‘Les Miserables’ roars back into the Benedum Center
Nick Cartell plays Jean Valjean in "Les Miserables."
Preston Truman Boyd plays Javert in "Les Miserables."
Cast members from "Les Miserables" perform "One Day More."
Preston Truman Boyd, left, as Javert, and Nick Cartell as Jean Valjean in "Les Miserables."
"Beggars at the Feast" from the touring production of "Les Miserables."
Nick Cartell still vividly recalls the first time he saw 鈥淟es Miserables.鈥�
It was around 1996 or 1997, when the production came to his native Arizona. He was in the balcony of the theater with his mother and father, 鈥渂eing blown away by what I was watching.鈥� By the time it was over, Cartell鈥檚 mother was in tears, but not just by the power of the story of Jean Valjean, the French peasant who had been jailed for stealing a loaf of bread and the dogged pursuit of him after his release by the pitiless police inspector Javert. Cartell remembers his mother was crying also because she was 鈥渢hinking about these theater actors and performers, how hard their lives are.鈥�
A quarter-century ago, Cartell had no way of knowing that he would one day be one of those hard-working performers, or that one day he would be fronting the cast of a touring production of 鈥淟es Miserables鈥� as Jean Valjean. Cartell first landed the role in 2017 and, after a pandemic break, is back in the character鈥檚 shoes. The touring company will arrive at the Benedum Center Wednesday for eight performances through Sunday, Nov. 27.
鈥淟es Miserables,鈥� with its epic sweep and thundering score, is one of the most beloved musicals in the world. It opened in London鈥檚 West End in 1985 and has never left, and was on Broadway for 16 years after it landed there in 1987. It has frequently toured around the world, but it remains undiminished as a box-office draw. 鈥淟es Miserables鈥� first emerged as a door-stopping novel by Victor Hugo in 1862, and its story has been adapted for movies and television, and the stage production itself was made into a movie a decade ago. Still, when people think of 鈥淟es Miserables,鈥� it鈥檚 likely that the first thing they think of is the musical, which has now been seen live by an estimated 130 million people in 22 languages in 15 countries.
鈥淓ven though you may not know, word-for-word, this score, you still recognize certain songs in the show because you鈥檝e heard them in everyday life,鈥� Cartell explained a few hours before taking the stage for a performance in Philadelphia last week. 鈥淎nd I think that speaks to the enduring legacy of the show.鈥�
The 鈥淟es Miserables鈥� tour is set to criss-cross America through next October, and in some cities they stage the three-hour show twice a day. It鈥檚 a demanding regimen, with Cartell describing it as 鈥渁 true test of will and a test of skill.鈥�
He added, 鈥淚t鈥檚 one of the most epic musicals out on the road right now, and with that comes a lot of prep, not only physically, but also vocally, to prepare yourself for such a role. I had to make sure I was in the gym, working out five or six times a week, and keeping up with vocal coachings and making sure I was warming up every day. Playing such a role is a privilege and not something I take lightly.鈥�
So far, Cartell said, the touring company has not been disrupted by too many COVID-19 cases, and said precautions are still being taken. He pointed out, 鈥淭o bring this show across the country after the pandemic, it fills me with so much joy. So many people just want to get back into a theater and see a show, and they want to be uplifted. The show is a a study about redemption, but it鈥檚 also about the survival of the human spirit. 鈥� If there鈥檚 one thing I鈥檓 really happy that audiences walk away with, is a sense of sacrifice and a sense of redemption.鈥�
There will be no performances on Thanksgiving Day. For information on the Pittsburgh stop of 鈥淟es Miserables,鈥� go online to www.trustarts.org.