Is Les Miserables The Best Play Ever?

 

 

While attending The London Book Fair earlier this year, I could not pass up the opportunity to visit the West End theater district and take in several plays. I saw one new one, and one classic.  

The new one, Six, was a disappointment. Perhaps I’m not the show’s targeted demographic. The all-women cast has a message seemingly geared just to women. The idea sounded good, but the execution, to me, was not great.   

It’s a short show --75 minutes -- where six women, each one representing a wife of King Henry VII, who ruled in the first half of the 16th century, tell their story of how they each no longer remained wedded to the ruler. Two were beheaded, two divorced, and one died while giving birth to his only son, and one became a widow at his passing in 1547.   

But the story is told in a way that seemed like a competitive  reality talent show - -sing your sorrow of who had it worse and win the prize of being crowned the favorite wife. The lasting message that these women didn’t have to be defined by the suffering at the hands of one man is empowering. Unfortunately, the show seems very noisy, the music not very good, and the story a hodge-podge of sometimes inaudible line deliveries. Luckily, I also saw a great play, Les Miserables.   

Les Miserables is my all-time favorite show. This was my 11th or 12th viewing. I’ve lost count. I estimate I’ve seen the show over the course of five different decades, from the late 80’s to the 20’s This was my second viewing in London-25 years apart from the first time. The rest were on New York’s Broadway, save for a decent showing in Fort Lauderdale, F.L.  

I felt like I was visiting an old friend, the way one enjoys re-reading a book, or watching a movie dozens of times. Les Miserables never gets old. In fact, every viewing reaffirms how much I think the play is a masterpiece.  

The show is based on Victor Hugo’s book, about the suffering of the French working class and the poor who will endure any injustice or indignity to survive. It’s also about the law, revolution, and the meaning of compassion and empathy. The writing is incredible, the singing amazing, the story powerful.  

The most powerful line is delivered at the way end, one that has a message we should all embrace: “To love another is to see the face of God.” 

I teared up on three occasions throughout the show. I am not a deeply emotional guy but there’s something about this show that resonates with the core of my being.  

The show’s famous in dozens of countries. It debuted in London nearly 40 years ago and since then, over 80 million people have seen the show. It originated in Paris, 1980, but only played for a few months. An album was sold and a producer heard it and turned it into the English-language spectacular musical that it is today. 

My family makes fun of me for all of the times I’ve seen a play that they dismiss as one of sad people who suffer too much misery. But the play offers so many messages and moments that are worthy of not only being embedded in my memory, but to be seen and heard again… and again… and again.  

If you have not seen the play, I highly recommend that you do. 

 

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About Brian Feinblum

Brian Feinblum should be followed on LinkedIn. This is copyrighted by BookMarketingBuzzBlog ©2023. Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in Westchester with his wife, two kids, and Ferris, a black lab rescue dog, and El Chapo, a pug rescue dog. His writings are often featured in The Writer and IBPA’s The Independent.  This award-winning blog has generated over 3.4 million pageviews. With 4,600+ posts over the past dozen years, it was named one of the best book marketing blogs by BookBaby  http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs  and recognized by Feedspot in 2021 and 2018 as one of the top book marketing blogs. It was also named by www.WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.” For the past three decades, including 21 years as the head of marketing for the nation’s largest book publicity firm, and two jobs at two independent presses, Brian has worked with many first-time, self-published, authors of all genres, right along with best-selling authors and celebrities such as: Dr. Ruth, Mark Victor Hansen, Joseph Finder, Katherine Spurway, Neil Rackham, Harvey Mackay, Ken Blanchard, Stephen Covey, Warren Adler, Cindy Adams, Todd Duncan, Susan RoAne, John C. Maxwell, Jeff Foxworthy, Seth Godin, and Henry Winkler. He recently hosted a panel on book publicity for Book Expo America, and has spoken at ASJA, Independent Book Publishers Association Sarah Lawrence College, Nonfiction Writers Association, Cape Cod Writers Association, Willamette (Portland) Writers Association, APEX, and Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association. His letters-to-the-editor have been published in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, New York Post, NY Daily News, Newsday, The Journal News (Westchester) and The Washington Post. He has been featured in The Sun Sentinel and Miami Herald. For more information, please consult: www.linkedin.com/in/brianfeinblum.