Les Miserables - The Dream Cast in Concert

“So long as there shall exist, by reason of law and custom, a social condemnation which, in the midst of civilization, artificially creates a hell on earth, and complicates with human fatality a destiny that is divine; so long as the three problems of the century -- the degradation of man by the exploitation of their labor, the ruin of woman by starvation, and the atrophy of childhood by physical and spiritual night -- are not solved; so long as, in certain regions, social asphyxia shall be possible; in other words, and from a still broader point of view, so long as ignorance and misery remain on earth, there should be a need for books such as this.”“Les Miserables” by Victor Hugo, Hauteville House 1962 Dedication, New American Library a Division of Penguin Books USA INC, New York 1987

If you are a LM fan, this is the release you want. Far superior in my opinion to others, especially the one they show on public tv. Obviously, has none of the annoying fund raising advertisements.

I've never had the pleasure of seeing Les Mis live on stage, and was only somewhat familiar with the music thanks to a friend who adored "Master of the House" and played it ad infinitum when he got the chance. So I thought it was time to fill the gap in my education and, on a friend's recommendation, bought the DVD of the 10th anniversary concert. She said it must be seen to be appreciated, and I owe her a very nice dinner out for the best advice I've had in some time.I'm not a 'Broadway baby' -- theatre in general is usually somewhat beyond my budget, and high ticket Broadway musicals have been a dream, even living as close as I do to NYC. So with the exception of a couple of performers, I was totally unfamiliar with the cast assembled for the birthday tribute. The reviewer above considers this recording decent enough but not the best -- I have to wonder what s/he could possibly ask for that is better than this.Standouts in the massive production are, of course, Colm Wilkinson as Jean Valjean -- the man who took the London and Broadway stages by storm is in fine form here. He anchors the show, and if you have a dry eye during "Bring Him Home" you are incapable of tears. I know just enough about singing to know how very difficult it is to pull off that 'whisper that needs to be heard in the back row of the balcony' high note at the end. And the final scene with Marius, Cosette, and the spirit of Fantine had me reaching for the tissues again. Michael Ball's Marius is amazing -- his voice is expressive, angelic and powerful, perfect for the lovelorn student -- the duet with Eponine in "A Little Fall of Rain" allows his acting talent as well as his voice to shine (and on a completely shallow note here, the man has dimples to die for!!). Philip Quast is a formidable Javert, and actually makes me feel pity for the man who spends his life making Valjean's existence hell, not a mean feat. Lea Salonga is almost too beautiful for street waif Eponine, but her voice transcends any qualms I might have in the heartbreaking "On My Own". Alun Armstrong's rascality is on full display in "Master of the House" and the semi-reprise "Beggers at the Feast" -- you want to hate the Thenardiers, and somehow you can't, quite. The remainder of the large cast is equally impressive, and all deserved the standing ovation at the end. And because this is a special tribute, they needed a special 'pit orchestra' -- nothing less than the Royal Philharmonic would do. Not to mention the 150+ voice chorus decked in Les Mis t-shirts giving the choral numbers the majestic scope they deserve. Although I think coordinating D-Day probably took less work!If you buy this for no other reason, buy it for the encore -- when the finale ends, and as the applause finally begins to taper off, there appears down the center aisle a troop of 17 Valjeans, from various productions around the world, each preceded by his nation's flag. They flank Wilkinson at the front of the stage, and he leads them into a stirring rendition of "Do You Hear the People Sing", each man in turn singing his line in his native language. It is truly an international gathering of artists -- UK, USA, Ireland, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Austria, Poland, Hungary, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Netherlands, Iceland, Japan, and the Czech Republic, the like of which will probably never been seen again. A very fitting ending to a magical theatrical event.In case you haven't figured it out by now, my recommendation is to buy this and prepare to be blown away.

I am a long time fan of Les Miserables, though I had never seen this concert and only recently had I listened to the recording. I must say that I was blown away by many of the performances.Jean Valjean - Colm Wilkinson does a spectacular job, as always. I don't have a single complaint, his renditions of "Who Am I?" and "Bring Him Home" were some of the best performances of the night.Javert - Philip Quast is amazing, I have never been a huge fan of his character, but his performances of "Stars" and "Javert's Suicide" left me breathless, he is the perfect Javert.Fantine - Ruthie Henshall bothered me a little. Her voice is kind of whiny and it's painful to listen to at times, though she did have her moments, especially during "Fantine's Arrest". I do have to admit, though, that her acting was among the best. I would have prefered Patti Lupone, who can be heard on the Original London Cast Recording.Young Cosette - I wasn't particularly impressed with Hannah Chick's performance, I've heard much better, and frankly, much cuter Cosettes.Madame Thenardier - I loved Jenny Galloway, she was a perfect Mme. Thenardier vocally, acting wise, and in appearance.Thenardier - Alun Armstrong stole every scene he was in, he is the best Theardier there will ever be. His rendition of "Master of the House" was hilarious and one of the most enjoyable performances of the night.Gavroche - Like many Gavroches, Adam Searles was a little annoying, but he did a good job for someone so young.Enjolras - So Michael Maguire wasn't as vocally perfect as he could have been, he was still very enjoyable and did a very nice job.Marius - Michael Ball, in my opinion, gave the best performance of the entire night, his rendition of "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables" was flawless, heartbreaking, and incredibly moving. He has an exceptionally strong voice and is, and will always be, the best Marius.Eponine - Lea Salonga was excellent. She isn't my favorite, I find that her Eponine is too strong, though she didn't do anything wrong, I just prefer Frances Ruffelle on the London Recording. However, her duet with Michael Ball in "A Little Fall of Rain" was simply beautiful.Cosette - Judy Kuhn gave a wonderful performance, she has always been my favorite Cosette, and I think she did a better job here than on the Broadway recording (a better Marius didn't hurt). Her best performances of the night were in "In My Life" and "Every Day", she just has a beautiful voice.Overall, this is an amazing performance and I highly recommend it. Though there is no substitute for seeing the show live, it is still incredible. And in case you did not realize it yet, this is a concert, not a performance of the full show, meaning they stand at microphones and sing, though they are all in full costume. At certain times, however, clips of certain scenes are shown, which helps for the parts in the show that are high in action. This is a must for any and every Les Mis fan, you won't regret this purchase.

This was a joy to watch. This was not the cast standing in line, singing. They were acting their characters just as they did in the original production. There was a homecoming feel among them that sent emotions out in waves. Wonderful!

Merveilleuse immoralisation de ce spectacle vu à Broadway en avril 2000. Cosette et la mise en scène y sont fabuleuses !

The problem with the DVD is it does not play well on my Sony PS3.When I attempt to fast forward or backward the DVD stops playing as though I hit the start button.There is nothing wrong with my PS3 as this only occurs when I play this particular DVD.