"Les Miserables - School Edition" by ZS Productions.
Duchess Theatre, Long Eaton.
This is a massive show but Zak Scott and co, have managed to rehearse and stage this masterpiece in just five days during the Summer holidays. They have done in five days what professional touring shows take months to do, and to the same sparkling effect.
The twenty-seven strong cast are all aged between eleven and eighteen year old and all turned in performances belying their youth. I often mention about "tingles" in my review, and this show and the cast provided me with multiple tingles on their first night.
So, to start with, for anyone who does not know the emotional and dramatic tale of "Les Miserables", this is what it's all about......
"Les Misérables - School Edition" tells the story of Jean Valjean, a former convict who spends a lifetime seeking redemption. Set against the backdrop of 19th-century France and the aftermath of the French Revolution, this story of intertwined destinies reveals the power of compassion and the quiet evil of indifference to human suffering. 
As Valjean’s quest for a new life carries him into Paris and to the barricades of the Student Revolution, he is hunted by Inspector Javert and the ghosts of his past. Amidst the battles, he discovers the true meaning of love and salvation.
Now I get to gush......
Jean Valjean was played by a young man who I've had the pleasure to see on stage before. Tonight he just blew me away with his emotional and powerful acting. His singing was packed with emotion and drama and he demonstrated a lovely controlled vibrato as well as a wonderful falsetto. His version of "Bring Him Home" had a different, only slightly, arrangement which worked well with his voice. Who is he? Findlay Parker. I commented on his previous role of The Pirate King in LEOS production of "The Pirates Of Penzance Jr" by stating that "he has surpassed every other role he has done". Well, he's just done it again!
Javert is played by another young actor who I always enjoy performing, Louis Chadburn. Much of his acting I've seen has been of a more light-hearted nature, and tonight I saw a more serious side of him. He commands the stage as Javert, almost the same way as when he played Orin Scrivello in "Little Shop Of Horrors" but this time was different. His vocals were spectacular and I noted that he finished every note he sang, punching every note out to the audience, never letting an end note drift away. His singing has conviction, for me he performed one of the best versions of "Stars" that I've heard. His acting ability in his face and especially his eyes showed the frustration and anger that Javert felt. I had to wait for Louis to appear afterwards so that I could congratulate him and meet this talented young man. If Louis is not in the West End in the next five years, there is no justice!
Fantine is played by the sublime Ella Charlesworth. And again, the quality of her voice has just sky rocketed. There is a lovely vulnerability when she sings, especially "I Dreamed A Dream", and when Fantine came back to guide Jean Valjean near the end, the emotion level also rose. A great option as well to use slight echo on Ella's singing voice, especially on Fantine's deathbed as that gave an eerie ethereal feel to the whole scene. Pure magic.
Eponine is played by Grace Kolsa, who I think I last saw as Miss Hannigan in Kristian Thomas Company's production of "Annie Jr". Grace's voice is so lovely to hear and great to see another side of Grace's acting ability as Eponine. Can't wait to see what her next acting role is.
Marius is played by Brogan Haynes, a seasoned performer of various roles, from Bernardo in "West Side Story" to a Baby Bear in "Shrek". Here he takes the romantic role of Marius and does what he always does....smashes it! Brogan has a nice mellowness to his voice that I hadn't really picked up on previously.
Cosette is played by a young lady that I have known on stage for a while now, Olivia Bonham. I've been a fan of her singing in musical theatre shows, and her personal recordings as well, but like so many of these young actors, tonight, she didn't just raise the bar, she snapped it in two and threw it in the bin. Her voice sounds classically trained because the operatic vocals that we had the pleasure to hear were as light and controlled as any you'd hear in any opera. As I said, I've known Olivia for a while, but had never heard her sing the way she did tonight. After the show, she told me that she hadn't had classical training. Her voice is as light as meringue and just as sweet. The chemistry she has with Brogan Hayes as Marius is something that I wouldn't have expected after just a week's rehearsals.
Young Cosette is played by Isobel Pickering, who I know from reviewing The Young Performers' productions, and it's lovely to see Izzy move up through the acting ranks to get her first solo main character. I can't believe that she is only twelve years old, she looks so mature with her acting. Here's to more solo spots!
Thenardier, and feel free to look over past reviews of "Les Mis" by me, I've cited as being one of my favourite characters in this musical. It's also not an easy part to play but Miles Potter brings out every nuance, every cheeky wink, every scrap of comedy from the character, and he looked as if he enjoyed every second of playing this Master Of The House. His main song is also not an easy one to sound as good as it did, even Matt Lucas had issues with the rise and fall of the melody and fitting the comedy lyrics in. Miles seemed to deliver them with great relish and cheekiness. It's not easy to play comedy, but this young man did not fail to bring a smile to my face with his visual comedy skills.
