also i think that the part with the bishop was interesting because it showed that jean valjean's redemption didn't actually entirely come from that moment soooo. awesome. buttttt there's still the fact it gets worse and worse as the movie goes on. and the acab is just not there. ...

takahiro arai's manga: 10/10 i have not finished it but i am fucking obsessed. it's actually gorgeous. it's got some crazy ass symbolism that slaps hard. i need to buy it now.

shoujo cosette: 9/10 i think it was a VERY faithful adaptation of the book and i like that even though they do change a few things that make the story lighter they still have those things carry weight to them. like chou chou! you hear they have a dog and you're like "wow would the thénardiers even let her have a dog? unrealistic!" and the answer is no they would not considering they beat her over it . like yeah they changed things for keeping the mood up but it was really faithful for the most part and i liked it.