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From: joshua91m
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  • DISLiKE????????? u must be blind or deaf!!!!

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  • I'm in love with Alfie Boe forever now..

  • Lea Salonga really does look like an angel in this. I can't get over how amazing all of the voices are. The duet is pretty amazing. I just can't actually WATCH the video because the syncing is a little off, but I LOVE this.

  • "To love another person is to see the face of God"...onlly phrase we will ever need in this lifetime...

  • I got chills when the whole cast came out and sang. I started to tear up! Such a beautiful performance and many many kudos to the entire cast. I hope to be apart of the thirtieth as Eponene. Go see a little fall of rain from this show and you will cry!

  • @edwardandjulia96 would you let me know when you go to audition for the thirtieth? I'd love to be Fantine. And it's been an ambition of mine since my school did this play to be on Broadway and perform something of this likeness if not this exact play.

  • @sexymusicsweetheart I don't know when auditions are but I'm sure you can google it. Hope to see you there!

  • valjean has a beautiful voice :)

    i nearly cried when i first watched this

  • I don't really like Nick Jonas, but he did give his all. He's no Michael Ball. But that's because Michael Ball is a god. What a beautiful play, and book. Alfie Boe is a god among tenors. Dear Jesus I cried every time he sang. He's so much better than Colm.

  • Jean Valjean is the greatest example of a real man I have ever known. Through this entire story; we would all do well to learn something from him.

  • Still, for me, the 10th is the BEST... So Far... It's not because I have seen it... It's because the cast during that time was a "Power House" cast... From Colm Wilkinson to Quast, Ruthie Henshall to Lea Salonga, Jenny Galloway, Judy Kuhn and Michael Ball.. Please check it out.. I did appreciate it more.. It has this more "matured approach"...

  • I love how Alfie shakes his head when Marius calls him a saint.

    So much power in that one gesture. Even though he's dying, he wants the focus to be on Cosette and Marius's wedding.

  • Seriously??? how can neone dislike nething with Alfie Boe??? He is the best Jean Valjean ever! Colm was almost as powerful, but the emotion in Alfies voice just put him way over the top!! I love him and Les Mis@@

  • I LOVE this song, and play. So emotinal both song and play. This play, is the reson I want to be an actor. I want to be in this play and be able to say I was aprt of the musical that swept the world, to be apart of the dream. I<3 this play.

  • This incredible piece of art is not just a play, the music is simply breathtaking.

  • goosebumps starting at 0:00 to 8:21

  • This brings me to tears every time I hear it. :`) It's so beautiful and the emotion is so real and relateable. This is by far my favorite musical, and it's one that has inspired me to pursue a career in theatre. This musical is perfect. It has a wonderful, heart-gripping story that's real and touches something in every audience member. I see a little bit of myself in every character, and paired with beautiful music, I feel that that makes a wonderful musical.

  • @emopinata12345 if this brings you to tears, wait to see this same song in 10th anniversary concert it's like 10 times more emotional.

  • the french must feel proud watching this, at least i would with the flag colors at the end

  • Jonas is actually good in this... suprising ..

  • @MyWorldIsPurple grow up, please. nick did a job in this, as did the rest of the cast.

  • @suki3275 I believe that's what I just said. If you -read- my comment, I said he was good. It just surprised me. Perhaps you should lean how to read, kiddo.

  • @MyWorldIsPurple my comment was not a direct response to you, but really just referring to all the 14- year olds who came on here to watch and criticize nick jonas. now i am not a hard core fan of theirs, but i know just how hard he worked to get where he is so people shouldnt talk just cause he was on some stupid disney show. my apologies for any confusion.

  • @suki3275 Actually, if you think it wasn't a direct response to me, it was. Because you pressed the reply button to my comment. I'm into theatre, not the disney channel, so I have no idea what you're talking about. I was just suprised that a 'teeny bopper' had a voice like that and I don't understand why he does what he does and not theatre.

  • @MyWorldIsPurple ok thats fine. if you are not one of the immature people on here to comment about nick, then good for you.

  • It would be epic to be the conductor of that orchestra... you can see him way up at the top at the very end!

  • lea salonga has a pretty voice

  • i remember watching the dvd 4 da first time i started of ok and at the end i realize i was in tears

  • Shut up people. You act like Nick has never been in any shows before, but he started off on broadway before he became a pop star. I personally think he did a very good job. Alfie Boe, he NEEDS to be Valjean in the film!!! After seeing the 25th anniversary, I can't see anybody else playing him but Alfie. All I can say is that hopefully the casting is not done for publicity but for talent and a very good quality film. They really don't need big name actors for a show like Les Miz, its big enough

  • thumbs up if you saw Alfie Boe tear up at 6:25

  • I'd give up the riches of Solomon to be able to sing like Alfie for just a day...

  • Wow. is Alfie ACTUALLY crying? im pretty sure it was real. i mean. i was like.. n'aawww tearing slightly at the first 3 minutes of this song. :L

  • Honestly.. I don't see why 99% of the comment's are about Nick Jonas? I think everybody did wonderful in this version.