Madame Thenardier is played by Harriet Campion, and what a performer Harriet is. I've been reviewing Harriet for several years now and I love watching an actor bloom into a fine actor, which is what I have been doing with Harriet. She has grown into a fine character actor, and let's face it you don't get a bigger character than Madame Thenardier. A fine pairing with Miles as they complement each other well, vocally and with their comedy skills.
Gavroche is one of those feisty characters in musical theatre who you just love. Back in the day, he'd be described as "spunky", and the choice to cast Quillan Parker in this role is perfect. In Act Two, when he breaks free from the barricades, you know what is going to happen but it still takes your breath when it does, and Quillan took my breath with his acting skills as Gavroche. He plays cheeky and spunky extremely well.
Enjolras, the Chief of Les Amis de l'ABC at the barricades, is played by another favourite young actor, James S Pedrick; who can forget his role as Miss Trunchball in "Matilda Jr"? I don't know if it's just me or if James has had a growth spurt but he seems so much taller than I can remember. Mind you I told Louis that he looked smaller off stage, and then realised that on stage he wore a large hat a lot of the time which made him look taller. James didn't! Really powerful, and noticeable performance from Mr P.
Combferre, another barricade battler of Les Amis de L'ABC and second in command is played by Cecilia Diamond. A 24 carat performance.
Feuilly, pronounced Few Eee, is played by Lucy Coulson-Jones.
Courfeyrac is a fighting comrade at the front of the barricades battle and played by William Mellor, who we last saw on stage as Sheldon B Plankton in "Spongebob The Musical". I love the energy that William always provides in whatever role he takes on.
Joly is played by Molly Price, another barricade gunman who sadly loses their life. But all done with great aplomb on behalf of the actors.
A wonderful ensemble team consisting of Megan Price, Heidi Parsons, Keeley Rickerby, Neve Johnson, Lottie Ellis, Sophia Tasker, Roisin Parker, Finlay Tomlinson, Alex Povey, Evie Radmore, Millie Weston and Ellie Goudge.
Directed by Zak, who has performed in "Les Mis" three times, and Ellie Simmonds, who has performed in the show twice, so from the off we know that this production is in the hands of people who know exactly what they are doing. This is a team made in musical theatre heaven.
Having seen Zak play Jean Valjean and receiving two standing ovations in one performance of "Les Mis" at Derby Theatre, you just know that these young stars are in the best hands for this show.
Choreographed by Ellie, as with Zak, you have every faith that these young actors are in the hands of experts. Ellie also did the lighting operation for this show; yet another talent that can be added to this incredibly talented woman. She did ask me not to say anything nasty about the lighting, so I haven't. I didn't need to, I thought that searchlight was supposed to be roaming the stage for that one actor! Seriously though, both Zak and Ellie should be feeling fit to burst with pride with the results of this show. FIVE DAYS!!!!
The Lighting Design is by Dave Martin , and I loved the strobe affect used in the barrow scene where Valjean rescued the man trapped underneath. Very dramatic, as were the battle scenes
Sound Design is by Sean Renshaw. The trouble is that there are not enough mics for all of the actors. That said, what I did hear from everyone mic'd up was astoundingly good.
The Musical Director is Ben Ward, just another talented ace in the pack. This musical is by no stretch of the imagination an easy option. So many key changes - Westlife wouldn't know if they were standing or sitting on stools. It is sung all the way through so Ben would not have had a break until the interval. He looked a very happy man when I spoke to him after the show, and so he should be, as he is also responsible for teasing those amazing vocals out of the cast.
This widely known lush and swelling score features such beloved musical theatre songs as “I Dreamed a Dream,” “On My Own”, “Bring Him Home", "Master Of the House", "Stars".
The set has been designed by Roydon Charlesworth. I've seen a few local theatre productions of this show over the years, when the licence for this show was up for grabs, but this has to be one of the best stage designs ever.
Great costumes for all and really recreated the era and class status of the characters.
I really was blown away by the immense talent on the Duchess Theatre stage tonight. These young actors have incredible talent, and they are really lovely people off stage as well, some I am sure don't realise the talent they have, so I have to keep reminding them. One day I'll be able to sit in my bath chair and watch them receive their Baftas, Tonys, Oscars, Emmys, Golden Globes and say that I knew them as their talents started to flourish. I was there. And then I'll start to dribble and nurse will wheel me back to my box........
"Les Miserables" is being performed at The Duchess Theatre until Saturday 2 September, but tickets have been sold out for a while so it may be worth checking for returns, but who'd want to return tickets for a show of this calibre? Come on!!
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