Edward Behr - Les Misérables: History in the Making

Edward Behr

Arcade Publishing New York

By the same author

THE ALGERIAN PROBLEM

ANYONE HERE BEEN RAPED AND SPEAKS ENGLISH?

GETTING EVEN

THE LAST EMPEROR

HIROHITO: BEHIND THE MYTH

Copyright 1989, 1996, 2012 by Edward Behr

All Rights Reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without the express written consent of the publisher, except in the case of brief excerpts in critical reviews or articles. All inquiries should be addressed to Arcade Publishing, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018.

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Arcade Publishing is a registered trademark of Skyhorse Publishing, Inc., a Delaware corporation.

Previously published under the title The Complete Book of Les Misrables, this book has been updated for the paperback edition.

The following copyrighted material is used
by permission:

English lyrics 1985 Alain Boublil Music Ltd.

All dramatic performance rights worldwide in the musical Les Misrables reserved to

Cameron Mackintosh (Overseas) Ltd., of 1 Bedford Square, London WC1B 3RA.

Les Misrables logo 1986 Cameron Mackintosh (Overseas) Ltd.

Les Misrables graphics designed by Dewynters PLC, London.

You and Ten Little Bullets 1984 James Fenton

Copvright for the photographs in this book is held by Michael

Le Poer Trench unless otherwise specified in the Picture Credits.

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10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available on file.

ISBN: 978-1-61145-753-7

eISBN: 978-1-61321-314-8

I would like to thank all those who talked to me at great (and sometimes repeated) length, answered all questions patiently and frankly and without whom this book would not have been possible: Alain Boublil, John Caird, James Fenton, Dudu Fisher, Freddy Gershon, David Hersey, Richard Jay-Alexander, Herbert Kretzmer, Patti LuPone, Gillian Lynne, Cameron Mackintosh, Patricia Macnaughton, John Napier, Andreane Neofitou, Trevor Nunn, Claude-Michel Schnberg, Julian Slade, Colm Wilkinson and many, many others.

Thanks also to James Fenton for allowing me to reproduce the lyrics of You and Ten Little Bullets and - last but not least - to Victor Hugo himself, to whom all those involved in the Les Misrables musical-theatre undertaking owe a huge, unrepayable debt.

The photographs between pages 108 and 139 were taken by Michael Le Poer Trench at various productions of Les Misrables around the world.

One Day More, original London cast; beginning of Act Two, Vienna; On My Own, Los Angeles; the barricade, Toronto; Shoot me now or shoot me later, Third National Company, USA; Little people know, Australia; Give me the spy, Javert, London; A Little Fall of Rain, original London cast; Bring Him Home, original London cast; Enjolras, Broadway; Enjolras after the death of Gavroche, Vienna; So youd better run for cover, Broadway; death on the barricade, Broadway; death of Enjolras, First National Company, USA; the Paris sewers, Toronto; Dog Eat Dog, Norway; Javert and Valjean - the final confrontation, Los Angeles; There is no way to go on ..., London; Ring out the bells, Vienna; the wedding ball, Boston; My last confession, Australia; Msieur,lay down your burden, Vienna; To love another person is to see the face of God, London, 1985; grand finale, Japan.

The author and publishers are grateful to the following for permission to reproduce additional material: Newsweek, p.6; Canyon Records, p. 155 top; David Crosswaite, p. 140; Festival Records Pty, p. 157; Hulton-Deutsch, pp.15, 19, 21 top & bottom, 22, 23, 24, 25, 27, 30 top & bottom, 32, 36, 39, 146; Poltydor/Deutschesgrammaphon, p. 154 bottom; Toho Co. Ltd, Japan, pp. 138-9, 144, 145; Collection Vidlet, p. 42; Washington Post, p. 158.

Until I heard the original French album of Les Misrables in 1982 I had always considered the idea of a French musical a contradiction in terms. The French have hardly ever taken to modern musicals, and Paris has proved the early graveyard for most of the worldwide musical successes of the last fifty years; they prefer revivals of operettas, Euro-rock musicals of dubious origin and the occasional short, chic season of American touring musicals - performed in English. How two Frenchmen, Claude-Michel Schnberg and Alain Boublil, managed not only to survive in such an alien culture but also write one of the greatest musicals of all time is a miracle.

The moment I listened to that original recording by Schnberg and Boublil (those two names were completely unknown to me) I knew I wanted to produce Les Misrables on the London stage. How this came about, and what happened subsequently, is told in this special edition of Edward Behrs book, published to coincide with the tenth anniversary of the opening of Les Misrables.

Since its original premiere, on 8 October 1985, Les Misrables has gone on to enjoy a success that defies national boundaries and has become the worlds most popular musical. It has been translated into fifteen languages and played in twenty-three countries. Some of its songs have taken on a symbolic meaning that could not possibly have been foreseen. In the closing stages of the last Presidential campaign, One Day More became Bill Clintons theme song.

Les Misrables has had a lasting effect on millions of spectators, and I can say the same. Not only did it transform my professional life, but it also showed the extraordinary ability of the public to recognise an original work, despite the fact that many of the critics originally dismissed or vilified the show.

Whatever their age, audiences all seem to appreciate Les Misrables sweeping emotions, its powerful depiction of the human character and, above all, its uplifting example of mans ability to triumph over adversity. Hugos novel is undoubtedly the strongest source material that any musical has been blessed with, and in Alain and Claude-Michels creation, aided by Herbert Kretzmers powerful English lyrics, we have that rare occurrence of the masterpiece in one medium becoming the masterpiece in another - a timeless novel has become a timeless musical.

Perhaps the best explanation for the enormous success of Les Misrables comes from Victor Hugo himself, when he wrote to his publisher: You are right, Sir, when you say Les Misrables is written for a universal audience. I do not know whether it will be read by everyone but it is meant for everyone.

1772 Birth of Sophie-Fran^oise Trbuchet, Victor Hugos mother.

1773 Birth of Lopold-Sigisbert Hugo, Victor Hugos father.

1789 French Revolution begins.

1792 First French Republic proclaimed.

1792-95 The republican Convention, ending in Robespierres terror.

1793 Louis XVI executed. The Chouans (royalist Breton insurgents) begin their full-scale civil war against the republican French Government. Lopold-Sigisbert Hugo, an officer in the republican army, is posted to Brittany as part of the repressive peace-keeping force.