the musical

the musical

3NT in Review

Over-all impression: Good. After listening to recordings and the TAC only for three years, I enjoyed being able to see what actually goes on while people are singing. It changed the meaning of a few lines for me. But surprises were pretty minimal. I'd seen so many pictures and read so many reviews that I nearly knew the whole staging and action of the play already.

Our seats were about three rows from the top of the theater, unfortunately, so I couldn't see any facial expressions. I could barely make out eyes, noses, and mouths. This drastically reduced the power of the show. In fact, I have to say the TAC video was more powerful than what I saw. Darn it.

Randal Keith (Jean Valjean): Very good. He put a lot of emotion and power into the role. He has a good handle on Valjean's loving nature and plays the role with a lot of energy. He interacted really well with the other performers, too. Great voice!

Linda Pierson Huff (Fantine): I love Jayne Paterson's voice on the Jane Eyre soundtrack, so I was disappointed that there was an understudy in her place that day. But after viewing Ms. Huff's performance, I think I was lucky to see her! She played Fantine exactly as I picture the character---very gentle, naive, and girlish. The Fantines I've heard on recordings sing Fantine either too pathetic or too strong---and they always sound too old or something. Ms. Huff was just incredibly sweet. When she was singing about Tholomyès in IDAD, it was as if she were confessing some deep secret of hers that she'd never talked about with anyone before. And she was calmly incredulous. It was as if she were still trying to understand that he had really been so cruel as to leave her. She belted without being obnoxious and was very graceful and girlish and sweet the whole time she was on stage. Even during Lovely Ladies, you've never lost the sense of her essential good-nature and innocence. Her acting in Come to Me was a little weaker than elsewhere, but still enjoyable. Ms. Huff was definitely one of my favorite parts of the show.

Joe Mahowald (Javert): I didn't like him at first. It seemed to take him a while to warm up to the role, but he had it by the end of Confrontation. A very good Javert. Mr. Mahowald had very rich, powerful voice. And I loved his suicide scene. I wanted to clap for him after it, he did so well, but nobody else was clapping. They clapped after Eponine died. :shrugs:

Skylar Harden (Young Cosette): She was so adorable---so quiet, sweet, and wistful. She was terrified of Madame Thénardier---almost seemed to be trembling. She's very small, too. She looked tiny next to Valjean. Good voice, as well.

J. P. Dougherty & Aymee Garcia (M. and Mme. Thénardier): They made me hate the Thénardiers, which I suppose means they did their job well. Very funny in the Wedding Chorale scene.

Gavroche: I'm unsure if I saw Justen Steinagle or Tanner Richie. I was that far away from the stage. Whoever Gavroche was, he was good. Nothing extraordinarily, but good.

Dina Lynne Morishita (Eponine): Good. Very nice voice. One thing: At the end of On My Own, she practically yelled, "I love him!" in the most obstinate, stubborn way. It was like, "I love him, now what're you gonna do about it?" Other than that, I didn't notice anything particularly special in her performance. But I rather hate Eponine's character in the musical, so I wasn't paying too much attention her.

Stephen Brian Patterson (Marius): He pronounced the sound "er" really emphatically and almost harshly, which was a little off-putting, but he was a good actor. He was too buddy-buddy with Eponine for my tastes, though. In fact, he was a little too friendly and open with everyone. Not much like the book Marius, but enjoyable to watch. I think I liked him best in the Look Down/Robbery scene.

Stephanie Waters (Cosette): I'd read so many good things about this girl, I was predisposed to love her interpretation. But I didn't. Maybe I was too far away from the stage to appreciate her acting, but she seemed far too bouncy and hyper to met. She was like an excited puppy, especially during IML. Cosette was a bird, not a puppy. I liked her better by the end---in Everyday and Valjean's death bit, she was good. But otherwise she was just too giddy and uppity.

Stephen Tewksbury (Enjolras): Looks nothing like Enjolras, but has a very powerful, commanding voice and air. Not as menacing as book Enjolras, but he seemed like a leader. I really liked him by the end, and his death scene was about the only time I was affected emotionally in the play. I didn't cry, but I almost teared up.

Trent Blanton (Grantaire): Very good! So funny during R&B with Marius, and pitiful during the barricade scenes---especially in DWM. He was good alongside Tewksbury's Enjolras.

Stage Door Experience:

Stephen Brian Patterson, Trent Blanton, and Stephen Tewksbury all came out together---they were really nice and happy to stop and sign our programs and pose for a picture. Tewksbury was especially friendly and funny. We got Dina's autograph, but she seemed a little preoccupied with making sure Stephen, Trent, and Stephen all knew that Stephanie was coming, too---where ever they were going---so we didn't bother to ask her for a picture with her. We missed Stephanie Waters. She must have passed by without us seeing her, I suppose. :- ( Randal Keith and Joe Mahowald came out together a bit later and were also really nice. Linda Huff came out last, but I didn't know it was her. I hadn't checked her picture on the Internet previously, as she was an understudy, so I didn't know what she looked like. She came up to Joe and said something to him and then saw that he was signing programs and kinda gave this look like she was wondering if she should sign it, too, and then she walked away because we were taking the picture with Randal and Joe. By the time we were done, she had gone. My sister, who was taking the picture, said she kind of stood there for a couple seconds as if she might be someone we would want to talk to. I wondered if she was Fantine, and then just kinda figured she was an ensemble member. Too bad I missed her!

The Musical and the Novel:

Coming soon: An analysis of the differences between the musical and the canon.