The year was 1982. Cameron Mackintosh (Enfield, England, 1946) Listen to a record brought to him by one of his collaborators; It was a French musical, which premiered two years ago in Paris, with a signature Alain Boublil and Claude Michel Schoenberg, About the novel Victor Hugo … “Les Misérables.” A year ago, Mackintosh had an extraordinary success with the premiere of “Cats,” with music Andrew Lloyd Webber. “I knew the story from the film he made in the 1930s Richard BolesławskiBut I never read the book. But I heard the first four songs, and I thought: “This is special, this is different, this is incredible.” This was the origin of one of the great titles in the history of musical theatre: Les Misérables, which premiered at the Barbican Theater in London on 8 October 1985. The work, so different from the one released in Paris, has thus turned forty years old; Since then it has been shown in London without any interruption other than that caused by Covid, has been watched by more than 150 million people in 57 countries around the world, has been translated into 22 languages and was made into a film in 2012 by Tom Hooper.
Cameron Mackintosh – Strictly defined by the producer Marcus camera As “a legend, an absolute reference and the most important producer, probably, in the history of musical theatre” – he is in Madrid today for the official premiere of the Spanish production of “Les Misérables” – the third to be produced in our country – which is being presented on the same stage where it was shown in 1992, the Apollo Theater. Alberto Mas Guerrera He signs the translation of the text, and the cast – supervised and chosen by McIntosh himself – is headed by Adrian Salcedo, Beto Manobins, Teresa Ferrer, Malia Conde, Xavi Melero, Elsa Ruiz Monleón, Alexia Pascual, Javier Manente and Kiki Neza.
McIntosh’s first idea was that his friend Alan J. Lerner, the scriptwriter for the film “My fair lady‘and’Camelot‘. Together they listened to the album – the writer’s eighth wife was the third listener – but Lerner declined the offer. “I write about people who have dreams; “You need someone who knows how to write about the real people that Victor Hugo wrote about,” McIntosh recalls Lerner telling him. “But he promised me that I would put the musical on its feet,” the producer added. “He believed in this musical from the beginning.” McIntosh says that many of musical theater’s great titles come from seemingly crazy ideas, and he has a firm conviction; Great musicals are those with great stories. In the case of the novel “Les Misérables” by Victor Hugo. “This musical is so wonderful thanks to Victor Hugo; “We are all greatly indebted to him and inspired by him.”
“I will soon be celebrating my 60th year as a producer, and when I look back, I realize that”Author productNot a “directors product”. Without a great story, you can’t make a great musical. Only great classical authors inspired me to create a show. For me, the most important thing is the story and the characters, and then I need good music to support and tell that story. But music in itself is not enough; Unless it’s dramatic and tells a story, I’m not interested no matter how good the tune is.
In 2010, to celebrate the twenty-fifth anniversary of the musical, Cameron Mackintosh wanted to create a new production for a new generation of viewers. “The original production – which can still be seen in London – was still a good show, but it was representative of its time; And for this new generation I wanted new sets, new lighting, new sound… Matt KinleyThe decorator told me about Victor Hugo’s own drawings; I thought he was twenty or thirty years old, but he earned more than four hundred. “He was a prolific artist and reflected the times very well.” Cameron Mackintosh confirms that the production of “Les Misérables” is now “more modern; we also looked for a young cast that, in addition to talent, brought something very contemporary to the show. And I don’t want a show for today; I want a show for tomorrow.” “Les Misérables” is a work that will remain alive and adapt to the times depending on who it is directed to.
Cameron Macintosh is a lover of Victor Hugo’s novel “Les Misérables” on the British island of Guernsey, where he was exiled for political reasons. “Did you know that the movie Les Misérables was so popular that all Confederate soldiers in the American Civil War carried it in their backpacks? They were known as “Les Misérables” – a play on the general’s name. Robert E. Lee-. He adds that it is a novel that tells a universal story and that is why “when people come to see the show, in any corner of the world, they understand the characters and they understand the situation.”
Also for today’s viewers. “Unfortunately, humans do not learn from the past. That’s why nothing has changed, and if we talk about politics we will become worse. When “Hamilton” came out (about one of the founding fathers of the United States) they asked me if there was anything that needed to be changed, and I said no, there are shameless politicians all over the world and we all understand what they can say and do to get into power.
The Apollo Theater had already caused problems, due to size, in 1992, and the existing producers were forced to undertake a costly renovation of the theater to accommodate the production. “Madrid is one of the most interesting cities for musical theatre, but its theaters cannot host large shows, they do not have the capacity for the stage. It takes a lot of faith and investment to create something like this West endhere, in these theaters. It’s not about the talent there; It’s about real estate. Musical theater revived dead areas in several cities and brought in huge amounts of money for tourism. “The best investment Madrid can make is to give theater owners and producers land and the ability to build decent theaters so that the best shows can come here.”