Tenor Alfie Boe, one of the stars of last month's special anniversary Les Miserables concerts at the O2 Arena, will, as previously tipped, revisit the role of Jean Valjean in the West End next year.
According to the Daily Mail, Boe will take over the role at the Queen's theatre "in early June for a six-month run". And producer Cameron Mackintosh has hinted that the opera star will also play the role in a forthcoming big-screen adaptation of the long-running Boublil and Schonberg musical.
Speaking to the Mail's Baz Bamigboye, Mackintosh said: "Alfie was a revelation in the O2 concert and I believe he has the kind of sound we’ll need for the movie. What doesn’t work is shrieking theatre voices ... The strength of Jean Valjean comes through the fitness of his voice. It’s thrilling and incredibly powerful."
Boe, who only became a professional singer after being overheard singing while polishing a car, won a Tony Award for his performance in Baz Lurhmann's Broadway production of La boheme in 2006. His other credits include Kismet, The Merry Widow and The Pearl Fishers for English National Opera.
Les Miserables had its world premiere at the Barbican on 8 October 1985. Based on Victor Hugo's classic humanitarian novel set in 19th-century revolutionary France, the musical has a book by Alain Boublil, music by Claude-Michel Schonberg and lyrics by Herbert Kretzmer.
After its premiere at the Barbican, the landmark Royal Shakespeare Company production, adapted and directed by Trevor Nunn and John Caird and designed by John Napier, transferred, care of Cameron Mackintosh, to the West End’s Palace Theatre where it ran for 18 years and over 7,500 performances before moving down the road to the Queen’s on 3 April 2004.
Saw Les Mis last night (23 June 2011) to see opening night at Queens theatre. Saw original production on third night.
This new cast and orchestra are right up there with the original! Will write more shortly. However...
Alfie Boe - extraordinary! Bring him home is the best ever... as good as Calum!
Hadley Fraser - have not seen a Javert so strong, and opposite Boe, extraordinary! Stars was the best i have ever heard! Right up there with Philip Quast! but probably better...
Katy Secombe -so funny and so glad that Matt Lucas could keep up with her!
Craig Mather - without a doubt the best Marius i have seen...
Liam Tamne - quite brilliant...
Lisa-Anne Wood - delightful!
Alexia Khadime - wow!
Caroline Sheen - you just got better and better... hearing "I dreamed a dream" sung by you made you understand why Britain has talent...
Words cannot express the atmosphere last night... this was up there with the great Les Mis performances and left the O2 standing... and the RHH 10th...
Let me end on the orchestra... brilliant! - Iain
25 Jun 11
Oh please!
I have worked on Les Mis for 4 years at the palace theatre. Alfie Boe voice is brilliant. Hope he gets cast! - Paulo
16 Dec 10
I'd be quite dissapointed if Boe was cast as Valjean in a film adaptation. Don't get me wrong I saw him live at the 25th Anniversary Concert and he sang the role tremendously, but with his opera background I found his acting to be weak. To me John Owen-Jones is the perfect movie Valjean; he inhabits the role and sings it beautifully.
Although I'm sure Cameron Mackintosh didn't mean to sound disrespectful to musical theatre actors, for whom it's known he has a great deal of respect (after all without them he wouldn't be where he is today, and he cast as many of them as possible in the 25th Anniversary Concert) I struggle to understand why he thinks an opera voice would be more suitable than a musical theatre voice, considering opera voices are even more theatrical than musical theatre voices. I know Mackintosh likes to be the 'hands-on' producer but whilst that's OK for musical theatre in which he has years of experience, he is less experienced in film and I think it may be savvy of him to hand over the creative reins to an experienced film-maker. - GWH123
27 Nov 10
I agree with Millie. What's wrong with having people who have actually played roles in Les Mis for a good number of years, instead of being stunt casted in association with the 25th Anniversary Concert. I prefer the 10th Anniversary Concert for that exact reason. - Jess
26 Nov 10
'shrieking theatre voices'?!!!! What an insult to those who have played brilliantly in Les Mis over the years :( Does this mean we won't have 'proper' singers for the film? :( - Millie
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