    When it come's down to it.. Les Miserables is a magnificint story, and that's what matters.

    If all you care about while watching this wonderful piece is Nick, then you obviously don't have the good sense to see the meaning, the emotion, the beauty, and the background story.

    Let's all grow up and take some time to appreciate this great play, and stop agruing.

  • @biggestmileyfanever1 thank you; culture and insight

  • jonas voice is so weak! Just horrible. 

  • I love this, when i first saw it i actually cried

  • VJ dies from old age but as was mentioned here, it had a lot to do with the will to live. He had honored his promise to Fantine. He was forgotten and alone 'at the end of the day' and just gave up. I don't know how old Cosette was at her marriage but I'm guessing about 17-20...anyone know?

  • @Sandra123064 The book is *very clear* that he died from a broken heart, the toll of Cosette's forgetting him too heavy, the reconciliation too late. If there was 'old age' involved it was because he aged 30 years in 1 - went from looking and acting 50 to looking and acting 80 and an ill 80 at that. I'll be pleased to give you the online book reference. If the musical makes it out that it's old age - it's not at all clear *here* what's going on - then it's a travesty of the book.

  • @IheartZorro The musical doesn't make it out that way, notes on the book (published on wikipedia et all) states it that way. He had been 19 years in prison, and the marriage of Cosette is about another 10 years out, he was an adult man when he went into prison. I'm still reading the book...haven't gotten that far yet!

  • @Sandra123064 If you don't mind the heresy, I don't remember much from the LM I saw years ago except for the turntable and the teensy miked voices. JVJ is only about 65 when he dies, so 'old age' doesn't make sense to me, especially when JVJ is supposed to be preternaturally strong. Hugo says he looks only 50 at the time of Cs wedding. What ages JVJ 30 years in one in the book, is Cosette's forgetting him for over a year because she's so wrapped up in M. Deathbed scene similar to here.

  • @IheartZorro I think what you have to remember is 65 was old age in the times this was set..

  • @MyWorldIsPurple If you're under 20 you think 30 is old. Read below. I know he's 65. From the e-book online: "He caught sight of himself in this mirror, and did not recognize himself. He was eighty years old; before Marius' marriage, he would have hardly been taken for fifty; that year had counted for thirty. " and "He was in that condition, the last phase of dejection, in which sorrow no longer flows; it is coagulated, so to speak; there is something on the soul like a clot of despair."

  • @IheartZorro Im confused.

  • I know I probably just missed it, but what exactly is Valjean dying from?

  • @inforthelose The musical isn't clear. In the book Valjean dies from a broken heart about a year and a half after the marriage - ages 30 years in one. Cosette gets so wrapped up in Marius she forgets about Valjean. Marius keeps Cosette from Valjean because he thinks Valjean is a murderer (of the mayor from Act 1 and of Javert). But, as here, there is a reconciliation just before Valjean dies when Marius finds out from Thenardier that Valjean rescued him from the barricade and Valjean dies happy

  • @IheartZorro Ah, thank you, that clears it up a lot.

  • @inforthelose Book's more complicated, natch. Valjean did confess his criminal past to Marius. M 'knew' JV 'shot' Javert at barricade. Bank clerk claimed JV 'killed' Mayor for his money (Cosette's dowry, not 'clean'). Thenardier shows M proof JV did *not* commit *those* 'murders', but claims JV *did* murder the 'body' in the sewer, shows piece of coat (not ring) as proof. M matches the piece to his own coat and realizes what JV did and did not do. Reconciliation at JV deathbed too late.

  • Ahh tearss when I watched this. T.T

  • The tears start at "I'll obey"

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  • don't die Valjean:(

  • awesome

  • God, I could have Alfie Boe sing me to sleep every night and never get tired of it. He's one of my favorite Valjeans. I love the emotion in his eyes when he sings.

  • Oh dear God above please make it so this Jonas boy was never in this otherwise fantastic 25th anniversary celebration!!! Please!!

  • @dellis80 If you believe in the physics theory that every time someone makes a decision, the universe splits into the various possibilities, then in *some* universes that's true. But alas, not in the one we're in. >.<

  • a great voice so inspiring

  • Forgive me all my trespasses and take me to your glory.

  • I think Nick did amazing and most pop singers would not have the guts to stand up and do that so well done Nick!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • What can I say - breathtaking - give Nick Jonas some credit - he is not a classically trained singer and obviously has aspirations. I say well done Nick for giving it a try. OK so his voice isn't as strong as some of the others but he has a good interpretation of the music

  • lea salonga is so beautiful n angelic looking in white

  • Thanks for putting this up Joshua.

    Alfie Boe is brilliant at interpreting songs the way I enjoy listening to them.

  • I do love this musical and everyone in it but nick Jonas is okay it's just his voice is a bit nasely and not strong enough

  • @theluna112 Nick Jonas was just a political move nothing else. nobody in their right mind would cast him as marius based on vocal talent in the 25th anniversary of all things

  • simply amazing..

