Note 14: Into the woods

Many of you may have noticed that there is going to be a new Disney movie with lots of super stars, such as Chris Pine, Johnny Depp, Jake Gyllenhaal, Emily Blunt and Meryl Streep released, named ‘into the woods,’ which is the adaption of the Tony award-winning stage musical written by James Lapine and features music/lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. Before the film is actually released, I would like to introduce you the original musical version.

So here the story goes-The musical combines the well-known fairy tales of Cinderella, Rapunzel, Jack and the Beanstalk, and Little Red Ridinghood with the story of the Baker and his Wife who desperately want a child. Unfortunately, the Baker and his Wife have been cursed with childlessness by a witch and must perform various missions involving the characters in the other fairy tales to break the spell. The Baker and his Wife must bring the witch a cow as white as milk, a cape as red as blood, hair as yellow as corn, and a slipper as pure as gold. After a series of failed attempts, the Baker and his Wife finally are able to perform the tasks necessary to break the spell. Once the characters have accomplished their goals, however, they learn about the pitfalls of greed and gluttony. Finally, they learn about the need for community and family when they must unite to fight against the wife of the giant Jack killed who has decided to come back for revenge.

And did they all live happily ever after? An afterthought of the question is the reason why I enjoy this musical so much. There’s much more to fairy stories than initially meets the child’s naïve eye, and Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s popular musical explores many of these issues, and more, not so immediately obvious. Into the Woods is held together by Sondheim’s music and ingenious lyrics, and moments of laugh – out-comedy, with a large cast of characters you thought you knew, including a cow, birds, a giant and the narrator. My favorite number is the ‘The spell is on my house’, it’s the reprise of mainly all the characters sing together.

This show always inspired warm but mixed feelings in me whenever I’ve encountered it. Never mind that this production doesn’t feature anything like the usual highly trained vocalists and orchestra customary. But they can carry meaning, and the sense that every song in this show is an expression of both individual character and universal hopes and fears and confusions. In other words, all the people onstage are there to tell us stories that they utterly believe in, no matter how improbable they seem. And their care and concern for their stories makes us pay attention to this “Woods” as we perhaps never have before.

Note 13: The Book of Mormon

 Can you imagine the creators of the hilarious animated comedy South Park also produce a Broadway musical? Believe it or not, The Book of Mormon is a religious satire musical, reflecting the creators' lifelong fascination with Mormonism and musicals. This is a mildly amusing musical, with some knowingly parodic songs, that takes a few pot shots at religious credulity without ever questioning the need for belief.

This comedy musical follows the plight of a pair of teenage Mormon missionaries sent to convert a village in a dangerous part of Uganda. But what is the show actually saying? In part, that religion is a human invention. Passing reference is made to the Mormon founder, Joseph Smith, and his supposed discovery of sacred tablets on a hillside in New York state in 1827. We see the show is concocted to a new faith in which Mormonism is merged with bits of Star Wars and The Lord of the Rings. The creators devastatingly showed that it is easy enough to invent a new religion, but that it will inexorably lead to sacrifice and ritual slaughter before achieving respectability. The Book of Mormon takes the exact opposite line, suggesting a made-up faith may be a remedy for violence and bloodshed.

However, that's not to say it doesn't have its pleasures; and part of the fun lies in playing spot-the-source for the numerous songs. The opening number, Hello, in which trainee missionaries press doorbells, has echoes of the telephone song in Bye Bye Birdie. A cheery African anthem, Hasa Diga Eebowai, is clearly a foul-mouthed parody of a similar number in The Lion King. And, when the Ugandans stage their own muddied version of Mormon faith, one is reminded of the Uncle Tom's Cabin scene from The King and I.

      Though I don’t really have religion, through this newborn, old-fashioned, pleasure-giving musical I can get a glimpse of how believer live with their belief. It seems to me as though Mormons find this musical either A+ or the most offensive thing on the planet.This amuses me for reasons I can't quite expound upon.

Note 12: Shrek the musical

Shrek the Musical is a musical with music by Jeanine Tesori and book and lyrics by David Lindsay-Abaire. It is based on the 2001 DreamWorks film Shrek and William Steig's 1990 book Shrek!. Shrek the Musical gives us the back story for characters we thought we knew, such as Shrek, Princess Fiona, and even evil Lord Farquaad. So the stage version gives you all you liked about the movie plus more about the characters while keeping the irreverent humor that spices up the plot.

