Les Misérables: 25th Anniversary Concert (2010): Available NOW!

[Mr. Hankey]

Just wanted to post that the historic 25th Anniversary Concert of Les Misérables is out in the local market already:



Although this unfortunately features Nick Jonas as Marius, it also boasts of an otherwise very strong cast, including Lea Salonga as Fantine. Highlights include a "Four Valjeans" quartet at the end, and a song performance by the original cast.

Get your copy today, selling for Php 750.

[Dan]

As long as Lea Salonga is there, I will get this. First Asian Fantine, woohoo!

[toys4geeks]

this BD is really good, Lea Salonga wows the crowd.

Got it as a gift from my boss about month ago and it was one of the very few of BDs I cherish.

[jas]

I already got the R1 for a higher price, but have not watched it yet...

[techdude]

Is the Bluray of this one also released locally?

[BusyChild]

Is the Bluray of this one also released locally?

Yah, same question. Where can I buy this locally? I want to give it as a gift... pero I'll watch it first. Hehehe. 

[Mr. Hankey]

I actually got the R2 of this last year. Quite a premium to pay for a 6-month window, but at the time I felt it was worth it.

Didn't see Blu-ray copies, sorry. Was in a rush, didn't look for it.

As for Lea, I always thought she was an amazing Eponine, but after I watched this, I realized her voice was even better suited for Fantine.

[streetsmart]

I got the Bluray of this concert from Amazon. It's something you can probably watch 50 times without getting tired of it. Lea has an incredible performance but I found the entire cast to be excellent, except for Nick Jonas who, together with Lea, is surprisingly one of the headliners.

As a bonus, pq and sq are also reference quality.

[Onkyo606]

i was supposed to ask if the 750 is bluray cos i als0 ordered from amazon f0r around 25 USD i think

[mandyb]

maganda nga itong concert, got one bd from uk for around £10 lang

[Mr. Hankey]

Sample: http://youtu.be/ynTQxA7gKWM

[Dan]

I heard there is a clause imposed on future productions of Les Miserables which Lea Salonga wants to perform at.

She has been required to play the Fantine and Éponine roles at the same time.  

[techdude]

Somehow I overlooked this title when it was released in the Uk, then US. 

Bluray not yet available locally.  Can't wait and bought the DVD.  Worth the price and then some.   I can see myself playing this over and over again (at least until I upgrade it to Bluray).   PQ is not that sharp, but AQ is great.  The 5.1 is clear and crisp on my modest 5.1 setup.  And with a musical/concert like this, it's the Audio that's more important than the picture, so this will do for now....

'Do you hear the people sing...'

[Mr. Hankey]

I heard there is a clause imposed on future productions of Les Miserables which Lea Salonga wants to perform at.

Actually, my thought on this was:

At the 10th Anniversary Concert, she was Eponine.

At the 25th Anniversary Concert, she was Fantine.

At the 40th... Mme. Thenardier na.  

But seriously, if such a concert ever happened, she should take on that role. It will be historic, and a trivia question for all eternity: Who was the only performer in all anniversary concerts of Les Miz, playing a different role in each one?

[rafgar]

I actually got the R2 of this last year. Quite a premium to pay for a 6-month window, but at the time I felt it was worth it.

Didn't see Blu-ray copies, sorry. Was in a rush, didn't look for it.

As for Lea, I always thought she was an amazing Eponine, but after I watched this, I realized her voice was even better suited for Fantine.

Same here, I got the R2 last January for about £15 (or approximately P1,100) through ebay. 

For me, Lea's Eponine was much better than her Fantine.  I've always liked her version of "A Little Fall of Rain".

[rafgar]

As long as Lea Salonga is there, I will get this. First Asian Fantine, woohoo!

Sorry, but Lea wasn't the first Asian Fantine.  I know that Joanna Ampil and Joan Almedilla have already performed the role in UK and Broadway, respectively, even before Lea got the role in 2007.  Joanna Ampil has also performed both the roles of Eponine and Fantine, just like Lea -- of course, not at the same time. 

[Dan]

Sorry, but Lea wasn't the first Asian Fantine.  I know that Joanna Ampil and Joan Almedilla have already performed the role in UK and Broadway, respectively, even before Lea got the role in 2007.  Joanna Ampil has also performed both the roles of Eponine and Fantine, just like Lea -- of course, not at the same time. 

Party pooper.

[BusyChild]

Hehehe.... also bought this at Astrovision earlier (walang blu ray version, ugh!). I was blown away... grabe!!! streetsmart is right, hindi sya nakakasawang panoorin. I will watch it again this weekend. Hehehe.

"Bring him Home" song = goosebumps! Grabe. 

[techdude]

Sorry, but Lea wasn't the first Asian Fantine.  I know that Joanna Ampil and Joan Almedilla have already performed the role in UK and Broadway, respectively, even before Lea got the role in 2007.  Joanna Ampil has also performed both the roles of Eponine and Fantine, just like Lea -- of course, not at the same time.  

