Les Misérables 1991 Epilogue/Finale

Gary Morris as Jean Valjean, Gretchen Kingsley as Cosette, Peter Gunther as Marius, Susan Gilmour as Fantine, Susan Tilson as Eponine
[VALJEAN (with only a bare wooden cross for company)]
Alone, I wait in the shadows
I count the hours till I can sleep
I dreamed a dream Cosette stood by
It made her weep to know I die
Alone at the end of the day
Upon this wedding night, I pray
Take these children, my Lord, to thy embrace
And show them grace
God on high, hear my prayer
Take me now to thy care
Where You are, let me be
Take me now, take me there
Bring me home
Bring me home
[Fantine's spirit appears to Valjean.]
[FANTINE]
Monsieur, I bless your name
Monsieur, lay down your burden
You raised my child in love [VALJEAN]
I am ready, Fantine
At the end of my days
She's the best of my life
[FANTINE]
And you will be with God
[Marius and Cosette rush into the room. They do not see Fantine.]
[COSETTE]
Papa, Papa, I do not understand!
Are you alright? They said you'd gone away
[VALJEAN]
Cosette, my child, am I forgiven now?
Thank God, thank God, I've lived to see this day
[MARIUS]
It's you who must forgive a thoughtless fool
It's you who must forgive a thankless man
It's thanks to you that I am living
And again I lay down my life at your feet
Cosette, your father is a saint
When they wounded me
He took me from the barricade
Carried like a babe
And brought me home to you!
[VALJEAN]
Now you are here
Again, beside me
Now, I can die in peace
For now my life is blessed
[Cosette]
You will live!
Papa, you're going to live!
It's too soon
Too soon to say goodbye
[Valjean]
Yes, Cosette
Forbid me now to die
I'll obey... I will try...
On this page
I write my last confession
Read it well
When I, at last, am sleeping
It's the story
Of those who always loved you:
Your mother gave her life for you
And gave you to my keeping
[Valjean dies.]
[FANTINE (beckoning)]
Come with me
Where chains will never bind you
All your grief
At last, at last, behind you
Lord in Heaven
Look down on him in mercy
[VALJEAN]
Forgive me all my trespasses
And take me to Your glory
[Marius comforts Cosette while Valjean joins Fantine and Eponine.]
[FANTINE & EPONINE]
Take my hand
And lead me to salvation
Take my love
For love is everlasting
[VALJEAN, FANTINE, & EPONINE]
And remember
The truth that once was spoken:
To love another person is to see the face of God!
[The spirits of Enjolras, Gavroche, and the revolutionaries are heard and appear.]
[ENSEMBLE (softly, gaining strength)]
Do you hear the people sing?
Lost in the valley of the night
It is the music of a people
Who are climbing to the light
For the wretched of the Earth
There is a flame that never dies
Even the darkest night will end
And the sun will rise
They will live again in freedom
In the garden of the Lord
They will walk behind the ploughshare
They will put away the sword
The chain will be broken
And all men will have their reward
Who will join in our crusade?
Who will be strong and stand with me?
Somewhere beyond the barricade
Is there a world you long to see?
Do you hear the people sing?
Say, do you hear the distant drums?
It is the future that they bring
When tomorrow comes!
[FULL CAST]
Who will join in our crusade?
Who will be strong and stand with me?
Somewhere beyond the barricade
Is there a world you long to see?
Do you hear the people sing?
Say, do you hear the distant drums?
It is the future that they bring
When tomorrow comes!
Aah, aah, aah
Tomorrow comes!

[@bookemdano7567]

Awesome!! Back when Les Mis was phenomenal! With the original revolving stage and sets. Not edited, no over singing, no over exaggerated movements and no rushing through the songs. Pure joy!

[@ggiantsintheskyy5670]

the old cosette costume was awful. It looks more with a funeral dress than a dress cosette would wear, that'a the one thing i prefer in the latest productions. This and the instrumentals and acting

[@bookemdano7567]

@@ggiantsintheskyy5670… Cosette’s dress is demur, innocent and pure, which is how Cosette would have been raised. One, for spending years in a convent and two, for being raised by Valjean who had turned to god. As, for the orchestrations, although they are good, back in the day, in the older production, the orchestra was comprised of 30-35 musicians playing that magnificent score. Nowadays you are lucky if there are 12 musicians in the pit.

