Les Miserables - The 10th Anniversary Dream Cast In Concert At London's Royal Albert Hall

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Les Miserables - The 10th Anniversary Dream Cast In Concert At London's Royal Albert Hall

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A performance of Les Miserables by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at the Royal Albert Hall for a 10th Anniversary Concert celebration.Running Time: 147 min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: TELEVISION/BBC UPC: 883929005949 Manufacturer No: 1000036352

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The 10th anniversary concert video of the international musical sensation Les Misérables might be the best thing to appease fans until a full-fledged movie comes along. Or it might be even better, as feature films are often subject to extramusical casting considerations and this 1995 dream cast is superb. Reprising their roles from the original London company are Colm Wilkinson (Valjean), Michael Ball (Marius), and Alun Armstrong (Thenardier). From Broadway come Judy Kuhn (Cosette), Lea Salonga (Eponine), and Michael Maguire (Enjolras); from a later London production comes Ruthie Henshall (Fantine); and from Australia comes Philip Quast (Javert).

Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg's score vividly captures the passion of Victor Hugo's epic tale of post-Revolutionary France, combining tear-jerking ballads ("I Dreamed a Dream," "Bring Him Home") and rousing anthems ("Do You Hear the People Sing"). The format of this concert is closer to that of a dramatic cantata rather than a fully staged production; the singers stand at their microphone stands with an orchestra and chorus behind them, but they do wear costumes and participate in some movement. At certain points such as the climax of the barricade scene, the video switches to action from a stage production. The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra sounds great, and it can be thrilling when 200 choristers (dressed in logo T-shirts) rise to their feet for a full-company number such as "One Day More." Also, subtitles provide date and scene information and help move the story along.

The 147-minute video contains footage not seen when Les Mis was a PBS pledge-drive staple, most notably the encore in which a progression of 17 actors who have played Valjean around the world share "Do You Hear the People Sing?" Each sings a line in his native language, a testament to the enduring power of this show to audiences everywhere. --David Horiuchi

DVD features
The 2008 two-disc edition presents the concert on a single-sided disc (the original DVD split the concert over two sides) with optional English subtitles. It's also in anamorphic widescreen (1.78:1 aspect ratio) comparied to the original's 1.33 full-screen. The second disc has Stage by Stage: Les Miserables, the hourlong documentary from 1988. --David Horiuchi

Customer Reviews:

Rating:
Date: 2008-07-02
Great Music, Fantastic Cast
This performance does indeed have the dream cast. The roles are played to perfection. The bonus information is most interesting. To think that the critics panned the original stage performance, although the public loved it. Les Mis is truely one of the greatest musicals ever composed. There is one disappointment, however. The Tenth Anniversary Concert, as seen on PBS, included a special encore presenting actors who played Jean Valjean in productions from 17 different countries, each stepping up to sing a line, or two, of "Do You Here the People Sing" in his own language. This encore was omitted from the DVD, although it was included on the CD of this concert. I can see this encore only on my own VCR of the concert. Too bad.

Rating:
Date: 2008-06-28
Little People Skip
I love Les Mis and I love this concert but I am extremely disappointed with this DVD. They cut out a verse from Little People that was in the original concert!

Instead of

Liar!
Good evening, dear inspector
Lovely evening, my dear.
I know this man, my friends
His name is Inspector Javert
So don't believe a word he says
'Cause none of it's true

we get

Liar!
So don't believe a word he says
'Cause none of it's true

Which makes no sense. And makes me very sad. I waited so long to get this on DVD and Gavroche is one of my favorite characters so to have some of his part cut really sucks. :< I don't know if this was intentional or not but GRRRRR.

Rating:
Date: 2008-06-18
"Dream Cast" is a perfect description
There is no doubt that this is the best production of the musical ever done. Casting is superb, and the performances of these professionals are full of the passion you would expect from actors immersed in their characters and at the top of their musical form. Movies have never captured the essence of Hugo's masterpiece, and some have been an outright offense to Hugo's work, but the musical productions are able to tap into the emotion much better and much deeper. This particular performance, even without the drama of a set or the progression of the musical play, captures the heart and mind beyond any expectation. It is not just recommended; it's a must see!

Rating:
Date: 2008-06-16
Great Music... Great Story... BUT I would really like the full musical to be brought to DVD
I love Les Miserables.... it's my favorite fictional story ever told. i love the musical even more. The music was so inspired and keeps you singing the tunes for days...weeks... even years after hearing it.

The musical is great that being said I don't understand why they would market it in the concert format. As good as the music is by itself it's even better to have the actions etc along with it. I've been hoping for ten years for them to bring the full musical to DVD and it looks like I'll still be waiting for what I really want.

Rating:
Date: 2008-06-09
LesMiz
I found my self humming and singing the music all day. Saw the original stage show in Phoenix, Loved the music on this dvd.

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