The street in front of the Academy of Music in Philadelphia was flooded with theater goers January 5 awaiting the ushers to allow entrance to see The 25th Anniversary Production of Les Miserables produced by Cameron Mackintosh.
The nearly sold out show kicked off with the orchestra playing the haunting overture as the curtain rose on the set inspired by Victor Hugo's paintings, according to the Showcase program bulletin.
Jean Valjean, played by Peter Lockyer, literally kept the audience on the edge of their seats with his talent, causing them to lean towards the stage to catch every word and note.
Lockyer's most memorable musical number was "Bring Him Home," which is a true test of all who play the character Jean Valjean because of the intense octave jumps. Lockyer performed the song with believable emotion and perfect pitch.
Andrew Varela played a fantastic Javert and captured the essence of the sinister and intimidating inspector on stage. Varela's rendition of the musical number "Javert's Suicide" magnified the struggle of how challenging it can be for a person to change and was performed masterfully.
Fantine was played by Genevieve Leclerc in which the performance of "Fantine's Death" brought the audience to tears when she called for her daughter, Cosette, who was not with her in her hour of death.
The Thenardiers', played by Timothy Gulan and Shawna M. Hamic, brought comic relief to a musical steeped in tragedy and received hearty laughs from the audience. "The Bargain," the musical number in which Jean Valjean adopted the young Cosette from the Thenardiers' was performed with wit and nicely demonstrated the characters ignorance, especially when Thenadier intended to cross himself in the christian manner and instead of a cross pantomimes a circle.
Cosette, Marius, and Eponine, played by Lauren Wiley, Devin Ilaw, and Briana Carlson-Goodman, offered believable chemistry in the love triangle that they portrayed, particularly in the song "A Heart Full of Love". The layering of voices as well as the staging with Marius and Cosette singing to each other, as Eponine sang to Marius captured the tragic realization of Eponine being the "third wheel."
Ilaw sang Marius's song "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables" with such conviction the audience openly wept, especially when his friends which died in the barricade appeared onstage holding candles to represent their passing over to death.
The finale musical number, sang by the company, was a breathtaking moment which ended the show with the moral that, "to love another person is to see the face of God," which led the audience to give a standing ovation.
Les Miserables will play at the Academy of Music in Philadelphia until January 13 and will continue the United States tour until June 9, 2013.
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Jean Valjean, played by Peter Lockyer, literally kept the audience on the edge of their seats with his talent, causing them to lean towards the stage to catch every word and note.
Lockyer's most memorable musical number was "Bring Him Home," which is a true test of all who play the character Jean Valjean because of the intense octave jumps. Lockyer performed the song with believable emotion and perfect pitch.
Andrew Varela played a fantastic Javert and captured the essence of the sinister and intimidating inspector on stage. Varela's rendition of the musical number "Javert's Suicide" magnified the struggle of how challenging it can be for a person to change and was performed masterfully.
Fantine was played by Genevieve Leclerc in which the performance of "Fantine's Death" brought the audience to tears when she called for her daughter, Cosette, who was not with her in her hour of death.
The Thenardiers', played by Timothy Gulan and Shawna M. Hamic, brought comic relief to a musical steeped in tragedy and received hearty laughs from the audience. "The Bargain," the musical number in which Jean Valjean adopted the young Cosette from the Thenardiers' was performed with wit and nicely demonstrated the characters ignorance, especially when Thenadier intended to cross himself in the christian manner and instead of a cross pantomimes a circle.
Cosette, Marius, and Eponine, played by Lauren Wiley, Devin Ilaw, and Briana Carlson-Goodman, offered believable chemistry in the love triangle that they portrayed, particularly in the song "A Heart Full of Love". The layering of voices as well as the staging with Marius and Cosette singing to each other, as Eponine sang to Marius captured the tragic realization of Eponine being the "third wheel."
Ilaw sang Marius's song "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables" with such conviction the audience openly wept, especially when his friends which died in the barricade appeared onstage holding candles to represent their passing over to death.
The finale musical number, sang by the company, was a breathtaking moment which ended the show with the moral that, "to love another person is to see the face of God," which led the audience to give a standing ovation.
Les Miserables will play at the Academy of Music in Philadelphia until January 13 and will continue the United States tour until June 9, 2013.
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