[@ggiantsintheskyy5670]

@@bookemdano7567 i'm talking about the black one

[@bookemdano7567]

@@ggiantsintheskyy5670 … yes, I am too.

[@lamisere8337]

@@ggiantsintheskyy5670 I don't have a problem with Cosette's original Black dress but I didn't mind too much when they changed it to a light-colored one for the 2006 Broadway revival because it communicated a similar message of a strictly conservative household, uptight, cautious, with limited freedoms all of which was Valjean remaining off the radar knowing Javert is after him and for her and his safety. She expresses love for her father but also yearns for more freedom and openness. The dress is a visual reflection of her strict, sheltered life. The light blue Disney Princess like dress currently in use in the 25th anniversary low-budget gross sham of a production fits right in.

[@tonimichelle7776]

This was my first show. I was a rebellious teenager, and I sat in stunned silence the entire time. I had no idea what it was about. But I was forever changed. ❤

[@fRo0tLo0p]

"Forgive me all my trespasses and take me to Your Glory." Let those be my final words too.

[@erickortiz5632]

This great actor is the perfect recreation of Valjean's book, is perfect

[@timnco2752]

The guitare 😍

[@ACMallet]

The guitar here and throughout the entire show is awesome! I'm glad someone remarked on how much it adds :)

[@juanmorales24601]

Thank you for upload this :)

[@DylanSouthern]

Ahh the one and only epilogue

[@martinpatrick9915]

Susan Gilmore a very talented actress from Edmonton.

[@landonkately]

amazing

[@caleb1413]

Any chance of uploading Bring Him Home?

[@ACMallet]

Be patient, young Caleb. It's all edited and will be ready for upload soon.

[@kaceeconklin2330]

Tissues please!

[@timothychapman269]

What is this from, what production. Where performed?

[@ACMallet]

First National Touring Company

[@lamisere8337]

For the detail-obsessed (like me): Production: 1st U.S. National Tour (aka: Valjean Company) City: Los Angeles, CA Venue: Pantages Theatre Run: 13 January 1991 - 9 March 1991 Opening Night: 20 January, 1991 @ 8 pm Engagement: This was the 2nd Los Angeles engagement of the show's original production. The show's 2nd U.S. National Tour (aka: Fantine Company) had previously played at L.A.'s Shubert Theatre for 14 months during the 1988-89 season. Although officially labeled a tour, that premiere engagement was actually a sit-down production with an open run and a local cast. This 1991 engagement was more of your typical tour stop but with the same high-quality production standards. Fun Facts: -Los Angeles is the only other city in which Gary Morris performed the role of Valjean after first doing the role in the original Broadway production in 1988. His entire performance is featured in the Complete Symphonic Recording of the show. -Susan Gilmour has played Fantine in various productions. She was initially cast in the original Toronto production which was a sit-down then became a tour. Gilmour then performed in the original Broadway production. She went on to perform the role in the 3rd U.S. National Tour (aka: Marius Company) alongside Colm Wilkinson as Valjean when he briefly returned to the role for a Toronto engagement in the late '90s; and she last played the role in the original version of the show with the African/Asian Tour. -Richard Kinsey performed Javert in the original Broadway production alongside Debbie Gibson as Eponine in the early 90s and appears on an E! Behind the Scenes special on Broadway's Les Mis giving the camera crew a makeup tutorial for his character. -The 1st National Tour of Les Miserables premiered @ Boston's Shubert Theatre in December 1987 and played in major East Coast cities. The tour closed @ Chicago's Auditorium Theatre in September1991. -Los Angeles is the only West Coast city the 1st National Tour played in. Every other engagement was in an East Coast city. The 1st National Tour had return engagements to almost every city it performed in which included Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Detroit, Washington D.C., and Los Angeles. All except L.A. and Baltimore had return engagements. -Like the show's 2nd and 3rd U.S. national tours, the 1st National Tour was an exact replica of the original Broadway production. Same scale, same designs, same quality, same exact show. No corners were cut for touring. - After the 1st U.S. National Tour closed in Chicago in 1991, it was shipped overseas to the U.K. where it became the U.K. National Tour.