In case you were the one person who hasn’t seen the movie, the story, in brief: To reclaim his swamp from squatting, displaced fairy creatures, the ogre Shrek must rescue the dragon-guarded Princess Fiona and deliver her to Lord Farquaad, who must marry a princess to become a king and make his land of Dulac into a real kingdom. Kids will love Shrek, but before the curtain, parents might want to explain the Dragon, which is a combination of a really big puppet and eight singers who give the character its voice, sort of like a Greek chorus.

The music, with its blues and gospel influences, takes a very different direction from the movie, which featured little original music, relying instead on new and old popular songs. I especially like the singer Sutton Foster as Princess Fiona. I have been in love with Foster’s voice and dancing since Thoroughly Modern Millie, for which she won a Tony. The Drowsy Chaperone introduced us to her great comedic skills, but Shrek gives that talent free rein. Morning Person is one of my favorite song of the play, which is sang by Foster.

An interesting fact of the play is that Christian Marriner used to be 6 feet tall. He could stare into the eyes of most people he met, often looking down to do so. Nowadays, he stands about 3 feet 6 inches, and he looks up at almost everybody. Luckily, that’s just while he’s on stage in Shrek the Musical playing the officious Lord Farquaad, who is happiest when he’s cutting fairy tale figures down to size.

With a terrific score of 19 all-new songs, more than a dozen hilarious supporting characters,e.g.Pinocchio,Sugar Plum Fairy & Gingy,Three Little Pigs,Big Bad Wolf,Wicked Witch and Mama Bear,etc., big laughs, great dancing, and breathtaking scenery, Shrek the Musical is part romance, part twisted fairy tale, and all irreverent fun for everyone! This is really a highly recommended show, for it is shrektacular! I can't help smiling when watching it, and guess what, actually you can find the whole play on youtube!

Note 11: A Chorus Line

     Even though TV has bombarded the show business with backstage dramas about the anguish of auditions, A Chorus Line as a musical which centered on seventeen Broadway dancers auditioning for spots on a chorus line keeps standing straight and strongly. The musical is set on the bare stage of a Broadway theater during an audition for a musical. A Chorus Line provides a glimpse into the personalities of the performers and the choreographer as they describe the events that have shaped their lives and their decisions to become dancers.

Following several workshops and an Off-Broadway production, A Chorus Line opened on Broadway on July 25, 1975, directed and choreographed by Buffalo native Michael Bennett. An unprecedented box office and critical hit, the musical received 12 Tony Award nominations and won 9 of them, in addition to the 1976 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Moreover, the original Broadway production ran for 6,137 performances, becoming the longest-running production in Broadway history until surpassed by Cats in 1997, and the longest-running Broadway musical originally produced in the US, until surpassed in 2011 by Chicago.

As the director whittles a group of auditioning hopefuls down to a final eight, we hear the dancers' confessions: we learn about their broken homes, aspirations to stardom, fear of failure and, in the touching case of a Puerto Rican guy, his shame at being found by his parents dancing in a drag revue. But in the famous final number, One, we rejoice at seeing the dancers perform in glorious unison. Being a chorus singer for almost entire of my lifetime, the musical reminds me that no matter however much we may resent it, we still choke with emotion at the sight of a group of raw RAF servicemen being transformed into a perfectly drilled ensemble. This show also triggered me to ask questions to myself, ’why do I sing? Why do I dance? Why do I enjoy on stage?’ I think the answers are not as difficult as I once concerned, it is the genuine passion I feel from the music that makes me keep singing, just like the thrill you can find in A Chorus Line.

Note 10:Singin' in the Rain

You may know the classic movie ‘Singin' in the Rain’, but you may not know there is also a musical version with lyrics by Arthur Freed, and music by Nacio Herb Brown. The show opened on 15th February 2012, and is adapted from the 1952 movie of the same name, which itself looks back to 1927– two years before the Wall Street Crash, when flappers, film stars and aviators were partying like there was no hangover tomorrow.

