More possible Les Mis cast news

Apparently, there's even more speculation swirling around about more cast members that could possibly be in the new Les Miserables movie musical that should be coming out sometime in 2012 or 2013. As of right now, we know that Hugh Jackman is going to be Valjean, and that Paul Bettany and Russell Crowe seem to be front-runners for Javert. But who are these new people?

There are a few. But, as a disclaimer, this is all speculation. Nothing is set in stone as of right now.

Anyway. First up, we have rumors of Geoffrey Rush as Thenardier. Captian Barbossa himself. Also, Rush was also in The King's Speach, the last movie that Les Mis director Tom Hooper directed, so I suppose that this kind of makes sense. Also, of course, Rush played Javert in the 1997 Les Miserables movie. Which... let's be honest, wasn't well-received by some fans. But oh, well. I think that he could possibly do well as Thenardier.

... I think I can kind of see it. But, I also think that as of right now, he's super gray and without those curly locks. So... whatever.

Next up on the list is Helena Bonham Carter for Madame Thenardier. Most of the time, I love Helena. And I think that she could do a good job as Mme Thenardier. As most people should know, she can definitely pull off the crazy, evil side that Mme Thenardier should have. And yeah, yeah, I know... usually, most people picture/portray Mme Thenardier has heavy-set... but does she really have to be? Personally, I don't think so, especially when it's Helena playing the part.

Now for Fantine. Three names apparently being tossed around as possible Fantines are Amy Adams, Rebecca Hall, and Anne Hathaway. Personally... I'm a no-go for Amy. Yeah, she's done singing movies such as Enchanted (which, let's be honest... isn't quite Les Mis-ish), but I just don't see her as Fantine. She's too... sunny, I guess? For lack of a better word. Maybe that's just Enchanted getting to me though. Also, with Anne, sure she can sing, but does she really have a voice for Fantine? In my opinion, no. Based on looks alone, I think I'd prefer Rebecca.

Finally, we have Cosette/Eponine. And there are quite a few names being thrown around for these two, which makes me wonder if they really are that - just names being thrown around. But anyway. The names that have been listed are Hayden Panettiere, Miranda Cosgrove, Lucy Hale, and Emma Watson.

I know that nobody's actually going to ask me, but if they did, Hayden and Miranda would be thrown out from the get-go. I know it's a bit... prejudiced, I guess, but Hayden just irritates me whenever she's on the screen. Maybe it's because of her being Claire in Heroes, I have no idea. But I just don't like watching her. As for Miranda, she's a Disney kid. I mean, I guess they could put her in there... but didn't they learn their lesson from Nick Jonas?

So we're left with Lucy and Emma. I haven't personally seen much of Lucy's work, so I can't really compare. As for Emma, I think that she might be fine too. I suppose. I don't know, though. I'm on the fence for both of them.

And, that's about it. Like I said before, these names are all just speculated. There may even turn out to be no fact at all for some of them, only rumor that somebody threw in for fun. But whatever, I guess that we'll see. Obviously, this movie is probably going to be very Hollywood, and not quite as musical-theatre-only as some people hoped. But, come on... let's just be happy that we're getting a movie, right? As long as it's not completely butchered, I think that I'll be happy.

And as long as they keep the Disney kids out of it.

Les Miserables US Tour cast on America's Got Talent

Okay. So, this right here basically made me beyond happy.

The cast of Les Miserables that is currently touring the US (the cast that I saw perform in June) made an appearance last night on America's Got Talent and sang "One Day More." It. Was. Fantastic. (:

This cast features Mark McVey as Valjean, Justin Scott Brown as Marius, Jenny Latimer as Cosette (who is from Orem, Utah!), Chasten Harmon as Eponine, Jeremy Hayes as Enjolras, Andrew Varela as Javert, and Michael Kostroff and Shawna Hamic as the Thenardiers.

It brought back all of those wonderful memories from June 5, 2011. (: The only differences that I can see between this cast and the cast that I saw are Valjean and Enjolras. I saw Ron Sharpe as Valjean and... somebody else as Enjolras. But it wasn't Jeremy Hayes.

