Interesting Facts About the Les Miserables Musical

Les Misérables is the longest running musical in the world, seen by over 70 million people in 44 countries and in 22 languages. The show is based upon French poet and novelist Victor Hugo’s 1862 famous novel Les Misérables. It takes you on a historical journey into the 19-centuary France and portrays a mesmerising tale of poverty, punishment, mercy, justice, love, unfulfilled dreams, revolution and redemption.

The show has been well received by the audience ever since its humble beginnings in 1980 in Paris. The original music by Claude-Michel Schönberg and endearing lyrics by Alain Boublil lent credibility and made the show attractive for the people. The popularity of the show amongst the audience was so much that it found its way into the hearts of the London audience and has been wooing audience at the Queen’s theatre.

The story is about Jean Valjean, a French peasant, who serves nineteen years in jail for stealing a loaf of bread for his sister’s starving child and for trying to escape from prison. Valjean is relentlessly tracked by Javert, a merciless police inspector. An act of mercy by the Bishop of Digne reforms Valjean. He breaks parole, gets rid of his criminal past, changes his name to Monsieur Madeleine and becomes a factory owner and a wealthy mayor of a small town. He adopts Cosette, the illegitimate daughter of Fantine, being raised by Thénardiers, an innkeeper and his wife. Cosette falls in love with Marius amidst the turbulent period of the French revolution. Javert commits suicide since he is broken by the mercy shown by Valjean. In the end, Valjean dies and he is taken to heaven by the spirit of Fantine.

The musical features delightful songs like ‘I Dreamed a Dream’, ‘Bring Him Home’, ‘One Day More’ and ‘On My Own’ which bring life to this historic tale. The riveting performance, the outfits and the scenery blend in harmony to create an enthralling musical. The turntable stage has been used creatively, the set is magical, and the lighting and sound effects are magnificent. The fantastic orchestra and convincing performance by the cast gives the musical a magical makeover and the audience are left pinning for more. The musical is mesmerizing and gets a standing ovation each time it is staged. If you are a theatre lover, then you will love Les Misérables musical for its emotional storyline, old world charm, endearing lyrics and professional performance.