I was provided with tickets to attend opening night. All opinions are my own.
I’ll be entirely honest. I wasn’t certain what to expect from opening night of Les Miserables at the theatre. I haven’t exactly been exposed to a lot of theatre that was on purpose. Weird wording? Not exactly, besides the odd school field trip or sibling’s school plays and musicals. Beyond that my experience has been a wide range of filmed performances which are generally not nearly as grand.
The reason we were excited to attend Les Miserables was having heard of Drury Lane Theatre from our Great Aunt who passed a few months ago. She used to plan family outings to the theatre. I’d heard wonderful things, but never had the chance to go myself. So, it seemed only right to take up the spirit of Aunt Alice and attend not only a musical but the opening night as well.
We dressed and were enjoying the drive down. Located in OakBrook Terrace, Drury Lane is only about a 45 mins drive. We got there and realized that the excitement reverberated around the room. Everyone was chatting and lively and definitely not missing out on any of the excitement. After we took our seats the collective chatter only grew until finally Les Miserables began. To think that the performance was loud enough to contain all that buzz from earlier. It was nothing compared to the breathtaking performances from the cast. Jean Valjean played by Ivan Rutherford, Javert played by Quentin Earl Darrington, and Gavrosh played by Matthew Uzarraga were our personal favorites. Although, we can’t say they were better than the others only that they appealed more to us. The power of their voices and the life that gave to their characters were truly astonishing.
We couldn’t wait for Les Miserables to continue after what was a harrowing wait during intermission. To think the last scene in the first half wasn’t the end was enough to have us wanting more. Are you sure the intermission isn’t shorter? No, but it was worth the wait as we were treated to a spectacular continuance with the second half. We were left wanting to forever attend the theatre. Even though we can still watch taped performances there is nothing to compare with a performer belting out the song in front of you. You can feel the tension as they maintain that perfect note until finally when you think they might pass out from holding it so long they surprise you by going longer and louder. Theatre is definitely here to remind us that the arts are best consumed in person because a copy is not nearly as engaging. You may get enjoyment from it but not as much as seeing the artists themselves up close and in person as they prove to you that there is no such thing as a flaw in a live show on opening night. Only pure excellence.
Les Miserables will be at the Drury Lane Theatre until June 8, 2014.
