 |
| Trevor Nunn at this year's Whatsonstage.com Awards |
|
| Share |
Nunn Sparks Row Over Anniversary Les Mis TourDate: 30 June 2010
Trevor Nunn has spoken of feeling “profoundly betrayed” by the 25th anniversary staging of Les Miserables, which is currently on a European tour and arrives at the Barbican in September.
In an incendiary interview with the Daily Telegraph, the veteran director claims that he, his co-director John Caird and designer John Napier, were “kept in the dark” by producer Cameron Mackintosh regarding the re-staged version, which premiered in Cardiff last December.
“It is not a new production. It is a variant production that owes everything that’s good about it to the original production. And everything that’s not so good about it, and is uncomfortable about it, is the work of a group of assistants. Do you gather that there is some unhappiness here?” Nunn told the Telegraph's Jasper Rees.
The main alteration to the anniversary production is that it doesn't require the famous revolving stage. In the interview, published yesterday, Nunn claims that he, Caird and Napier would have “joyously” accepted the challenge of finding “slightly different solutions staging-wise”.
Instead, Mackintosh asked James Powell and Laurence Connor to direct the anniversary production. Powell originally joined Les Mis as a cast member, before becoming a resident director on the show and overseeing its move from the Palace Theatre to its current home the Queen's in 2004. Connor also started out as a cast member before moving into directing, with credits including a re-staged touring version of Miss Saigon.
Nunn goes on, “There is no point in beating about the bush. We are profoundly unhappy and we feel profoundly betrayed and we don’t understand. We seek a meeting. We are not given any explanation. What’s so extraordinary is that, in the year when the 25th anniversary of the original production is being celebrated, the same logo and the same strapline is being used for the new production. So we are also very confused.
“It’s completely bewildering. And the most bewildering thing – and this is not vanity or hubris – is why something inferior has been created when something superior could have been created.”
Mackintosh response
Cameron Mackintosh's full response to his long-time collaborator's criticisms has been acquired by Whatsonstage.com. It reads: “I am saddened by Trevor's inaccurate and ungracious remarks. I am very proud of the 1985 production that I invited Trevor to direct with John Caird. That Les Mis has become an enduring classic around the world is a testament to the work that Trevor and John did as adaptors and directors.
“However, after 25 years, I wished to create a new production that reflected the contemporary appeal of the musical today and it seemed right to engage the energies of a new younger team to do this. I believe that each new generation has to be able to put its own stamp on great material.
“Over 18 months ago and at every subsequent stage we informed Trevor and John Caird and John Napier of our plans. It is wholly untrue that they were in any way 'kept in the dark'. It is bewildering to me that Trevor Nunn who has spent much of his brilliant career reimagining existing material should be questioning the right of others to do so with Les Miserables.”
The row comes as the world's longest-running musical gears up not just for the Barbican return (where it started life as an RSC production in 1985), but also a star-studded anniversary concert at the O2 arena (See News, 2 Jun 2010).
Based on Victor Hugo's classic humanitarian novel set in 19th-century revolutionary France, Les Miserables has a book by Alain Boublil, music by Claude-Michel Schonberg and lyrics by Herbert Kretzmer. On its 21st birthday in 2006, it surpassed Cats as the West End’s longest-running musical. Globally, it has been seen by over 55 million people in 40 countries and 21 languages.
- by Theo Bosanquet
Related Content
| Internal Links |
 | Danielle Hope is new Les Mis Eponine, Tam Mutu plays Javert - 9th Mar 2012 news |
| Cast: Shannon & Rauch play Jean Valjean, new Jersey Boys - 14th Feb 2012 news |
| Will more of original Les Mis cast join Ruffelle & Wilkinson on big screen? - 27th Jan 2012 gossip |
| Phantom Star Ramin Karimloo Tours Solo Show in May - 29th Dec 2011 news |
| Brief Encounter With ... Alfie Boe - 7th Nov 2011 interviews |
| Karimloo Stars as Jean Valjean in Les Mis, from 29 Nov - 27th Oct 2011 news |
| Les Mis Mutters, Pilbrow Praised - 12th Sep 2011 blog |
| Photos: Tenor Trumps Les Mis In West End Tug of War - 14th Jul 2011 news |
| Tenor & Les Mis Battle In West End Tug of War??? - 13th Jul 2011 gossip |
| 1st Night Photos: New Les Mis Cast, Boe & Lucas - 24th Jun 2011 photos |
| Alfie Boe 'Bored Stiff' When He Watches Opera??? - 7th Jun 2011 gossip |
| Musicals Cast: Full Les Mis, Trafalgar Betwixt! - 31st May 2011 news |
| Cast: Wilkes Chicago, Sheen Fantine, Union Fings - 5th May 2011 news |
| Boss Blog: The Lure of the Longrunner - & Other Tourist Tales - 29th Mar 2011 blog |
| Longrunners Extend: WWRY, Mousetrap, Les Mis - 21st Mar 2011 news |
| Mackintosh Makes Acting Debut with Lucas & Boe??? - 2nd Mar 2011 gossip |
| Alfie Boe & Matt Lucas Confirm for Les Mis, 23 Jun - 23rd Feb 2011 news |
| WOS Radio: Edward Seckerson Talks to Alfie Boe - 20th Dec 2010 radio |
| Jean Valjeans Raise Funds for Troop Tickets??? - 13th Dec 2010 gossip |
| Alfie Boe Revisits Les Mis in West End, Jun 2011 - 26th Nov 2010 news |
| Musicals Cast: Falls, Love Story, Gates Les Mis - 14th Oct 2010 news |
| WOS Blog: Les Mis Celebrates In Style at The O2 - 4th Oct 2010 features |
| Photos: Les Mis Company of Companies for 25th - 4th Oct 2010 photos |
| WOS TV: Les Miserables Marks Epic 25th Birthday - 4th Oct 2010 tv |
| Artist Seeks Likeness in Les Mis Cast??? - 1st Oct 2010 gossip |
| Final Tickets for Les Mis at The O2, Tube Strikes - 1st Oct 2010 news |
| Les Mis at O2 Broadcast to Cinemas, NT Expands - 29th Sep 2010 news |
| Who Would Have Dreamed? Les Mis Hits 25 - 13th Sep 2010 features |
| Extensions: Sheridan Smith's Elle, Boheme & Mis - 26th Aug 2010 news |
| One Day More for Les Mis Celebrations??? - 14th Jul 2010 gossip |
| Photos: Jonas Brothers Cause a Stir at Les Mis - 22nd Jun 2010 news |
| Les Mis Has 25th at O2 with Lucas, Boe & Salonga - 2nd Jun 2010 news |
| Cast: Nick Jonas Joins Les Mis, Quinn Gets Dirty - 28th May 2010 news |
| Mackintosh Slashes May Musical Prices by 45% - 14th May 2010 news |
| Les Mis Tour Visits Barbican for 25th Anniversary - 15th Mar 2010 news |
| Les Mis Marks 25th Birthday with Major New Tour - 16th Jun 2009 news |
| - 1st Sep 2000 green+room |
| Les Miserables  - 1st Nov 1997 reviews |
External Links |
| Daily Telegraph interview with Trevor Nunn |