Here’s the plot for people who’s not familiar with the story. It was the roaring ’20s and silent movie stars are the biggest names in the world. Singin’ in the Rain tells the story of Don Lockwood, silent movie star who has everything a person dreams of – fame, popularity and a romance with co-star Lina Lamont. With the on-going rumors of the possibility of sound being synchronized with picture which would surely revolutionize the movie industry and change everything, the silent stars, including Don, are nervous. When it is revealed that Lina has the voice closes to nails being scratched down a blackboard, Don and his comedy sidekick, Cosmo, go in search of an alternative. On finding the beautiful yet snooty Kathy Selden, a chorus girl prone to jumping out of cakes with the voice of an angel, Don tries to convince her to dub in for his co-star diva. Unfortunately both Lina and Kathy are stubborn, leading to Don being forced to work his Hollywood star charm. Although where Kathy is concerned, both her and Don get more than they bargained for as they embark upon a whirlwind romance.

It’s possible that you don’t even know the movie’ Singin' in the Rain’, but it’s definitely impossible that you have never heard of the song’ Singin' in the Rain.’ Besides the legendary number, other classic ones includes’ Good Morning’,’ Make ‘em Laugh’, and’ Moses Supposes’ are well known to the world. What’s more, the stylish choreography and sumptuous set design brighten the whole play. Hailed by critics as the ultimate feel-good show, Singin’ in the Rain “genuinely makes you feel better about life” (Charles Spencer, The Daily Telegraph). For me, the show indeed induced a very happy calm after the storm.

Note 9: Billy Elliot the Musical

Billy Elliot the Musical is a musical based on the 2000 British film Billy Elliot. The music is by Elton John, and book and lyrics are by Lee Hall, who wrote the film's screenplay. The plot revolves around motherless Billy, who trades boxing gloves for ballet shoes. The story of his personal struggle and fulfillment are balanced against a counter-story of family and community strife caused by the UK miners' strike (1984–1985) in County Durham, in North Eastern England.

The musical premiered in London's West End in 2005 and was nominated for nine Laurence Olivier Awards, winning four including Best New Musical. The production is still running strongly, and its success led to productions in Australia, on Broadway and elsewhere. In New York, it won ten Tony Awards and ten Drama Desk Awards, including, in each case, best musical. It has also won numerous awards in Australia including a record-tying seven Helpmann Awards.

Something interesting to notice is the accent the actors speak. In UK, the accent the actors speak and sing with is a northern English accent called Geordie.  Cast members of the show spend many hours with dialect coaches learning the accent, which is thought by many to give BETM an authentic air.  It can be hard for some people to understand, however, and the accent has been toned down for audiences of the American productions.

To be honest, I know nothing about dancing and I’m seldom touched by the dance moves. But whenever I watch BETM’s clip, their dance moves always move me to tears. There is a production number called “Angry Dance“. In it, all of the pent up anger, hopelessness and frustration that Billy feels, caused both by how his family and community are being affected by the miners’ strike and by his family’s lack of support of his desire to dance, comes out in a torrent.  He expresses his feelings in the only way he knows how — by dancing.  In an extraordinary exhibition of tap and modern dance skills, this high energy, sometimes violent scene ends the first act while often leaving audiences in awe of what they’ve just seen. Frankly speaking, I don’t really recommend the musical numbers, but BETM’s dance numbers are really irresistible.

Note 8: Once the Musical

“His music needs one thing. Her.”

Yes, this is the “Once” you have in mind, believe it or not, the 2006 independent film has adapted to the musical version and been in theatre in both New York and London in 2012.I can’t be more excited when I found the news that someone was putting effort in transforming one of my favorite movie into musical! But as an afterthought, changing a musical film into a musical makes sense, since it owns the musical numbers already; all left to do is to do some choreography.

You see, I love the movie “Once.” It's pretty much perfect: the story of a love that can never happen, between a failing Dublin songwriter and a Czech immigrant, it has that Brief Encounter bittersweet ache to it. I'm an iron lady most of the time, but that movie turned me into a bunny rabbit. The film's director and writer underplay everything masterfully. The actor Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová, who star, wrote and sang all its beautiful songs, one of which went on to win an Oscar in 2008. It stole hearts all over the world.

