Les Misérables by Victor Hugo at the Vingtième Théâtre

Wasit possible to adapt Victor HUGO's colossal work "Les Misérables" in an hour and a half? YES! The Shushenko theatre company plays it with energy and precision. The premiere was presented Saturday night at the Vingtième Théâtre and we were there.

The lights are off and the play begins with a monologue given loud and clear to present the preface of the work, the spectators are transported directly to the heart of the Hugolian adventure: "As long as there exists, by the fact of laws and morals, a social damnation; as long as the three problems of the century, the degradation of man by the proletariat, the degradation of woman by hunger, the atrophy of the child by night, are not solved; Books of the nature of it may not be useless.

All mythical characters are present

We are pleasantly surprised to find all the mythical characters of the story: Jean Valjean, Cosette, Javert, Gavroche, Thénardier …. The scenes are accompanied by musical interludes with Madame Thénardier on the accordion who becomes the narrator of the play. This is a saga rich in political and social upheavals. The actors' games are fair and very neat. The universe is colorful, contrasting, and punctuated by popular refrains. The characters juggle between the feeling of worry and that of hope.

Les Misérables: A Dark Time

We are immersed in the 19th^century, in the reality of poverty but also of social ascension. The game of the artists of the troupe is doubled. Thus, all the key characters are embodied on stage and transmit with them the microsome of their society. We thus find the victim people in the guise of Fantine, the executioner people with the Thénardier couple, the ruthless justice of men with Inspector Javert, the lenient justice, dreamed and idealized by Hugo as Monseigneur Bienvenue, the fallen bourgeoisie of the pre-French Revolution in Gillenormand, the future of the homeland with the revolutionary students Enjolras, Courfeyrac, Jean Prouvaire… and the mythical kid from Paris, Gavroche, symbol of misery and light, who aspires to two things: "overthrow the government and have his pants sewn up".

The love of Cosette and Marius 

The love of Cosette and Marius remains flawless despite the twists and turns. Spectators discover the two facets of the character of Jean Valjean, Cosette's father, both universal emblem of a man desiring recognition of having become an honest man and intimate figure of a father confused in front of his daughter.

The places: from the bourgeois to the sinister

The story of Les Misérables moves from one world to another, from a bourgeois apartment to an inn, from Rue Plumet to prison… The play is presented in a cinematic way in crossfade and with the digital help increasingly used in the world of shows.

A very beautiful piece, which is also very well interpreted by the Chouchenko company. So my friends don't wait any longer to reserve your place!

  Adaptation and staging:  Manon Montel Assistant: Stéphanie Wurtz Scenography: Margaux Compte-Mergier Costumes: Patricia de Fenoyl Choreography: Claire Faurot Lighting: David Maul Actors: Dov Cohen, Stéphane Dauch, Claire Faurot, Jean-Christophe Freche, Cécile Genovèse, Manon Montel, Léo Paget, François Pérache.   Practical information Les Misérables by Victor Hugo is currently playing at the Vingtième Théâtre 7, rue des Plâtrières 75020 Paris Until March 6, 2016 Every Saturday at 7:30 pm – every Sunday at 3 pm Additional mornings on Thursdays January 14 and 28 and February 4 at 2:30 pm Duration: 01h30