(AD – PRESS NIGHT) LES MISERABLES HULL REVIEW
HULL NEW THEATRE
FRIDAY 17TH JUNE @ 7.30PM
***** 5/5
It’s been a long time since I’ve seen Les Miserables in a theatre. I’ve always found it to be a show that I fully immerse myself in but then can’t watch it too often. A Friday press night with my mum beckoned so here’s my Les Miserables Hull review.
PRE-SHOW THOUGHTS
I’ll start by saying that Les Mis is not my favourite musical ever made. I like it but don’t love it. However, it is in my mum’s top three (along with Wicked and Mamma Mia), despite never seeing it on stage before. I’ve always found it to be a tad too long and I do like a bit of dialogue in my musicals!
Despite this, it’s always a great production so I had high hopes for this one. It had big boots to fill since I enjoyed my previous press night of Jersey Boys so much! We’ve waited three years for the tour to arrive in Hull and with a three-week stint in town, I knew the staging would be top-notch.
THE MAIN CAST
Wow, I always say that the cast makes the production but Les Miserables requires every voice to be at the top of its game. Every voice has the most incredible range!
Starting off with understudy Will Barratt as Jean Valjean (filling in for Dean Chisnall for the evening). His whole being grabs you from the offset, you felt every emotion he did. As well as being a phenomenal actor, his vocals are just as matched. His rendition of Bring Him Home was my highlight of the night with every word crystal clear and pitch-perfect. I’m not a crier but I was on the brink! It’s one of the best versions I’ve ever heard.
Nic Greenshields’ Javert is commanding on stage yet you see his vulnerability later on. Spoiler alert: his Soliloquy death scene was stunningly performed and staged. There were audible gasps in the audience during it.
Rachelle Ann Go’s Fantine isn’t on stage for too long but she is mesmerising for that short time. I Dreamed A Dream is one of those songs that gets overdone but her rendition was raw and simple yet stunning. Having seen Go as Eliza in Hamilton, her versions of both Burn in that and IDAD were almost haunting.
I was a huge fan of Nathania Ong as Epinone too; On My Own is my other favourite number from Les Mis and hers was vulnerable yet powerful. She was excellent at portraying unrequited love in her acting too!
THE REMAINING CAST
Paige Blankson as Cosette and Will Callan as Marius both had that naivety about them and when they duetted, their voices were seamless together. Both of them are making their professional debut in this tour and I expect we’ll see them on the West End soon enough.
Another highlight was Samuel Wyn-Morris as Enjolras (still no idea how to pronounce it). I’ve always found this such a great character to play and you definitely get that ‘leader of the pack’ vibe from his performance. Another spoiler alert: his death is very dramatic and once again, the audience gasped!
Thenardier (Ian Hughes) and Madame Thenardier (Helen Walsh) offer some comic relief to all the emotion and angst. These two have the best chemistry as well as being great singers and actors. They’re villains in the story but you can’t help but like them!
A special nod goes to the children in this performance: Noah Walton as Gavroche, Simone Masamha as Cosette and Felicity Morley as Eponine (although her character is on stage for all of 30 seconds). Walton and Masamha already have incredible stage presence for such a young age!
However, this wouldn’t be an English Everygirl review without saying a massive well done to the entire ensemble and cast. This is a huge show with big songs and vocals required from everyone on top of acting your socks off!
THE MUSIC
The score is arguably most people’s favourite thing about Les Mis. The entire show is sung-through with each track going seamlessly into the next. For me, the numbers are so evenly spread with solos every handful of songs and each lead getting a chance to show their range. Each song requires not just vocal ability but the ability to emote too, considering how sad most of the songs are.
Other than the songs mentioned above, the first act finale of One Day More is always a crowd-pleaser. You could hear a huge exhale from the audience when it finished and the lights came up for the interval. It’s a very emotional but inspiring number!
The orchestra were sublime, creating such an atmosphere in the room. I’ve never heard an orchestra sound better in Hull New Theatre as they filled the room, alongside the cast. I’m so glad it was live too and not a backing track; it really adds to the whole production,
THE PRODUCTION
I can see why Les Mis has three-week stays on its tours. The staging has been built out a little to allow for more scenery. Each scene has something going on in the background, from props of all sizes to a large backdrop screen. This definitely added a special effect to several scenes.
I did want to note that the lighting is very dark. Whilst I appreciate it adds to the atmosphere, it was a struggle to see the ensemble during some scenes as well as the occasional spotlight not being switched on in time for solo lines.
FINAL THOUGHTS
If you want to see a show that will rip out your heartstrings and leave you with a tingling spine and arm goosebumps, Les Mis is the show for you. You will experience a rollercoaster of emotions but the ride of your life! When I looked at my FitBit, it genuinely thought I’d done a workout because my heart rate must’ve been high!
You can catch it in Hull until 9th July (tickets available here) or on the rest of its UK tour (tour dates here).
If you enjoyed my Les Miserables Hull review, you can check out my other theatre reviews here. Follow me on Twitter and Instagram for more stagey adventures!