“Once the Musical” was nominated for 11 Tony awards in 2012, winning eight - including best musical, and best actor for star Steve Kazee. The biggest tip you need to know if you are going to see this, is that you should get to the theater at least 20 minutes early. The pre-show music is one of the best elements of the show that many people miss simply because they don't know it exists! This musical just felt more personal, in my opinion. This was a no frills, bare bones production - all the actors/actresses played their own instruments, sang their own parts, and did minimal dancing. Everyone on stage was so incredibly talented. I do enjoy huge Broadway shows like Wicked, no doubt, but I had a really great time watching” Once.” About the script, I think it loosely mirrors the movie, but definitely can stand alone, for those new to the production.  I liked the way the casts deviated from the movie enough to make it different for old fans, but stayed true enough that the essence of the film wasn't changed. But what really made it for me was the music. Plain and simple - the instruments, the actors, and the things they produced vocally and instrumentally carried the show all the way.

After watching the musical, I began to think about the music in our lives, how much it is around us, how it affects our lives or our relationships with others. I can say that every cast in this show is musician, I can see music around them the entire time, and they make the story not only about romance but the real musicians in our everyday lives.

Note 7: Matilda the Musical

Adapted from the ever-popular children’s book by Roald Dahl, Matilda the Musical has been a spectacular since it first opened to packed audiences at the theatre in London. Including original songs from comedian, Tim Minchin, Matilda the Musical is the latest masterpiece from the Royal Shakespeare Company. Based on the grisly tale by Roald Dahl, Matilda is the story of a nine year-old girl, neglected and misunderstood by her family, who discovers she has the magical power to change her destiny. Matilda the musical is one of the must-see shows for all ages, whether you were inspired reading the original book or watching the award-winning film. Packed with hilarious songs, outstanding performances and lots of laughs, never miss out on the spell-bounding story of Matilda, live at the theatre. Winner of five Best Musical awards and with five star reviews, Matilda is a must-see.

How did I find this newly produced (2010) musical, you might be curious? It just happened to pop on the suggest list of youtube, and Matilda the novel used to be my favorite book when I was around 10. After viewing the first music number, I can’t help to search as many clips as I can get from the internet. I think it is a show not just for children, but with some very clever humor makes the adults find something to laugh about.  I love what they do to the set and how they stage it. Fantastic stage set with school desks which popped up out of the floor, building block style letters hanging from the ceiling and manic dance routines. The Trunchbull is superb and the part where "she" swings the little girl around by her plaits only for her to be swung into the audiences is hilarious! I found myself crying with laughter. All the kids in the show are brilliant especially the lead Matilda. Her pitch is amazing, and she played Matilda quite rightly got an outstanding ovation. Not surprised it's won so many awards, it is indeed a funny, fun and heart-warming show.

      

 Here is my favorite song of the show, a lovely entertaining one- Nauty. The lyrics evoke resonance to me-“Like Romeo and Juliet,'Twas written in the stars before they even met. That love and fate (and a touch of stupidity).Would rob them of their hope of living happily. The endings are often a little bit gory. I wonder why they didn't just change their story. We're told we have to do what we're told, but surely. Sometimes you have to be a little bit naughty.” Matilda the musical just like what the novel had taught me when I was little, it reminds me that even if we are only one person we can do a lot. We mustn't let a little thing stop us. After all, we are the author of our own story, nobody but us are going to change the story.

Note 6: The Prince of Egypt

A little bit different today is that the musical I’m going to introduce you is an animated one-The Prince of Egypt. Rather than showing you a Broadway or West end production, the reasons I choose the animation is because that much of the animation is stunning and all of the vocal performances are good to great. And it's just much of the passion seems to be in not stepping on anyone's beliefs or interpretations, instead of in telling the story in the most compelling way possible.

