Les Miserables Soars at Silver Center

After eight weeks of preparation, set design, and rigorous practices and rehearsals, the PSU musical theater department was finally ready to bring "Les Miserables" to life on the Hannaway Theater stage. When they did, they performed spectacularly.

The show was performed four days in a row with two performances on Saturday for a total of five performances, one of which was sold out. Every night the cast and crew left the audience amazed.

            A number of people who had been avid fans of the Broadway show and the film alike came into the theater not knowing what to expect. Some were worried that the actors on stage may not be able to do the show justice; with its vocally demanding songs and challenging scenes, it was easy to be a little nervous for the performers. However, any doubts that may have been in an audience member's mind were quickly wiped away as the curtain came up and the performers took the stage with a spectacular opening musical number, highlighted by PSU seniors Mike Dodge and Brad Fernald.

            Dodge, a senior at PSU and winner of the Granite State National Association of Teachers of Singing Vocal Competition, played the main role of Jean Valjean. He performed the role remarkably well, getting to display his both his acting skills and his talent as a tenor. Dodge delivered a fantastic performance; the highlight being his rendition of the song "Bring Him Home", which left the audience cheering well after the song was over.

            Fernald played his part as the main antagonist, Inspector Javert, wonderfully. He was able to portray the gruff no-nonsense inspector skillfully and accompanied his acting with extremely well done vocal performances. His two main solo songs, "Stars" and "Javert's Suicide" were his highlight moments.

            One performer in particular really stood out among the large cast on stage. Alyssa Dumas, a senior musical theater major, played the role of Fantine; the factory worker who is fired and loses everything as she is forced to prostitute herself in order to make money for her child. Alyssa's performance of "I Dreamed a Dream" left most of the audience in tears, and was certainly one of the most memorable moments of the show.

            The production certainly pulled no punches when it came to reenacting the more intense scenes, such as the several deaths of the battle at the barricade, and the forced prostitution of Fantine. These scenes made for an extremely powerful performance and there was more than one occasion where the audience had to pull out their bags of Kleenex.

            When asked about his experience in "Les Miserables", Fernald said "It was an incredible experience. Everyone put in a lot of energy and emotion. We told an incredible and powerful story that rings as true today as it did when Victor Hugo first wrote the novel. I love everyone deeply that put on this production and I am incredibly grateful that I got to be a part of it."

            "Les Miserables" was an incredible, emotional, tear jerking performance that will stay in the minds of the audience and the cast alike.