Ahhhh Les Misérables, that one French musical no one can pronounce the name... also affectionately called Les Mis, or, as Americans might say, Les Miz, but we don't go there.

That one classic tale about a man who goes from a bread thief to a man of the Lord, a policeman who just can't let things go, how government sucks and a bunch of kids dying.

Fun.

 

Also in the musical are a couple of pint sized stars; little Cosette, whose mother left in the care of the very nice Thenardiers, met a tragic fate and left her to the greatly named Jean Valjean (really, momma Valjean?), teaching him how to love and be a great sap. A.K.A. that little famous face in that drawing over there. You might have seen it before.

The other, who does not turn out to be adopted by a rich pops and grow old and happy, is Gavroche. The middle child of the Thenardiers, he was thrown in the street at a young age, and ended up caring for his two little brothers, without any of them knowing they were related. And of course you'll never hear any of that in the musical, but there's a bit of background story for ya.

In the musical we find him around his 12 years of age having the time of his life around the streets of Paris, as he gets involved with the students as they plan the June Rebellion of 1832. He dies a fearless very heroic death along with our fortunate boys in the barricade.

(did you know that was an actual rebellion that happened and there weren't that many casualties? just their luck)

 

Cosette's scenes:

Cosette's iconic solo, Castle On A Cloud is short but sweet. It's been shortened over the years, as have most of the scenes in this very short musical.

The song is her first appearance, as she sweeps the floor of the inn the Thenardiers own, and dreams of a better life. The moment is cut short by the very well mannered Mrs. Thenardiér, who sends her off to fetch a bucket full of water that probably would weight more than the kid in the middle of the dark woods, meanwhile pampering her own daughter Éponine. Nice lady.

But thankfully in the woods she meets Jean Valjean, who was on his way to fetch Cosette as he had promised her dying mother. And so he does, after a happy chat with the Thenardiers who most certainly were not rolling around in the money after they left.

 

Changes in the song:

In recent 'modern' productions, aka 'the ones with the sets',  Castle On A Cloud has been shortened to only two verses, adding up to only 1 minute. That would be Broadway, Spain, Canada, among others.

The West End (London) remains with the old style, the most abstract scenery and, very importantly, the revolving stage. The song is the previous cut, including the middle verse "There is a room that's full of toys..."

 

Gavroche's scenes:

Gavroche has a total of 5 solos, and is on stage for about half the musical.

We first meet him in Look Down, in the second half of the first act. In the song he introduces himself and the Thenardiers, giving a little background to what happened to them in the past 10 years (as the story skips from little Cosette to 1832, years later, when the rest of the musical is set).

Next we see his remarks about Javert and make sure we remember he's the important one here, after Javert's solo Stars.

He's the one that breaks the news of General Lamarque's death to the students in the ABC Café, as they plan a revolution.

His next solo is early in act 2, Little People, as he uncovers Javert as a spy in the barricade.

And, finally, we have his death scene, as he jumps over the barricade to collect bullets for the students, who ran out of ammunition and are starting to realize this might not have a happy ending.

 

Changes in the songs:

Of course many little tweaks in the lyrics have been made over the years, but the most recent and worth noting are:

Look Down - in the 2013/2014 Toronto revival, the lyrics were changed to match the movie version. The change was also kept in the current Broadway production. So, the first part, instead of going:

 

"This is my school, my high society
Here in the slums of Saint Michel
We live on crumbs of humble piety
Tough on the teeth, but what the hell!

Think you're poor? Think you're free?

Follow me, follow me!"

 

it goes...

 

"This is the land that fought for liberty
Now when we fight
We fight for bread
Here is a thing about equality:
Everyone's equal when they're dead
Take your place
Take your change
Vive la France, vive la France!"

 

 

Little People - along with Castle On A Cloud, it was shortened to only half it's size in the most recent productions. The whole second verse, "and little people know, when little people fight...", was cut.

 

Gavroche's Death - usually it's the reprise of the second verse of Little People, ending as Gavroche is shot, and the music cut short, "so you better run for cover when the pup...grows- (up)", poetically enough. Which works for the recent productions, as they don't have to repeat it.

Now, in the second Broadway revival (2006) and in many international productions, not only was Little People cut, but another song altogether was introduced for Gavroche's death scene, Ten Little Bullets.

It went:

 

Ten little bullets in my hand
Ten little snipers neat and clean--
One for the king of this great land
Two for the aristocracy
Three for the bishops and the clergymen
Four for the prefects of police--
Give me a chance, I'll take the lot of them--
Ten little chances to be free
Close your eyes, I'll say when, count to ten.

Count to t--

 

 

Changes in the roles:

Every country has different child labor laws, which leads to differences in casting. Broadway works with two boys alternating in the role of Gavroche; previously it was three girls alternating for little Cosette and Eponine, now there's only two, plus a child swing.

Canada seems to work similarly.

 

In the UK, Europe, Australia and most everywhere else, a bigger number of children is required in each role, so there are 3 or 4 Gavroches, Cosettes and Eponines, and the girls do not usually share.

In the recent productions, other roles were added. One for the boys- Petit Gervais, a little working boy who Valjean steals from early in act 1, and various ensemble roles for the girls, including a sung line in Turning, Turning.

In the West End the Eponines also have an ensemble role.

All the children usually understudy for the other roles. (yes, many girls have gone on for Gavroche and yes, boys have gone on for little Cosette)(even adult women have gone on for Gavroche!)

 

In most places, for evening performances the girls do not stay for curtain call and leave during intermission due to child labor laws. They may, however, stay if it's a special occasion, such as their first or last performance.