[@kevinmay9151]

What cast is this? My mom told me the first time she saw les mis was a tour in like 1991/92 and it was the first time she saw a touring show. The sad part is that she could not understand a SINGLE word, she didn’t get les mis til she saw a high school production years later. Does anyone know if this was a tour?

[@ACMallet]

This is from the First US Tour (known as the Valjean Company). By 1991 there were three companies touring nationwide. The casts were different, of course, but other than that they were essentially identical productions.

[@lamisere8337]

@@ACMallet Correct. If anything was wrong with the performance his mom saw it was because of the acoustics of the theatre or some other thing unrelated to the production. Everyone who saw one of the Cameron Mackintosh productions whether it was a touring version or the Broadway production saw the exact same show. Even the sound system was meticulously recreated from the original sound design on Broadway and in London for every production. People always expected the 3rd national tour to be a cheaper version of the original--including yours truly. After I saw the 3rd national for the first time in December 1992 also at the Pantages, I was so relieved it was identical to the 1st national and 2nd national I had previously seen and loved so much. Saw the original Broadway 6 times and again, exact same thing. Everything from the 34 ft diameter revolve, that massive brick set with shuttered windows, the huge barricade, and the way it comes in during act two. There's only one difference in the 3rd national and that was the omission of a smaller center revolve within the large revolve. It is used only one time during "Lovely Ladies" and is so minor, I never noticed it when I saw it on Broadway. In that number the smaller center revolve is locked to the floor so the whores remain stationary in the center as the revolve around it turns. If I didn't care that was dropped, trust me, nobody would care (I was manic about the various productions being identical and would've been very upset if they cut anything important or at all but that was really minor). Mackintosh revolutionized the touring industry with his productions because he always believed that people in the sticks were just as deserving as New Yorkers of getting the royal treatment so he stubbornly ensured everyone got the same thing. There were attempts to flatten the raked Les Mis stage for the 3rd national tour by the design team because they felt it would make the show tour much easier but he insisted it remain and to do whatever it takes to implement it in the most efficient manner possible. They attempted other simplifications but Cameron would have none of it. The original London production required 8 semi-tractor trailers to be transported from the Barbican to the Palace Theatre. Guess how many trucks the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd national tours required to transport the show from city to city...also 8 for each tour. Nothing was scaled down or cut back. Cameron was my hero back in the day as a result. Now I don't recognize him, lol. He has cheapened Les Mis so much, I also don't recognize the show anymore either. Grrr.

[@ACMallet]

@@lamisere8337 Excellent post and very informative. I have such fond memories of that First US Tour in 1991 at the Pantages. I saw it three times with Gary Morris and he's still my favorite Valjean. In all, I saw the show a total of eleven times between 1987 and 1994 including three times on Broadway and once on the West End. I haven't seen it since and now I see it's coming to the Pantages again in August' I am very tempted to go again (to make it an even dozen -- yeah, that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it). Perhaps you can give me some details of what exactly will be different from the productions I saw previously. Which reminds me: A few weeks ago, I saw a new version -- new to me, at least -- of "Les Miserables: The Staged Concert" on PBS, with Mackintosh, Boubil, etc., in attendance and on stage at the end. It was, I believe, shot in 2019 on the closing night of its run at the Gielbud Theater in London. I must say I didn't much care for it. Nice stunt casting to have OG Marius Michael Ball now playing Javert, but to me he just isn't right for the role. And don't get me started on the Thernardiers. I know they're supposed to be "over the top" but there was a little too much breaking of the fourth wall with winks and nods to the audience. And I know it was a concert but it appeared they were using the set that they used for regular performances, which to me looked very small and cheap. The Barricade, for example, looked to be less than half the size of what I had previously come to expect. (Maybe it just looked smaller to me because of the way it was shot?)