Sigh. Anyway, I realize now that I never actually posted a blog post about seeing Les Miserables. So... I will now. I saw it on June 5, 2011 (which, ironically, is the day before "Barricade Day") at the Capitol Theatre. It was amazing. (: After the show, I went to the stage door and had the amazing opportunity of meeting some of the cast. I got so many cast members to sign my playbill. It was fantastic. (:

It was all so... mind-boggling, for lack of a better word, that I didn't think to get a lot of photos. Here are a couple:

 Andrew Varela (Javert)

Ron Sharpe (Valjean)

And here's the end result of getting my playbill signed. (:

So... yeah. That was my experience. It was two and a half months ago, but I still remember it all like it was yesterday. It was amazing, I loved it, and it will definitely be the beginning of many Les Miserables experiences. (:

Les Mis Movie: Russell Crowe as possible Javert?

There's another contender for the new Les Mis movie that's in the works: Russell Crowe. Apparently, the actor is very "keen" on the idea of playing Javert.

Could this work? I haven't heard Russell Crowe sing before, so I can't really judge him on that. Based on looks alone? Hmm... let's compare him with the other speculated Javert front-runner, Paul Bettany.

Ah... I still don't know. Crowe is darker (i.e. not super-white like Bettany), like Javert is "supposed" to be, but in some Bettany photos he has this really fantastically intense look about him... so, yeah, I don't know. This one I'm just really on the fence about both ways.

But... take a look at this shot of Russell Crowe, from the movie Master and Commander (which, ironically, Paul Bettany is also in).

Remind you of anybody? No? Come one, just think about it... think about it some more...

Alright. Does this jog your memory a bit?

RUSSELL CROWE HAS THE ABILITY TO LOOK A LITTLE BIT LIKE FREAKING PHILIP QUAST.

Sigh. Just give me a second to get over that. Okay, I'm good now.

Maybe it's just me. But I see a similarity there. And it's freaking awesome.

Anyway. From what I heard, however, director Tom Hooper really wants Bettany in the Javert role. He probably has a better chance of  getting it than Russell Crowe does.

Of course, all of this possible-Javert-casting is just speculation. Nothing has been set in stone, and all of this is simply what I heard on the grapevine.

Something has been confirmed though, and that's the fact that Hugh Jackman will be in the movie, as confirmed by his rep. However, when asked about what role Jackman would actually be playing, the spokesperson only said, "I think Valjean." So, there's a possibility that he could be playing someone else... but, personally, I'm sure that he's going to be playing Valjean.
Something else that's (kind of) been confirmed? The movie will have spoken dialogue mixed in, unlike the musical, which is sung through. I'm totally fine with that. I mean, turning a theatre musical into a motion picture is going to require some changes.

I've also heard that the movie will probably start filming around February, once Hugh Jackman is done with the movie he's currently working on, The Wolverine.

February. That's in less than a year. OH MY GOODNESS.

They better cast this freaking movie soon, before I go insane.

Ramin Freaking Karimloo

Alright. So, this man right here... he's fantastic. That's all I can say. He's one of the people that I think I can honestly say I adore (okay, okay... I say that about a lot of people. But still). His voice, his face, his smile... ah. (: He's just great. And quite talented.

Ramin has played both Raoul and the Phantom in Andrew Lloyd Webber's Phantom of the Opera. He also plays the Phantom in Love Never Dies, which is POTO's sequel. He has also played Marius in Les Miserables. And, of course, there's the role that made me fall in love with him: Enjolras in the Les Miserables 25th anniversary concert. (;

Staying on that topic, let me just say that, before Ramin, I wasn't the biggest fan of Enjolras. I still liked him, I just didn't love him. There were other characters that I was more in love with. And then I saw Ramin's take on the character... and I was hooked. (: He's still not my favorite character... but I enjoy him a lot more when Ramin is portraying him. (;

Anyway. Ramin was born in Iran, but grew up in Canada. Also, he and fellow actor Hadley Fraser (Grantaire in the Les Mis concert) have a band called Sheytoons. They're actually pretty good. (:

Ramin Karimloo and Hadley Fraser

Anyway. So... yeah, that's a little bit about the fantastic Ramin for ya. Now, here's some music. (:

Here's Ramin at the 2011 Oliver Awards singing "Till I Hear You Sing," which is a song that the Phantom sings in Love Never Dies. The song starts out quiet, then from 1:40 and on, it's just... "wow."

My... bucket list.

"Life is what happens to you while you are busy making other plans." --John Lennon

... I've decided that I want to start making a bucket list. Yes, I know I'm sixteen. No, I don't plane on dying any time soon. But, if I want to get this stuff done, I need to start planning! (;

Plus, it's fun to even just dream about doing all of these things. (;

So. Here's... the beginning, I suppose? In no particular order. And I'll add to it as time goes on. And who knows? Maybe I'll even be able cross things off as time goes on. (:

CHANTEL'S BUCKET LIST

1. Visit New York
2. See Les Miserables... as many times as possible (preferably 5+ times)

3. Stand on the Pont au Change bridge in Paris. It has some significance in Les Mis (with Javert, if that gives you a hint).

