Critical Review at Hennepin Arts

Anyone who knows me knows how much the story of Les Misérables means to me. When I went to France over the summer, I bought an old copy of the original 1862 Victor Hugo novel the show is based off of and it proudly sits atop my bookshelf. It is easily one of my favorite musicals. So when the National Tour of this worldwide sensation came marching into Minneapolis, it’s safe to say that I leaned in, eyes watering, and heart full the entire time. There are so many reasons why Les Misérables continues to be the smashing success that it is, and this National tour highlights them.  While the show itself hasn’t changed much since its original production, what keeps the show fresh and exciting is the cast, and this one certainly does not disappoint. Nick Cartell (who I’d seen when the tour was last in Minneapolis in 2022) once again delivers a stellar performance as the main role of Jean Valjean, electrifying crowds with his strong belt in numbers like “Valjean’s Soliloquy,” but also...

LL "One Day More" from Les Misérables. Photo by Matthew Murphy. Les Misérables , or Les Miz (or Les Mis), is an astonishing show. Set in France in the early 1800s and covering a span of over twenty years, the characters grow and change as the show progresses. The story about Jean Valjean (Nick Cartell) being hunted by a police officer, Javert (Nick Rehberger), for years shows both characters’ determination to uphold their principles and encourages the audience to do the same. Opening on November 19th for a two-week stay at Minneapolis’s Orpheum Theatre, the show came with an exciting energy that could be felt throughout the theatre as the 1987 Tony award-winning show returned to Minneapolis with Claude-Michel Schönberg’s incredible music. As Valjean lifts a runaway cart to free a person trapped underneath, Javert approaches him and tells him of an arrest of someone who looks similar to Valjean with strong strength, a key trait of his. Valjean then questions whether or not to ...

How much magic can come from hiding in the dark? Everybody loves a big, bright spectacle that pops, but what happens when you play with the opposite? When your attention is moved not from brightness, but rather because everything else is invisible. Les Misérables is on its North American tour and showed at the Orpheum in November of 2024. It is one of the most popular musicals ever produced, and there's a reason for it.  This show has lasted so long because it endlessly excites us. People are afraid to be dramatic, today those things just become confused with being obnoxious. Les Misérables is so loved because it doesn’t do that. The difference is it carries significance, not mindless drama. It pulls you in and doesn’t let go. Even during Intermission, the house doesn’t go to half, the music starts and before you know it the lights are down and the show is on. So we keep going back for it, over and over, and it lives on. This show uses very little actual lighting. Paule Constable,...

Snap, crackle, sizzle and pop, Some Like it Hot was proven to be far from a flop as it took the Minneapolis’ Orpheum’s stage by storm with its national tour. Directed and choreographed by the remarkable Casey Nicholaw, this artistic production gives societal fragmentation a spin by touching on complex issues with a touch of comedic amusement. While the production captures the essence of the original film, it additionally brings a fresh and vibrant energy that resonates with a modern audience. Not only does the musical stay true to the movie-based plot, but the live performance aspect adds an extra layer of excitement. Some Like it Hot, the Broadway musical adaptation of the classic 1959 film, is set in Chicago prohibition. The story revolves around two musicians, Joe and Jerry, as they flee the Windy City and disguise themselves as women to escape gangsters after witnessing a crime. They join an all-female band heading to San Francisco, leading to various comedy and romantic escapades...