[@lamisere8337]

@@ACMallet Oh wow, where do I begin? As far as the designs, they have changed a lot while clinging onto some of the original's design concepts. The is still a surrounding gray brick set of various layers upstage and above and on the sides are buildings with doors and a tunnel as well as windows. The major changes are loss of the revolve and the sometimes seemingly forced variations on the original direction and staging. For example, in the original, Fantine died on a bed toward the right side of the stage. In the new version , she dies on a bed toward the left side of the stage and with a projection of a window above her. There is a wooden platform-like thing that is wheeled onstage for Master of the House. Large walls with balconies and windows appear during Look Down. Scene changes are sometimes obscured using a wall made up of shutters that cover the entire width of the stage. It is used during On My Own and they open from the center and are very tall. A much larger and more elaborate gate is used for Heart Full Of Love and In My Life. A very odd choice since the gate isn't really an important set piece and the newer larger one looks similar to the original. The lightiung is the next biggest change and it fails to convey that magical visual contrast between the all grey, colorless set and the action that is being lit which was always lit in a color that made it "pop" making each scene appear to be projected onto a dull canvas except it was real and in 3D. Now the new lighting is far too dim most of the time and when it's not looks like the designer uses nothing but lanterns and candles to light the stage. A lot of shadowy effects are used much like the way shadows are used in the original at the conclusion of Lovely Ladies. The new designer takes that look and concept and overuses it throughout. Gone is that beautiful yet melancholy stage picture of those shuttered windows glowing softly with amber light surreounding Eponine during On My Own. Now they project some random shuttered windows onto the set but I had to strain to see them and they did not create that iconic moment, sadly. The direction is similar to the original, which is unavoidable due to the fact John Caird and Trevor Nunn created a direction that is so basic so as to not distract from the story that it's brilliant. How many different ways can you stage I Dreamed a Dream without looking desperate to make it different? The same goes for every other number. The flow and momentum of the original is what is lacking in the new version and they don't provide any wow factor when scenes are changing like the original did with its fluid revolve. The directors couldn't avoid the direction being similar to the original so they went ahead and had a field day with the tempo and the way the songs were delivered and also the acting. Les Mis in its original production was already very dramatic and emotional but the new version takes that and amplifies it by 1,000. Expect to hear more grunting, screeching, Ahhhhh-ing!!!!, and general very over-the-top emoting throughout. Beware of the crazy tempo which kills most songs' emotional impact. The costumes are the same for the individual characters but the ensemble costumes are different in that they are more colorful. All costumes now look like they were dry cleaned before the show, even those smeared with theatrical dirt. They look cheaper made. Eponines iconic trenchcoat seems to be made from cheap felt like the kind that kids in Kindergarten uses during arts and crafts and Eponine is seen wearing it during One Day More, which is retarded. There are some nifty animations and stills projected onto the set several times during the show. One Day More ends with the simulated marching and a projection of a city street zooming in so as to give the impression they are moving forward. It's unimpressive. I really liked the projection of a cross atop a church ominously projected behind Valjean during What Have I Done. Who Am I makes clever use of projections and animation as does the sewer scene which uses more effectively motion to simulate being inside a film. I disliked Javery taking flight and moving his limbs about as if being sucked into hell's asshole, but that's just me. The orchestrations...cut by half and sigh...ineffective. To say the least. The most devastating change to me, definitely. I hope you like it more than I did.

[@ACMallet]

@@lamisere8337 Thanks for your thoughtful reply .. and your timing is impeccable. I have tickets for this Thursday's performance at the Pantages Theatre in Hollywood. It will be my 12th time seeing it, but the first time in 30 years! You've given me a lot of great info on what to look for and what I can expect, and for that I'm very grateful.

[@filmicreviews3270]

Finale 6:33

[@JohnJamesOrange]

Who is ac mallet?, is he still alive.

[@ACMallet]

Last time I checked I was still alive. Cheers!

[@tylermackey6495]

He never said my Lord

[@lamisere8337]

He flubbed a lyric. I believe this was the performance of the first preview which was on 13 January, 1991 @ 8 pm. Morris hadn't performed the role since originally doing it on Broadway in 1988 so he forgot some lyrics. Same with Susan Gilmore (Fantine). She hadn't performed the role since doing it on Broadway a few years back and flubbed the lyric "Look down on him in mercy." She sings instead "Look down upon him mercy."