Lea got the role of Eponine in 1993.  That's why she's in the 10th Anniversary Concert.    Ampil and Almedilla in 2000.   Although Ampil might have predated Salonga as Fantine (2003).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lea_Salonga
reference linked from wikipedia (with pic of a much younger Lea as Eponine:
http://www.playbill.com/news/article/106365-PHOTO-CALL-Lea-Salonga-in-Les-Misrables

Ampil's resume also checked via Wikipedia and Almedilla via Google and Wikipedia.
http://asianweek.com/2000_06_01/ae_joanalmedilla.html
http://www.elmundodelospowerrangers.com/trade/LESMIS.html

They are all great Filipinas, and are prides of our country.

update: reread the posts and rafgar is referring to the role of Fantine, and not the first Asian with a role in Les Mis, so yes, it seems he's right on that one.

[techdude]

Nick Jonas as Marius really is bad casting.  He might have star power but not enough vocal power as Marius, instead he sounded weaker than most (all?) of the lesser revolutionaries.  He doesn't sound like one of the leader, but ended up like a sissy that Enjolras had to protect.

Comparing the 10th and the 25th anniversary concert, and the lack of vocal power (of Mr. Jonas) is that much more striking.  I like the 25th more mainly because it's on 5.1 (the 10th is 2.0) and Mr. Boe has more power than Wilkinson (which seems to be reading many of the lines) although for many Mr. Wilkinson is Jean Valjean to many...

[BusyChild]

Why did they choose Nick Jonas in the first place? Kasi mas bata (for the role of Marius)? Yeah, weak nga sya. Lousy pa ng facial expressions nya, iisa lang. Ugh!!! Ang his voice sounds so POP! (as if magaling ako kamanta, hehehe...)

[Mr. Hankey]

What struck me was that Jonas could not hold any of the notes that needed sustaining. Surely casting him was a financial move - to get his teeny bopper fans who normally shy away from Broadway to give it a shot. Hopefully it worked and got some non-theater lovers to try it out, or else casting him will have been a total waste.

I was always under the impression that Ampil and Almedilla both understudied 'Fantine' ahead of her, but Salonga was the first Pinay to actually be cast as the main Fantine in a major Western production. Am I mistaken? I think I remember Ampil was announced as main Fantine on the West End after Salonga was announced to take over the role in the limited run Broadway revival.

In any case, good for them... all three of them.

[streetsmart]

What struck me was that Jonas could not hold any of the notes that needed sustaining. Surely casting him was a financial move - to get his teeny bopper fans who normally shy away from Broadway to give it a shot. Hopefully it worked and got some non-theater lovers to try it out, or else casting him will have been a total waste.

That certainly worked with my teenage daughter. She was so excited about him.  

[BusyChild]

Yes, even the Cosette girl looks young (and chubby cute, hehehe) but the voice was, wow.... amazing!

Siguro the 25th Anniv cast should not be compared to the 10th anniv cast... I guess it would not be fair. 

[Mr. Hankey]

Personally, other than Nick Jonas, I think that the 25th anniversary cast was vocally superior to the 10th.

[civic_10]

wow good thing this is now available locally. What i liked the most here was alfie boe's portrayal of jean valjean. His voice is so powerful. Lea as well did great as Fantine....i couldn't help but compare the song "On my own" with lea's version. Hers is just a lot better.

[BusyChild]

Personally, other than Nick Jonas, I think that the 25th anniversary cast was vocally superior to the 10th.

True! So, let's say there was no 10th Anniv cast to compare to, the 25th Anniv cast is really good. Well, except for, uhm sorry, for Nick Jonas. And who's that guy who played Enjolras... Ramin Karimloo (had to google it)? He could have played the better Marius role. (sigh!) He has such a powerful voice.

Oh, yes. The encores must be mentioned. Impecable.

Bottomline... if you love/like Les Mis, you will love this show. With or without Nick Jonas. Hehe. 

[Mr. Hankey]

Anyone taking over the role of Marius from Michael Ball would have a problem, actually.

Nick Jonas just has a HUGE problem.

[rafgar]

As long as Lea Salonga is there, I will get this. First Asian Fantine, woohoo!

Sorry, but Lea wasn't the first Asian Fantine.  I know that Joanna Ampil and Joan Almedilla have already performed the role in UK and Broadway, respectively, even before Lea got the role in 2007.  Joanna Ampil has also performed both the roles of Eponine and Fantine, just like Lea -- of course, not at the same time. 

Party pooper.

Sorry .... 

[rafgar]

Anyone taking over the role of Marius from Michael Ball would have a problem, actually.

Nick Jonas just has a HUGE problem.

I agree with you.  For me, Michael Ball is the definitive Marius.  Nick Jonas' lack of vocal power in the concert became more pronounced when Michael Ball, together with the other original cast members, joined the concert cast in singing "One Day More".

Despite Jonas' presence in the concert, buying the DVD was still worth it since I'm a Les Mis fan as well as Lea's fan.