<--- There's a picture

4. See the Northern lights

5. Go to California (yes. I've never been to California).

6. Get hypnotized

7. Watch someone else get hypnotized.

8. Meet Alfie Boe

9. Visit Ireland

10. Get married to an amazing guy

11. Visit England

12. Meet Simon Baker

13. Be in a production of Les Mis (even just the ensamble would be fantastic).

14. Get my ears pierced (yep, my ears aren't pierced yet. I'm too much of a chicken. But it will happen!)

15. Meet Conan O'Brien

16. Meet Craig Ferguson

Anyway... that's about it when it comes to that. For now. (:

Hugh Jackman confirmed for Les Mis movie?

Alright. So it hasn't officially been announced by the Les Mis people yet, but Hugh Jackman pretty much confirmed it himself.

Hugh was interviewed on a Toronto radio station (98.1 CHFI). They talked about a bunch of things, but about half way/two-thirds of the way in, they start talking about his musical theatre career, and then what other types of projects he would love to do. Hugh says this:

" So, I would love to do one of those [a movie-musical] one day. And, it looks like that's coming through 'cause I'm going to do Les Miserables, the movie version of it, next year. "

So... yeah. I'm assuming that that means that Hugh Jackman is officially going to be Jean Valjean in the movie-musical version of Les Miserables. Which is great. (: In a perfect world, I would have loved for Alfie Boe to have been cast in the role, since Cameron Mackintosh was supposedly interested in him for it in the beginning. But that's just the fangirl in me. (: I think that Hugh will be fantastic as well. At least he has some previous musical theatre experience! (: And he can sing. Does he necessarily have a voice for Valjean? Probably, otherwise why would he have been cast? Plus, he has the star power that may just get the general public to go out and see this movie.

"24601!"

Can you see it? I'm starting to. (:

Yep. I think that I'm slowly becoming more and more excited about this. (: As if I already wasn't. (;

Anyway. If you're interested, you can listen to the whole interview right here. (:

Oh, Grantaire.

Oh, dear. Here comes another rambling Les Mis post.

You know who else I love in Les Mis? Grantaire. Of course, there isn't much of him in the actual musical (but still enough to make him a bit lovable, of course). However, he's fantastic in the book as well. I just love him. He's such a sad, pessimistic, but also funny character. (:

As most of you may know, Grantaire is one of the student rebels who joins in on the fight at the barricade. He's a cynical, pessimistic alcoholic who happens to sign his name simply as R. Why? Because, in French, the capital 'R' is apparently pronounced a bit like "grand-air." Grantaire. Get it? It's fantastic. (;

Grantaire "doesn't believe in anything." So, why is he even at the barricade? One word: Enjolras. He idolizes him. Grantaire admires everything in Enjolras that he lacks within himself. He wants to be more than a drunken cynic, but he can't. That's why he admires Enjolras so much, because that's what Grantaire wishes he could be. He wishes he could believe in something, so he believes in Enjolras. And if Enjolras wants to start a revolution and build a barricade, then so be it.

Of course, Enjolras sadly doesn't quite feel the same way.

"Grantaire," Enjolras called. "Go and sleep your wine off somewhere else. This is a place for intoxication, but not for drunkenness. Don't dishonour the barricade."
"You know I believe in you."
"Go away."
"Let me sleep it off here."
"Go and sleep it off somewhere else," said Enjolras.
"Let me sleep here and, if need be, die here."
"Grantaire, you're incapable of believing or thinking or willing or living or dying."
"You'll see," said Grantaire gravely. "You'll see." 

 Aaaannnddd... we all know how that ends.

In the musical, we see the two of them on much more friendly terms. Grantaire still annoys Enjolras a little bit, but we still see them as friends. In the 25th anniversary concert, Ramin Karimloo and Hadley Fraser are fantastic as the two of them. (:

Something that I really love about Grantaire in the musical is a fairly new addition that I saw put into play when I saw Les Mis on June 5th. It's the relationship between Grantaire and Gavroche. They have a sort of big-brother/little-brother thing going on, and I love it. Since the turn table was gone, we didn't get to see Gavroche's death, only hear it. But Grantaire's reaction made up for that and made it all the more tragic.

