THE PROTAGONIST: Rowing with inmates, protagonist Peter Gibson (Jean Valjean) rehearsing a scene. Photos by the author
Fifty actors and a crew of more than 80 managing time besides their daily work schedules were involved in the production of the show. They managed to sustain a remarkably high energy level, both on-stage and off-stage, writes Umer Nangiana
It is France in the early 19th century. The prisoner 24601, Jean Valjean, breaks his parole after 19 years in unjust captivity. As he runs from re-arrest by the ruthless Inspector Javert, Fantine, a working class woman, turns to prostitution meanwhile to pay an evil innkeeper couple for her daughter Cosette’s survival.
When Valjean comes across her, Fantine is dying. He promises her to take care of the child. Somewhere along, a love triangle develops amongst Cosette; Marius, a student of the rebellion; and Eponine, a homeless girl, amid the uprising of angry students led by Enjolras. As they fight to death at a barricade, Valjean struggles to keep his adopted daughter out of harm’s way.
Yes, it is the all familiar Les Miserables, the musical based on Victor Hugo’s novel. This epic tale of love, rebellion and shattered dreams has swept audiences across the world for nearly three decades since its first adaptation.
For the first time ever in the Gulf, it recently landed in Doha. Talented enthusiasts from the platform of Doha Players (DP), an amateur drama group, took on the onerous task of staging the grand show in a place that has little or no tradition of such theatrical performances.
Hundreds of spectators were awed for five consecutive days at Qatar National Theatre, extending the-now familiar winning streak for Les Miserables from Europe to Doha.
“We haven’t had a theatre to call our own for nine years now. So putting on such an epic musical would not have been possible without the support of the Doha community,” said Phil Mitchell, the Chairman of Doha Players. The DP is a group of volunteers, who perform out of sheer passion and largely comprises people with no background or experience in performing arts.
Fifty actors and a crew of more than 80 managing time besides their daily work schedules were involved in the production of the show. They managed to sustain a remarkably high energy level, both on-stage and off-stage, over five months of production.
We went backstage to meet some of the leading characters. It is the last full-costume rehearsal day. From a corner, the scene looks chaotic. People running in and out, technicians doing last minute checks on light and sound; orchestra testing its sequences, make-up artists wounding up the last brushes and Director Mione Van Der Merwe on her toes, keeping everyone up to scratch.
Out in the lobby, you can see David Pearson (Thenardier) strolling up and down, memorising his scenes. Community caught up with Jean Valjean, played by Peter Gibson, in a boat trying to run from Inspector Javert. He had never even dreamt of landing the lead role.
“Being the lead singer of the local band The Exiles, I was challenged vocally by this role and was further tested to tap into the emotionally complex character of Valjean,” Gibson told Community.
Initially auditioning for Javert, Gibson thought his vocal range did not suite Valjean. Music director Raelene Dufresne however, worked with him to increase his vocal range.
At first, he said, Valjean’s secrets seemed out of his reach. Through hundreds of rehearsal hours, he finally, managed to discover some similarities between him and Valjean. “I then drew from my own experiences to shape my portrayal of the character,” said the protagonist.
Having such a large cast also proved to be a great help. “I felt a full range of emotions in the first 10 minutes of the show — this was incredibly powerful for me and I kept these emotions through to Valjean’s death in The Epilogue,” said Gibson of his stellar performance.
He said he found singing to be a more natural medium than speaking lines to express himself. Established in 1954, the DP has been entertaining Doha for six decades. Les Miserables was perhaps, their biggest performance.
“With meager resources and a huge task at hand, the DP was reliant on our sponsors ConocoPhillips besides ticket sales to recover the huge expenses put into production,” Elaine Potter, the administrator of Doha Players, told Community.
Community next had an exchange with Catherine Forde. She played Fantine and it was “nothing short of a dream come true” for her. “I felt empathy for her and could totally understand her desperation. I, too, would do anything if it meant my children would be kept safe,” said Catherine talking about her inspiration for the role. She also wanted to sing I Dreamed a Dream, the most recognised song from the show.
She loved the scene where Fantine is arrested. “I have just attacked a ‘gentleman’ and am going to be sent to jail. I am in total despair, I have lost everything, including my pride. I believe my daughter is ill, I am totally distraught. Such a harrowing moment for Fantine, all is lost,” she said in a total recall of the scene.
Eller Hipolito, a musician from Philippines played Javert. He was late for the rehearsal for the night as “work was first priority.” Hipolito said playing the ruthless inspector was the best moment in his life.
Like others, he, too, was offered the role, but did not go for it initially. “When they offered, I said Yes, who would deny that opportunity,” said Hipolito. He believed Javert’s song was easy to memorise and learn.
Les Miserables in Doha could only be made possible with its producers Haven Tsang and Sharon White grabbing the opportunity to purchase licence from Musical Theatre International (MTI) in the UK against a hefty amount. For this they had to convince the DP board of directors that they could deliver.
Meet the characters from the love triangle in the show was interesting to say the least. Accomplishing her childhood dream, Brigid Shine got to play adult Eponine, the street girl who gets the first bullet of the ‘revolution’ and dies.
“The journey of finding Eponine was both exciting and challenging. I loved channeling my inner ‘tomboy’ as well as exploring the very vulnerable aspects of her character as she reveals her love for Marius to the audience throughout the action,” said Brigid.
She complemented the entire production team for the show’s success. Brigid “thoroughly enjoyed” her experience of ‘dying’ onstage. “The make-up team on this production was amazing. They equipped Nick Mitchell (Marius) and myself with some special ingredients which gave me bleeding wounds live onstage, as if by magic!”
The barricade constructed by Andy Jackson and his team was a superb piece of set to work with, and she found all scenes upon the barricade incredibly exhilarating indeed.
“It goes without saying I adore Eponine’s famous number On My Own and felt privileged to have had the chance to sing such a beautiful song night after night to a packed house,” Brigid said.
Children played a key role in the drama. Gavroche, played by 11-year-old Thomas Brown, in particular, displayed incredible acting talent. It was an important character and Brown justified his selection.
When Eponine was young onstage, it was Andrea Hernandes. When asked how she brought all those facial expressions, she said, “They come in handy around the house, especially when my dad is being silly. I have been told that from birth I have had a very expressive face,” little Andrea responded.
Her resemblance to Brigid made her a natural to play Eponine for the director. Her mother helped her rehearse at home but “there’s nothing like repeating the physical movements over and over with the other actors,” said Andrea. She looks forward to doing more pantomimes and shows in the future.
Opposite her, young Cosette was played by Noemi Marzinger. “I tried to imagine how it would feel if I had to live with these horrible inkeepers, treating me like Cinderella,” Noemi said of how she executed the role.
“I think Cosette is very lonely, scared and sad. I auditioned for young Cosette because I liked the song ‘castle on a cloud’ and I always loved to sing,” the little girl pointed out. She thought she got the role also because she was an eight-year-old like Cosette. The director Mione helped her a lot with the scenes.
Forty percent of the DP members come from United Kingdom while the rest comprise multiple communities from around the world who are working in different faculties in Doha.