BY Camille Borodey
Orientation Editor
For its spring musical, the Central Theatre Ensemble is performing “Les Misérables,” which is arguably one of the most difficult Broadway musicals to put to stage. In Les Mis, almost every single line of dialogue is sung instead of spoken.
“This show is right on the verge of opera in terms of the amount of singing,” Ben Sasnett, senior musical theatre major, who plays Jean Valjean, said.
Being the lead in a musical that’s close to three hours long, Sasnett found his role extremely demanding, and he believes it’s one of the most challenging roles on Broadway.
“It’s been really hard to try and combine acting and singing together,” Ben Sasnett said, “but it’s been so fun and such an honor.”
Ben Sasnett has seen six stage versions of “Les Misérables,” and when he was 14, he read the original text, written by Victor Hugo in 1862. Since “Les Misérables” is his favorite book, Ben Sasnett hopes that he can portray the character with honesty.
“My character may be my favorite literary character,” Ben Sasnett said, “so it’s daunting.”
Ben Sasnett is grateful for the theatre department and everyone who is involved in making “Les Misérables” possible.
“I feel so lucky because it’s a once in a lifetime opportunity to play a role like this,” Ben Sasnett said.
Ben Sasnett’s brother, Joseph, is playing Javert, the antagonist to Jean Valjean. Joseph Sasnett recalls that he and his brother used to pretend they were the characters when they were younger.
“Ben and I used to jump around in the living room,” Joseph Sasnett said, “so to be being able to do it up on stage is great.”
Ben and Joseph Sasnett come from a family of performers. Both of their parents are singers and actors.
Joseph Sasnett’s favorite song to perform in the show is “Stars.”
“It’s the first number in the show that shows Javert’s human side,” Joseph said.
For costumes, Joseph gets to wear an officers outfit and commoners clothes. He is also thrilled because he gets to sport a big, fancy hat and carry a sword.
“I can’t believe how many costumes they had to make for the show,” Joseph Sasnett said.
Joseph Sasnett thinks Javert is very different from any character he has played before.
“He looks down on people as worthless scum,” Joseph Sasnett said. “It’s hard to identify with him.”
Junior musical theatre major Tara Nix plays Fantine, a woman who is forced to work as a prostitute in order to support her daughter, Cosette.
“Not having a child,” Nix said, “I had to figure out what in my life was so special to me that I would sacrifice my own life.”
Although Fantine is only in the first act of “Les Misérables,” the book goes into a lot more detail about Fantine’s life and struggles. Nix says that she did a lot of research for her part, and she even carries around a notebook with pictures and quotes from Fantine.
“This role is very human,” Nix said. “There’s nothing over the top about it like in other musicals.”
Nix’s big number in the musical is “I Dreamed a Dream.” Nix admits she’s nervous for the number since she will be on stage alone.
“I just want it to focus on Fantine and what she’s going through,” Nix said. “I don’t want it to be a diva moment.”
Freshman musical theatre major Shelby Horton plays the part of Cosette, Fantine’s daughter, who is adopted by Jean Valjean. Horton has experience in Les Mis; she played Éponine in a high school production of the play.
Many of the girls in the production have to wear corsets, which can be very uncomfortable.
“They can be painful at times,” Horton said. “You gotta make sure you get a good breath before you sing.”
Horton’s favorite number to perform in “Les Misérables” is “A Heart Full of Love.”
“The music is so beautiful,” Horton said, “and I love working with Brandon and Nikki.”
Senior musical theatre major Brandon Peterson plays Marius, a student and revolutionary who is involved in The Paris Uprising of 1832, and falls in love with Cosette.
Peterson found challenge in his role because he is used to singing baritone, but Marius is more in the tenor range. Joseph Sasnett gave Peterson voice lessons to help him with his singing.
“I’ve learned the most from working on this role than any other role I’ve worked on,” Peterson said.
Senior musical theatre major Nikki Delmarter also sings in “A Heart Full of Love.” She plays the part of Éponine. In the original text, Éponine is quite different from the stage version. Delmarter wanted to merge both versions of her character for the role.
“The book Éponine is so much colder and so much more manipulative,” Delmarter said. “The musical makes her more of a victim”
Delmarter says that Éponine is very different from the other roles she has played, as she is used to playing characters like Cosette.
“I usually play a lot of princess-type roles,” Delmarter said. “They’re all very girly-girl, golden age type of characters.
The role of Éponine’s father, Thénardier is played by freshman Nicholas J. Main. Main found the play difficult because of how much singing is involved.
“When I get a musical script, I take the text first,” Main said. “It’s a challenge to find when a line is at its peak.”
“Les Misérables” can be very sad at times, and Main enjoys that his character is comic relief. For his part, Main gets to wear crazy, clashing, patterned outfits, a fat suit and had to dye his hair.
“Theatre for me is just playing on stage,” Main said, “and that’s what we get to do every night.”
“Les Misérables” opens May 9 and closes May 18.
“Come see it. It is worth it,” Peterson said. “We’ve poured our heart into this production, and I think it could be life changing for anyone in the audience.”
