Les Miserables - The Staged Concert

I'd be far more inclined to go to a show because normal people have said it's worth seeing than if reviewers say it's good (or not good).

Mark Shenton seems to have assumed that all of these usernames are from Twitter. Jack Holden (Cruise) rightly replied that they might be from Instagram - I had a look on Instagram and both those that Shenton say don’t exist on Twitter in his article are in fact Instagram accounts. Others that he found on Twitter are also on Instagram and are followed by Les Mis, presumably when they asked for permission to use their words in their press (they had tweeted one of the users featured on the poster to ask for permission to use their reaction).
To me, it does come across as a bit of ‘throwing his toys out the pram’ because critics haven’t been invited.

Such a diva.

Does he even have a job? Wouldn’t he be one of those twitterers he is claiming to dislike?

Also I can’t see why they’d invite critics to a show that has already been reviewed to death

He threw at tantrum that Jesus Christ Superstar at Regent’s Park last year wasn’t inviting critics, at a point when the theatre was at half capacity and running at a loss

I do think that using gushing quotes from the great unwashed like “Goosebumps” and “finished me off” is a new low and pretty tragic.

Great that people love it, but using these low rent quotes on print advertising?
I’m actually not surprised he is a bit miffed, let alone the fact a few of the esteemed critics quoted are linked to the show.

There are no lows Cameron M won’t plunge anymore.

He’ll be casting it with Love Island rejects next.

Don't give him ideas...

It's been a shame to see Miz descend from a quality RSC co-production to a concert where no-one has any understanding for the subject matter and just belt out songs, with really cringe slogans like 'MIZ ROCKS' so that ageing Tories think they can appeal to a younger crowd.

Bradley is the best Enjorlas I’ve seen live on stage. Very charismatic and revolutionary leader material

Saw his Javert first on the last night of the original. Definitely too young but he didn’t let that get in his way.

He seemed to play a bold and confident Javert. During that “can this be true...” segement I wondered whether he knew who he was talking to valjean and was toying him to confess

Kudos to him I thought

Second time was when the ‘new’ production opened and it was impossible to ignore his youth because he resorted to shouting the lyrics to compensate.

Admittedly looking back at the last night he was shouting then, but now he went overboard shouting every few words in Javert s suicide

I don’t care. I don’t want to see these moronic quotes on advertising. I cannot believe that anyone would see someone tweeting “Buzzin after Seeing Les Mis smash it blah blah blah, and think I have to rush and book this. Absolute drivel.

Saw the show this evening - I had tickets in the back of the grand circle, but once I saw the dynamic pricing kick in the other day, I called the Box Office and they upgraded me to row D of the Dress for no extra fee (just as an FYI for all - it's worth an ask!)

A real mixed bag in terms of casting for me. Whilst everyone sang it really well, very few people actually managed to really ACT their way through the evening.
I liked Jon Robyns a lot more than I thought I might, but I didn't feel him age as the piece goes on (both he and Jaden just look too...young). Jaden is good but for me didn't get going until Act 2 (but his Javerts Suicide was pretty spectacular).
Lucie Jones sings like a dream but there is absolutely nothing going on in her face (for me anyway) so none of her material to me hit the emotional heights it should (it really highlighted to me how good Carrie Hope Fletcher is as Fantine).
And I really enjoyed the Thenardiers (it's nice for them not to be played as Panto characters A la Matt Lucas - although Josefina Gabrielle is FAR too glamorous to play Madame T, as she looks fabulous in all those costumes 🤣)

Thought it sounded very full in terms of music though, even with a smaller cast and smaller orchestra than before - the wall of sound is still pretty stellar in the two end of act numbers.

Also, there must have been 200+ people in the dress circle (with some distancing) and I was worried I'd feel unsafe. Not at all, in fact it felt really wonderful to see so many people in the theatre again after such a long time (I think it was the biggest audience I've been in for 15 months which is a strange feeling...!)

4 stars from me - everyone sang really well, and that material really does stand the test of time. I would be interested to see if the full production allows some of these performances to grow at all...

Yes, it seems to get cruder every time I see it, which a lot of the audience loved, but the original material is so brilliant that I don't get the need to do it...