Dreamworks Pictures has taken the biblical story of Exodus, put it into cartoon form, and released it on the big screen as an epic animated feature. The Prince of Egypt tells the story of Moses releasing the Jews from Egyptian slavery under the hand of the evil pharaoh Rameses. Think of The Ten Commandments with songs and an all-star cast doing the voices. The story revolves around these two close brothers, Moses and Rameses. While Rameses is groomed to take over the land, his beloved brother Moses is a carefree prankster, until he learns the true secret of his past. His secret, of course, is that he is really a Jew and as a child was floated down the river to escape mass genocide. The pharaoh Seti raised Moses as his son. Upon learning the truth of his past from a burning bush, Moses returns to Egypt with God on his side and demands that the pharaoh (now his brother Rameses) must "Let my people go." With songs written by Oscar-winner Stephen Schwartz and sung by Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey, The Prince of Egypt covers all the classic story points of the story of Moses, including the ten plagues and the parting of the Red Sea.

The film was nominated for best Original Musical or Comedy Score and won for Best Original Song at the 1999 Academy Awards for "When You Believe". The song's pop version was performed at the ceremony by Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey. The song, co-written by Stephen Schwartz, Hans Zimmer and with additional production by Babyface, was nominated for Best Original Song (in a Motion Picture) at the 1999 Golden Globes and was also nominated for Outstanding Performance of a Song for a Feature Film at the ALMA Awards. Though “When You Believe” seems to be the most representative song of the film, my favorite number is ‘”Deliver Us”. This song enchanted me as a child when i first saw the movie and to this day it still paralyzes my soul to stop and listen and float in harmony with the beautiful voices. What triggers me the most is the voice of the mother, who sings with deep sorrow and strong hope. Someone may argue about whether the story is true or not, but let’s just put it aside and enjoy the breath-taking music first.

Note 5: Titanic

Many of you must have seen the well-known film- Titanic, but do you even know it has a Tony Awards winning musical version, including Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical, Best Original Score, Best Scenic Design, and Best Orchestrations.

I don’t have to say much about the plot of the story, because I know everyone must at least have seen once the movie in their life. So here is just a simple introduction. The musical is recounted from three perspectives – the steerage passengers dreaming of a better life, the newly minted middle class seeking their fortunes, and the wealthy old guard, who simply want everything to stay the same. Unlike those new and modern musical productions, it’s a treat for lovers of traditional musicals, with classic songwriting and costumes.

What makes the musical different from the film version is the positive aspects of what the ship represented in the musical– humankind's striving after great artistic works and similar technological feats, despite the possibility of tragic failure, and the dreams of the passengers on board: 3rd Class, to immigrate to America for a better life; 2nd Class, to live a leisured lifestyle in imitation of the upper classes; 1st Class, to maintain their privileged positions forever. The collision with the iceberg dashed all of these dreams simultaneously, and the subsequent transformation of character of the passengers and crew had, it showed great emotional and musical expression onstage.What appealed to me the most is that the musical is supposedly about the history's most tragic maiden voyage, in which fifteen hundred people lost their lives, was obviously preposterous. Astonishingly, Titanic manages to be grave and entertaining, somber and joyful; little by little you realize that you are in the presence of a genuine addition to American musical theatre.

Titanic is set on the ocean liner RMS Titanic which sank on its maiden voyage on April 15, 1912, so last year (2012) was the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the original ship of dreams. In memorial of the fateful night, here for your information, this summer (2013) at the National Concert Hall (Taipei, Taiwan), National Taiwan University Chorus is going to present the Titanic musical on stage! The clip below is the production that NTU Chorus made in 2010. I believe this year with more experience, they will have an even better performance.

Note 4: Wicked

‘If every musical has a brain, a heart and the courage of Wicked, Broadway really would be a magical place’

-       Richard Zoglin, Time

Walt Disney’s 3-D movie ‘Oz the Great and Powerful’ led all films for the second week in a row, taking in 42.2 million dollars, according to studio estimates on Sunday, March 17, 2013.Sam Raimi’s prequel to the L. Frank Baum classic ‘The Wonderful Wizard of Oz’ also earned 46.6 million dollars overseas, Fox News reported.

With the data shown above, it seems that every adaption about ‘Oz’ could own good reputation. And the musical I’m going to introduce today is another brilliant adaption of ‘OZ’; it is called ‘Wicked’. Winner of 35 major awards including the Grammy Award and three Tony Awards, Wicked is the untold story of the witches of Oz. One, born with emerald-green skin, is smart, fiery and misunderstood. The other is beautiful, ambitious and very popular. Wicked tells the story of their remarkable odyssey, how these two unlikely friends grow to become the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good.

The reasons why I highly recommend Wicked is because it contains almost every element that makes a good musical, including choreography with dapper precision, set of elaborate- looking Kingdom of Oz, and of course the enchanting music that you can actually leave the theatre humming. Moreover, the story itself is as well attractive. The contrast between young woman, who wind up as reluctant roomates at sorcery school, is used to examine a society that values surface over substance, the illusion of doing good over the genuinely noble act. And this time the songs I encourage you to listen to is ‘For good’ and ‘ defying gravity’. They are all songs with touching lyrics and beautiful rhythm. Every time when I am down, listen to the songs always help me find my courage back again. Hope everyone could enjoy the songs like I do.

Note 3: Le Petit Prince Musical

"This [musical] goes straight to the heart." —New York Newsday

Adapted from the famous novella written by Antoine De Saint-Exupery, The Little Prince tells the story of a pilot's unexpected crash landing in the Sahara Desert. While in the desert, the pilot meets the Little Prince --- a young boy from another planet. The Prince shares his unique adventures that he experienced while traveling throughout the solar system.

Filled with enchanting music and heartfelt lyrics, The Little Prince Musical has been touted by critics around the country for its sophisticated appeal to all ages. I believe that everyone must have read the book The Little Prince when we’re children, but few of us notice that we can now see the little prince on stage, singing, and dancing! The musical version is a radical interpretation of the Little Prince with music that's just modern enough, and just otherworldly enough. Besides the music, the musical version with its unique features of live drawing as part of the action and a planetarium environment provides a great deal of room for directorial concepts, allowing for either the most elaborate or simplest of productions. 

Now I would like to share some of the musical numbers I highly recommend you to listen. In the opening, the narrator sings a song named <dedication, Dedicace>, the lyrics is about the reason why he dedicate this children’s book to the adult. It points out the theme of the musical: “All grown-ups were once children… but only few of them remember it.” I was touched when reading the book, and hearing someone sings out the line still makes my tears drop. Then the little prince talks about the rose in his planet,<By her side, Pres d'elle>. This song is my favorite one in the musical. Not to mention the beautiful rhythm and the warm lyrics, the clean voice of the little singer starred the little prince make the concept of love to be the most purest thing in the world.

If you ever love the novella The Little Prince, then you should never miss it's musical version!

Note 2: The Lion King Musical

We could never be more familiar with the opening song “Circle Of Life” from The Lion King Musical, especially the calling of Rafiki the mandrill 

” Nants ingonyama bagithi Baba [Here comes a lion, Father]

  Sithi uhm ingonyama                    [Oh yes, it's a lion]

  Siyo Nqoba                                    [We're going to conquer]

  Ingonyama nengw' enamabala    [A lion and a leopard come to this open place].

Based on the 1994 Disney animated film of the same name, the musical debuted 1997,4 years after the animation. Because of its powerful musical score, extraordinary costumes, and heartfelt story, the musical reign as one of the most popular shows on Broadway and around the world. The global phenomenon is the winner of more than 70 major awards worldwide, including the Tony Award for Best Musical, and the Grammy for Best Musical Show Album.

The musical is an adaptation from the film, so it incorporates several changes and additions to the storyline as compared to the film. First, the mandrill Rafiki's gender was changed to a female role because the director found out that there was generally no leading female character in the film. Second, several new scenes are present, such as a conversation between Mufasa and Zazu about Mufasa's parenting and a scene when Timon finds himself nearly drowning in a waterfall while Simba feels powerless to help him.And of course, the show adds more songs to its stage production, including Morning Report, sung by Zazu the hornbill,  "Endless Night”,  and "Shadowland" , etc. Something interesting I found on the internet is that Chinese elements were included in the musical, during the show run in China,  One of the songs was adapted to a well-known Chinese pop song, "老鼠愛大米" or "Mice Love Rice". The cast even cracked jokes and attempted conversations with the audience in Chinese.