I'm not too familiar with Grantaire actors, so I can't really say that I have a favorite. I do really love Hadley Fraser, though, who played Grantaire in the 25th anniversary concert. I also like Anthony Crivello, from the 10th anniversary concert.

They have, in my opinion, very different portrayals of Grantaire during "Drink With Me." Hadley's Grantaire is clearly talking to the rest of the men during his solo, and basically really taking a hit at their morale. He's clearly saying, "Do you guys realize what you're doing? We're all going to die, and there's nothing you can do about it." He doesn't necessarily care at all that he's going to be killed, but he would like to point out to the rest of them how stupid they are for getting into that situation. 

Anthony's Grantaire, on the other hand, seems to be talking only to himself. He's finally realizing what he truly got himself into, and he's terrified.

Here's Hadley. His solo starts about 47 seconds in.

And here's Anthony. He starts singing about 56 seconds in.

Notice the difference?

While I adore Hadley's voice, his portrayal of Grantaire, and just Hadley in general, I also love Anthony's take on Grantaire in DWM.

But... when it comes to my favorite... Hadley just might win this one. Why? I'm not sure.

I JUST FREAKING LOVE HIM.

Ahem. That's all. (:

Hugh Jackman can sing?!

I was not very aware of the fact that Hugh Jackman sings until a few days ago, when I saw him on the Tony Awards. He performed this hillarious song with Neil Patrick Harris (who I adore), and I was like, "Woah. That's cool." After that, I didn't think too much of it. And then I saw this headline on Google:

Hugh Jackman & Paul Bettany Could Square Off In ‘Les Miserables’

Which obviously peaked my interest. There's a Les Miserables movie-musical in the works right now, but there hasn't been much word about it since the director (The King's Speach's Tom Hooper) was announced in March. Until now. Apparently, the director really wants Hugh Jackman in the movie. As of right now (according to the article I read), he's already working out a deal with film makers. And what role is Jackman possibly going to play? None other than Jean Valjean. (:

Now, I think I'm kind of on the fence about this, but at the same time I kind of approve. Then again, no film maker is ever going to ask my opinion about this, so I guess it doesn't matter. But still. I think Hugh Jackman could maybe pull it off, from what I've heard of him. Then again, I haven't heard much. So, he could rock at Valjean, or he could bomb at Valjean. I have no idea. (: But, nonetheless, he can sing.

As for the Paul Bettany fellow, the only of movies that he's in that I've seen are A Beautiful Mind and The Secret Life of Bees. I loved him as Charles Herman in A Beautiful Mind. He's also been in A Knight's Tale, The Da Vinci Code, and The Tourist, among many others.

As for his musical history, I don't know anything about that.Which kind of concerns me. I mean, he could possibly be playing Javert. Obviously, I'm a bit attached when it comes to who plays that role. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

Of course, none of this is confirmed or set in stone. This is just what's being speculated right now.

A lot of fans are angry because they want real musical theatre people to be in this movie, not popular Hollywood actors (for the record, Hugh Jackman could be considered both). In my opinion, they can't have all musical theatre actors. This movie does need a bit of talented star power for the general public to at least go see it. I think that they need to have a healthy mix of both (as long as Hollywood can sing).

As of right now, I don't really have any prefered actors to make up the cast. I've decided that I like Hugh Jackman for Valjean. I'm still on the fence about Bettany as Javert, because I haven't heard him sing and I'm not too familiar with him. Other than that, I have no idea who should be anybody else.

... Except for one. (:

Ramin Karimloo as Enjolras? Pretty please? (:

Alfie Boe (:



Well. If you read my list in my second post, you should know all about my Enthusiast Interest with actors, both of the stage and film. Here's a stage actor that I absolutely adore. (:



Alfie Boe with Colm Wilkinson



My second favorite character in Les Miserables is Valjean, as you should probably already know. At first, my favorite actor for the character was the originial Colm Wilkinson. He was, after all, the first Valjean that I ever heard. And then I saw the 25th Anniversary Concert, and my ears were introduced to the amazing voice of Alfie Boe. (: Don't get me wrong, I still love Colm, but Alfie has definitely become my favorite Jean Valjean. (: The following performance was at the 25th Anniversary Concert at the O2 in London, and it earned Alfie a five-minute-long standing ovation. Here's a clip. (:

So... a little about Alfie, I suppose? He was born Alfred Giovanni Roncalli Boe (sweet name, huh?) in England, the youngest of nine children. He's 37 years old now. At the age of 17, he was working as a mechanic, and enjoyed singing opera while working on the cars to entertain his fellow colleagues. A client overheard him, and suggested that Alfie try out for the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company in London. He did, and so began Alfie's singing career. (: From what I've heard, his wife is from Utah, so they live here every so often, which makes me really happy. Maybe one day I'll meet him, huh? ;) Probably not, but a girl can dream! ;D

Les Miserables - the book, the musical, and why Javert is not a villain (;




Ah, Les Miserables. I'm a self-proclaimed expert on the subject. (; So, be prepared for some rambling. This is probably my biggest "Enthusiastic Interest." So I suppose I should start off my posting with this subject, yes? Yes. (: I have an indescribable love for the musical, and I enjoy the book very much as well. Starting with the book, I've only ever read the unabridged version, and I prefer the translation by Norman Denny. As of right now, I'm on my third time of reading it. It's by far the longest book I have ever read, but also one of the best. The characters and messages that this book has inside are all so beautiful and thought-provoking. I love it all.

As for the musical, I can never get enough of it. The music, the story, the characters, I'm in love with it all. Through out my entire life, I pray that I'll be able to see the musical as many times as possible. I actually saw my first performance of Les Mis live and in person this past Sunday, on June 5th. (Yes, I was so deeply in love with the musical even before I saw an actual performance of it. Thank God for YouTube and iTunes). It was an amazing experience that I'll never forget. The characters, in both the book and the musical, are so memorable and touching. My two favorite characters are the antagonist and the protagonist: Javert, followed by Valjean. Valjean is an easy character to love; his story of redemtion and the lengths he will go to to be good in the eyes of God, and also to protect his beloved daughter Cosette can touch anybody's soul.

As for Javert, many people will look at me funny when I say that he's one of my favorite characters. 'Why would you love the villain of a story?' First of all, Javert is not necessarily the villain. He's not necessarily a bad man. He's simply misguided. (:

Why do I love Javert? Well, for one thing, I'm usually a sucker for the "misunderstood" characters. Here's my take on him: Javert is the way he is because of his belief system; being born in a jail, the son of a gypsy fortune teller and her convict husband, he grew up unwelcome in society. He came to find that he had only two options in life: to attack society, or to defend it. He chose to defend it, and the law became his religion. Anybody who choses to break the law needs to be punished justly. And that's why he treats people the way that he does. It's true, he's not right in the way thinks, but in his mind, he is.

On a side note, I have one more favorite character, but this one is only in the musical, not in the book: Enjolras. Oh, Enjolras. (: I don't like him much in the book, but I simply adore him in the musical. (: So full of passion, usually quite attractive, most of the time an fantastic singer, and all-together amazing. Not my absolute favorite, mind you, but definitely up there. (; I honestly think that the biggest reason as to why I fell in love with the musical's version of Enjolras would be this man:



Ramin Karimloo. (: With a smile that could melt your heart and a voice that could melt your soul, I absolutely love this man and his take of Enjolras in the Les Miserables 25th Anniversary Concert. He. Is. Fantastic. (:

Anyway. I should probably stop this rambling now. Though, to be honest, I could go on and on. I'll save it all for later. ;D

Til next time! (:

Musings of a Fanatic (:

Well, well, well. I suppose I should say a little about myself and my blog, yes? Yes.

Why the blog name? Well, once I develop an interest for something... I can get a bit "overenthusiastic" about it. (: Some may call them "obsessions", but that sounds a bit too negative for me. I prefer "enthusiastic interests." (:

What are some of my top "enthusiastic interests," you may ask? Well, let me tell you. (:

1) Les Miserables

2) The Mentalist
3) New York City

4) Stage Actors & Movie Actors

5) Family History

6) Music

People need to be careful around me when they bring up any of those subjects, especially the top four. Because, when they do, I get a bit excited. And then I go on and on about whatever subject was brought up, to the point that whoever I'm talking to begins to wonder what they've gotten themselves into. So, I've gotten to the point where I have to severely restrain myself. (; To be honest, I think that this blog may be a sort of outlet for me, where I can ramble on and one about any of these Enthusiastic Interests of mine without annoying people. (:

So, that's kind of how this blog will be. I'll ramble about my Enthusiastic Interests, and throw in a bit of my day-to-day life in there as well, just to add some boring to the mix. (: For the first few entries, I'll probably focus on each of my "Top Six" listed above. After that, anything's game. We'll see what happens. (:

Anyway, I suppose that that's all for now. (: