Les Miserables Review by Harrison Eyngorn

Les Miserables is currently taking the Orpheum theatre by storm from Feb. 17-22. This musical has been dubbed “one of the greatest musicals ever created” (Chicago Tribune) with 130 million people, including me, being proud supporters of that statement. The gut-wrenching story follows various time periods in the early 1800s backdropped by a grimy and poverty-ridden Paris, France. Les Miserables recounts a myriad of narratives all intertwined by themes of unrequited love, sacrifice, broken dreams, forgiveness and hope. 

Randy Jeter’s Jean Valjean instantly had me engrossed within the production's opening number. The lengthy lines of non-stop singing in “Soliloquy” felt effortless because of his incredible vocal stamina and his tender voice. Moreover, in “Bring Him Home,” Jeter’s warm and touching singing enhanced the song's already beautiful lyrics. 

Lindsay Heather Pearce’s Fantine was heavenly and angelic with her voice lifting the audience from earth to cloud nine. With her opening song, “I Dreamed a Dream,” Pearce’s remarkable vocal talents tugged on my heart strings. In the later number, “Lovely Ladies,” Pearce’s earnest deliverance and portrayal of Fantine heightened the surrounding event’s atrocities. During the entire number, I was fighting the urge to jump out of my seat and scream, “This isn’t fair! She doesn’t deserve this!” even though I just met her character. 

Kyle Adams’s Thénardier made me want to reach for  hand sanitizer because he was so disgusting yet charismatic in all the best ways. Consistently, Adams’s cartoonish mannerisms and cunning charm had me both delighted and terrified. Similarly, Victoria Huston-Elem’s Madame Thendarier was both an intriguing character on her own but even better alongside Adams’s Théenardier.

While the actors onstage had me captivated, the production’s set design was the cherry on top for an already luxurious cake. Although this show had extravagant moveable sets, a visual projector in the background helped intensify the narrative. In the transition before “Dogs Eat Dogs,”, the projector groaned as the audience was plunged into the wretched sewers. Upon arrival, Théenadarier appeared to come out of the screen and the illustrated sewer tunnel as if by mere magic.

Although there were times I couldn’t fully make out what the actors were singing about, their sheer vocal talent and the show’s production quality did not detract from the musical’s grandiosity. As someone who came into the show completely blind, I recommend that you sit by someone who is willing to explain the various narratives because they did feel confusing at times. In summation, Les Miserables was truly a remarkable show, from outstanding actors to vivid digital set pieces. This show has everything newbies would love and die-hards would approve of.