Ever wanted to be in one of the most famous musicals of all time, but have zero professional experience?
Well, one exciting theatre project – Let the People Sing – has given amateur performers the chance to star in Les Misérables at Bristol Hippodrome this month. Rosanna Spence catches up with the production’s co-director Alex Turasiewicz to uncover the fascinating streets-to-stage story behind the show (Photos by Stewart Mcpherson).
“Do you hear the people sing?” is the rallying cry that bookends one of the most famous musicals ever to be written, having echoed around some of the world’s greatest stages since 1980. This celebrated lyric from Les Misérables, which was of course adapted from Victor Hugo’s novel by Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg, takes on an even more poignant meaning this year thanks to a joyful new project that will see ‘the people’ (aka anyone interested in amateur dramatics from all walks of life) take to the stage and celebrate 40 years since the French musical first opened at the West End.
Let the People Sing is a UK-wide initiative from Cameron Mackintosh and Music Theatre International, who dreamed a dream that has blossomed into 11 community-wide productions of Let the People Sing: Les Misérables gracing major stages in cities across the UK to mark the anniversary – including eight performances at the Bristol Hippodrome from 13-16 August.
Making the magic happen locally is a vibrant collection of groups who have been diligently collaborating: BLOC Productions, Weston Operatic Society, Bath Operatic & Dramatic Society, Bristol Amateur Operatic Society and Bristol Musical Comedy Club. With so many interested parties involved, heaps of creative vision flowing in every direction and a monumental musical to master, you’d be forgiven for assuming this mammoth project could have easily derailed. But, as I found out from speaking to Bristol’s co-director Alex Turasiewicz – who was beaming with pride – it’s been anything but a headache. Instead, Let the People Sing: Les Misérables been a transformational experience, epitomising everything that’s exceptional about communities coming together to create amateur theatre.
“It really is something special,” Alex tells me with a broad smile. “Different in the best way. There’s a real sense of excitement around it, which is just tremendous. What’s been so important, too, is how collaborative the whole process has been.”
Above right: Brendan Casey (Musical Director)
Joining the crusade
Even his role as co-director has been collaborative, working closely alongside fellow director David Baxter throughout the project. More than 700 people registered their interest to audition for the production, which needed a double casting of the principal roles, and a final 142 players.
“We were expecting a big response and we got it,” recalls Alex. “We had to narrow hundreds of people down to our final company, which meant holding five rounds of auditions.
“The first round focused purely on vocals, no acting, just singing. Each audition centre had its own panel of three judges. They marked the performances, and that helped us make our initial selections. After that, we held four more rounds, one each weekend. Each round demanded more, from singing a short excerpt at first, to performing a full song by the final stage.”
The final auditions happened in January, with the help of artistic advisor Chris Key from Cameron Mackintosh (“He was wonderful and incredibly helpful”). The process was tough for both the panel and hopefuls.
Cameron Mackintosh called it
Let the People Sing because he genuinely wanted people to feel they could come in from the street and take part
“Making it to the fifth round and not getting cast is really hard,” notes Alex. “Even though it’s amateur theatre, the emotions are the same. People invest so much and have high hopes. In the end, we cast two sets of the nine principals, 18 lead roles in total. We also cast 12 children, a 42-person ensemble, and two separate off-stage choirs. There are 30 singers in each of those groups alone. The scale of this production is huge, and it’s been genuinely exciting.” Among the key roles cast were David Bryan, originally from Cornwall, and Lewis Oatley from Frome who are sharing the role of Jean Valjean. I was interested to know what qualities Alex and his team were looking for in their community artists?
“What was interesting is that not everybody cast belongs to an am-dram club,” he explains, giving context. “Cameron Mackintosh called the concept Let the People Sing because he genuinely wanted people to feel they could come in from the street and take part.
“We wanted people who could sing, of course, that’s essential. The music in this show is iconic and really well known. But just as important to us was finding people who could act, who could really play the character. The danger with songs that are so familiar is that they become just that: a performance of a song. But we wanted to tell the story. The narrative is key.”
A fresh take
Alex points out that from the very first rehearsal, nobody had a script in their hand: “It’s been absolutely incredible; they all learned it, they knew it. People have been preparing for this for 18 months and it shows. So now, even with songs they’ve known for a long time, they’re discovering something new every time.”
Unearthing new perspectives might feel daunting with such a renowned body of work, but Let the People Sing puts emphasis on original interpretations. “We’re not trying to be radical with it, but we are aiming to add our own stamp,” says Alex. “That’s what makes it so interesting. And, of course, this show comes with such an incredible history, and people know this musical so well. I’ve had people tell me, ‘I don’t even like musicals, but that’s my favourite one.’ And it’s actually hard to explain why it resonates so much.”
Alex and David’s goal has been to develop characters in new ways and look at different angles, having gone back to the original book to find those deeper influences. “While we’re telling the story as a musical, I’m looking to see what elements from the book we can bring in. The novel is massive: 1,500 pages or 65 hours on audiobook, so naturally a lot gets left out. The stage version moves quickly, but we’re hoping to find space for some of the detail and richness from the original. ”Ours will definitely be different from the other 10 productions out there.”
Images: (Above left to right)Harrison Waterhouse & Leo Sermulins (Marius) with Anna Townhill & Jessica Holden (Cosette); Costumes in the making
Rehearsals have been taking place weekly in City Academy and “the energy in the building has been phenomenal”. Alex has been inspired by the way the setting, costumes, hair and makeup has been coming together.
“In one room the cast is rehearsing with Alex and David. In another the musical director (MD, Brendan Casey) or the assistant MD/vocal coach (Kat Stevens) is working one-to one with singers. Costumes are being made down the hall. The production team is having meetings. It’s all happening at once and that kind of buzz is rare. People from all areas are interacting. The props team is talking to performers, designers chatting with cast, it’s the essence of what theatre should be: people collaborating.”
You may have been to an amateur production before. And living in Bristol, it’s more than likely you’ve watched a show at the Hippodrome. But combining the two experiences is rare. Alex believes that although Let the People Sing: Les Misérables is an amateur production, the standard remains incredibly high. “It’s not about lowering expectations, far from it. All the clubs involved are strong in their own right, and together, I think we’ve created something really special.
“I just hope people will come and experience a story that truly resonates. The story is so important, it matters. Even though it’s set in France between 1815-1833, it’s very much about today. It’s about people enduring hardship, surviving austerity, and most of all, it’s about love. And in a story like this, there’s always someone, a character or a moment that hits home for each person watching. For me, and I think for many others, it brings up real feelings, like loving someone who doesn’t love you back. That feeling of emptiness and hopelessness is powerful. That’s just Éponine’s story; she adores Marius, but he’ll never really see her.
“There’s so much humanity in this show. I think people will see that and feel it. It’s a wonderful story, and I hope when people come, they’ll see that it truly comes alive on stage.”
Let the People Sing: Les Misérables is at Bristol Hippodrome from 13-16 August. Tickets can be bought via atgtickets.com/bristol. Keep up to date with the local production via its Instagram page @ltpsbristol