I went to see the musical in London 5 years ago; I can still recall the vivid memory of the astounding visuals.  Marveled at the breathtaking spectacle of animals brought to life by an enormous company of international performers, whose detailed costumes, carved masks, and intricate makeup had transported me to the gorgeous trips of the African savanna. What’s even more surprising is that those animals were actually at the touchable distance, I could see clearly how the actors in costume using extra tools to move their costumes to portray the animals. For example, the giraffes are portrayed by actors carefully walking on stilts. For principal characters such as Mufasa and Scar, the costumes feature mechanical headpieces that can be raised and lowered to foster the illusion of a lion "lunging" at another. It was really a thrill to watch The Lion King Musical.

Note 1: Les Misérables

Les Misérables is nominated for eight Oscars including best picture, best actor (Hugh Jackman) and best supporting actress (Anne Hathaway); and it took home Sound Mixing in addition to Makeup and Hairstyling and Best Supporting Actress. But the gold trophy film is actually based on the musical of the same name by Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg which is in turn based on Les Misérables, the 1862 French novel by French poet and playwright Victor Hugo.

        

     Though the musical numbers we heard today were sung in English, the first musical-stage adaptation of Les Misérables was originally released as a French-language concept album, and presented at a Paris sports arena in 1980.  However, the first production closed after three months when the booking contract expired. It wasn’t until 1983 did the British director find the work of Les Misérables amazing. He then assembled a production team to adapt the French musical for a British audience. After two years in development, the English-language version opened in London on 8 October 1985. The success of the West End musical led to a Broadway production.

• Synopsis:

In 19th-century France, Jean Valjean, "prisoner 24601," is released on parole by the policeman Javert. For decades, the ruthless policeman Javert has been chasing Valjean for him breaking the parole. Valjean is turned away by many people due to him being a convict. However, The Bishop of Digne offers him food ,shelter and buys Valjean's soul for God. Ashamed of what he did, yet humbled by the bishop's mercy and kindness, Valjean follows the Bishop's advice and began his new life. Eight years later, Valjean has assumed a new identity as Monsieur Madeleine, a wealthy factory owner and mayor of Montreuil-sur-Mer. He agrees to take care of factory worker Fantine's daughter, Cosette, because of realizing his part in the ruination of Fantine’s life. Cosette, who lives with an innkeeper, Thénardie ,and his family, Éponine and Mme. Thénardier, was abused by them.

Ten years later, a revolution in Paris is in progress, which is launched by the students, Marius Pontmercy and Enjolras . In the street, Cosette is spotted by Marius Pontmercy, a young rebel who is part of a force that plans to revolt. Though Éponine secretly loves Marius, she still helps Marius to meet with Cosette .Marius and Cosette pledge their love, but Marius decides to stay and fight rather than run away with Cosette. Javert infiltrates the rebel camp as a spy. The rebels lose, and Marius is hurt. Valjean searches for Marius and encounters Javert in a sewer. Although he has the drop on him, he lets Javert go, and Javert, unable to live with the thought of owing his life to Valjean, kills himself. Éponine, who has also been searching for Marius, is fatally wounded, and dies in Marius' arms after confessing her love. Valjean rescues the wounded Marius, reunites him with Cosette, and prepares for his own death in a convent. Valjean gives Cosette his confession to read about his past, then the souls of Fantine and Éponine guide him to Paradise, where those who died at the barricades ask once more: "Do You Hear the People Sing?

• Concert Production:

In my opinion, the best way to enjoy the musical numbers of Les Misérables is to watch the 10th & 25th Anniversary Concert, because the concerts were nearly "complete," missing only a handful of scenes, including "The Death of Gavroche" and the confrontation between Marius and the Thénardiers at the wedding feast. And about the cast if the concerts,it is known as the Les Misérables Dream Cast, assembled from around the world. What's more,the concert concluded with seventeen Valjeans from various international productions singing, "Do You Hear the People Sing?" in their native languages.The cast of the concerts, to name a few, Lea Salonga,Jenny Galloway, Nick Jonas,Norm Lewis and Colm Wilkinson......etc, are all incredible singers.Surprisingly,Colm Wilkinson who had been the original cast of Jean Valjean in both London and New York, starred The Bishop of Digne in the film.And Samantha Bark who starred Épone in the film is  also the cast of the 25th Anniversary Concert.