Sometimes, I will also use this space to express some thoughts and opinions on music related things, not just give glowing reviews and recommendations.
Today, I'm going to talk about musicals, so if that's not your cup of tea, feel free to skip this. But, who knows, maybe you'll learn something new!
When they first announced that they were going to make the stage-production, Les Miserable, into a movie I was thrilled. I have seen the musical three times, sung "I Dreamed a Dream" and "On My Own" for voice lessons when I was younger, and the entire soundtrack is the most played of my Broadway playlist on itunes. Obviously, I'm a fan and I was ecstatic that soon I would have the opportunity to watch the musical whenever I wished.
At the same time, I had some major concerns. First, how were they going to turn the stage-production into a movie? The Les Miserable stage is famous for its circling floor that drives the action and the set, even leading to the creation of an original choreography step, the Les Mis side-step (including marching arm motions). The revolving stage and slums to barricade set pieces add to the breathtaking imagery that is the backdrop to the Revolution and the play itself. Obviously, the pieces that are involved in stage magic do not translate to movie magic and, for the film, a much more literal backdrop will be involved.
Secondly, Les Mis has no spoken dialogue. The story is told entirely through the music and the action seen on stage. Even taking into consideration "The Artist"'s recent Golden Globe wins, I don't think pop culture is ready for an entire film told through song. Will dialogue be added? Will that take away from the importance and necessity of some of the songs? What about the orchestral parts that do not even have singing? I wonder how disruptive inserting dialogue into the production will be for the overall feeling of the score.
Third, and probably most importantly, who will they cast? When musicals were in their heyday, producers predominantly cast people who could sing and dance and also act. True triple threats: Julie Andrews and Bing Crosby; Judy Garland and Gene Kelly. When actors were hired and couldn't sing, someone else did the singing: Audrey Hepburn in My Fair Lady, Debbie Reynolds in Singin' In the Rain. Now, ever celebrity thinks they can sing and thanks to auto-tune and sound mixing technologies, they can produce a record without having to hit every note.
Almost immediately, Hugh Jackman and Russell Crowe were attached as escaped convict, Jean Valjean, and Detective Javert, respectively. I have no problem with Jackman doing musicals given his stage credentials. I'm slightly less thrilled with Crowe, though he does have a background in music, if not musicals. Adding even more star power was Anne Hathaway cast as Fantine. She will draw fans but I'm not sure her singing chops are up to belting out "I Dreamed a Dream" like the role calls for. But she has enough talent that I made peace with it.
After a few months of speculation, Amanda Seyfried was announced as Cosette. Now as a life-long alto, I have an unfounded hatred for the soprano character of Cosette, who although as a child in the production has the well known number "Castle On a Cloud," as an adult she does little more than bop around the stage and annoyingly steal the guy away from poor Eponine. Seyfried has prior movie-musical in "Mamma Mia" but I was not blown away by what I heard and singing ABBA pop is a lot different than the serious stuff of Les Mis.
What I'm really dreading is the rumor that country-pop sensation, Taylor Swift, is up for the coveted role of Eponine. As the poor neighbor girl, hopelessly in love with Marius, Eponine is the heart of the play, capturing the audience with "On My Own" sung below by Lea Salonga, and breaking their hearts with "A Little Fall of Rain."
Now, I'm slightly biased as Eponine would be a dream role if I were actually capable of singing on Broadway, but I just don't see how Miss Swift can do the role justice. I think she is an incredibly talented songwriter with a voice that works for her country sound, but she has already proven that when she sings live, it leaves something to be desired. When the director announced that he wanted the actors to sing live on the sound stage, I grew even more concerned.
I guess all I can do is cross my fingers and hope that they don't destroy my favorite musical of all time.
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