Less Miserable

16 January 2011 /

I spent over a hundred quid to take my wife to the Queen’s Theatre in London to see Les Misérables.

This is what it looked like:

They also sang the words, like an opera, which made understanding them a bit of a challenge. So, between not seeing and not hearing, this is what I think the plot was about:

Some woman named Fountain got up the duff and had a child called Courgette. Fountain sang a cover version of Susan Boyle’s “I Dreamed a Dream” then died. Some guy named Marcus fell in love with Courgette. Meanwhile, Courgette’s childhood acquaintance, Epitome, is secretly in love with Marcus (Epitome’s dad, Thaddeus, kept Courgette as an indentured servant for a time—don’t ask, it’s complicated).  Before the love triangle can get fully underway, Epitome is killed by a sub-plot. This allows Marcus and Courgette to get married without having Epitome moping around the reception making goo-goo eyes at Marcus.  So they are happy. Everyone else dies, though. The clue is in the title.

I understand that, in the sequel, Marcus and Courgette have a daughter, named Aubergine.

14 Comments

  • Anonymous

    16 January 2011 at 1:16 pm

    This 'review' totally tickled my funny bone! Especially the photo, and the line about 'singing a cover of Susan Boyle's song'. Priceless (and I'm a big Boyle fan). Cheers! CBill

  • Anonymous

    16 January 2011 at 1:24 pm

    Loved the review. Made perfect sense to me. I, too, am a major Susan Boyle fan. This take on Les Mis, was quite funny. manny

  • Stella Jones

    17 January 2011 at 12:33 am

    Yeah. How annoying is that when you can't see. I usually get behind a big hat!Was it an old theatre? They are usually very cramped. People were smaller in bygone days.

  • MikeH

    17 January 2011 at 6:33 am

    All: Glad you liked my \”review\” It really was a great show.Star: The Queen's Theatre was opened in 1907 so, yeah, I expect people were a bit smaller then. The newer threatre a more comfortable and have better views, but there is something to be said for the charm of the older ones, even if you have to put up with some inconvenience.

  • Unknown

    17 January 2011 at 8:23 pm

    Oh no! I love this show and the music…what a shame that woman's big boof-head was in the way!When you should have been 'hearing the people sing', sounds to me like you were 'lost in the valley of the night' and were desperately hoping things would be on the up 'when tomorrow comes'.ps…did your wife enjoy it?

  • MikeH

    17 January 2011 at 8:26 pm

    Kym: My wife has seen Les Miz three times. She has the album, the CD and the tee shirt. And it was a remarkable show, even if I had to keep ducking and weaving to see it 😉

  • Anonymous

    17 January 2011 at 8:53 pm

    Funneee post. The Les Mis website says the show is \”25 years young\”, I would say it was \”25 years long\”, seemed like that when my daughter and I went to see it. Only West End show we have come out of at intermission — very depressing. Next time go see Mama Mia, it'll have you walking out smiling (and singing Abba songs no matter how much you hate them) — or else Billy Elliott, another great show, but then again the Newcastle accents might leave you wishing you had a Newcastle-English-American dictionary with you.Marion

  • Stacy

    18 January 2011 at 1:20 am

    Those subplots are dangerous, especially to secondary characters. You'd think they'd have figured that out by now – like the expendable ensigns in Star Trek.Congrats on all your followers! 🙂

  • MikeH

    18 January 2011 at 7:08 am

    Anon: You should have stayed for part II – that's when everyone dies. Much more lively.Stacy: Yes, you need to watch out for those subplots, especially if you are an ensign wearing a red shirt — thanks for reading 😉

  • Mother Theresa

    20 January 2011 at 4:32 pm

    Oh I saw that years ago, but I don't remember much about the plot…something about miserable people in France, right? I kept the souvenir t-shirt much longer than the memory of the show. Now Cats, that I remember much better!

  • MikeH

    21 January 2011 at 6:29 am

    I would have loved to see Cats on the West End, but I only saw it at a local theatre. Not the same! And, yeah, a play where 90% of the people die in the end is not generally a big pick-me-up 😉 Nice music, though.