  • it's too bad you can barely hear eponine's part at 6:02. that part there with lea and ruthie was amazing in the 10th anniversary.

  • Was the duple "distant drums" always there or am I just getting ignorant in my old age. I don't remember it.

  • Unlike most musicals which are full of cheesyness, it's amazin how someone just standing there and singing can have so much impact.

  • @HeyNowieH @memymusicloveables : note that I addressed his lack of training, so I am informed. If Cameron Mackintosh wanted a pop singer so he could introduce a new generation to LM that would not otherwise have watched it, then Nick is a perfect choice, as others have said. The tradeoff - and there is a tradeoff - is that he got an undertrained but famous pop star in a fairly important role, against other better-prepared but unknown singers. It's glaring if one values the art over the money.

  • Chills...then tears. Every. Freaking. Time.

  • nick jonas suck.. errr

  • @machoykeannnick was awsome!!! muah!! :)

  • I love Alfie Boe ♥ Amazing man...

    Okay, stop bashing Nick Jonas. I don't love him, nor do I hate him. I respect him, he did a great job on this. At least he wasn't cast in a teenage version of this beautiful musical. He did a great job, not the best, but he did well. If you watched interviews and such, Nick Jonas was cast because he started his career on Broadway and already had an experience. So just stop it. He did very well, and so did the whole cast! Amazing, amazing job!

  • stop with the nick bashing already. he was cast as marius for a reason. he got is start on broadway, he's not just some 'teen popstar'.

  • @araex4 Playing the child Gavroche is not exactly 'getting one's start on Broadway.' What about the Gavroche here and the small Cosette? Think they can just step into a big role in 8 or 9 years because they've played in the West End? Takes a bit more than that. The Cosette and Eponine sing the pants off him and they are only a couple years older than he is, and did not get their 'starts on Broadway' - or the West End as children. He *is* just a 'teen popstar' until he gets some more training.

  • @araex4

    Totally agree!

    Maybe he is not the best Marius but I think he was choosen to get an new generation to the muscial theater. I'm sure 1000 of young girls have seen this only because Nick Jonas was in it.

  • Every single time I hear it and they start "do you hear the people sing?" and the music slowly starts to build.. I get goosebumps every single time. It's so beautiful.

  • I love how Alfie is about to cry!! :) sooo beautiful :')

  • @pudsey4000 On the DVD it is clear he *is* crying - not about to cry.

  • Is it just me that's not bothered abotu the actors, just that this video is slightly out of sync, not so much that you could make a fuss but just enough to be a pain in the arse.

  • However, Nick is nothing compared to the original

  • Just pointing out, Nick would probably be a lot better in a real performance. When I first heard he was doing this role, my reaction was"WHAT? Hell no." But he's not bad, and I doubt anyone would pay much attention to him if he wasn't "Nick Jonas" .Besides, we cant judge him based solely on this performance. Personally, I would find it hard to go from a full out performance to sining the words with a bit of emotion just to keep things interesting. He's not the best, but he's not bad.

  • Les Mis is by far the best musical I've ever, ever, ever seen. I much preferred seeing the "acted out" version of the original London musical rather than the singing into the microphone thing. Having said that the music grandeur of the 25th anniversary version here is indeed breathtaking. Hopefully I'll be at the 50th anniversary show if there is one.

  • He's my favorite Valjean :)

  • I thought Fantine would make me cry, then I thought Eponine would make me cry, but it was this guy who finally broke me hehe. so amazing!

  • 9 people wont join the crusade.

  • I will join the crusade!!!

  • @nitewanderer hellz 2 da yea me2 :D

  • I was in this show

  • the emotion in his face is heartbreaking

  • A large part of art is interpretation. Both the 10th and 25th Anniversaries are stellar performances of wonderful musical theater - both different as it should be. I even think that the casting of Nick Jonas is good because, although he doesn't have a strong, operatic voice like the others, he has a nice, youthful voice and it fits well with the character.

  • Les Miserables makes me cry every time. I remember as a small child my parents playing and sometimes singing along with the 10th anniversary CD on car trips. only a few years ago did I actually learn the story and everything. now I'm so hooked. I find both the 10th anniversary and 25th as great and special and spectacular. no matter which one you think is better, it's Les Miserables and that's all that should really matter.

  • While the comments about Nick Jonas may have some merit, there is a positive also. I visited my 13 y/o neice last weekend. She didn't have any interest in watching it, but when I told her Jonas was in it, she watched it with me. By the end, she didn't even remember seeing Jonas, she was so into it. She watched it 3 times over the weekend. A teeny bopper type can attract youngsters to Les Mis. Plus, it could be a LOT worse - inagine a Justin Bieber Marius.

  • @immunocop that is true, if Nick Jonas EVER became Marius, I'd have to kill the directors for that blasphemy.

  • @welikepeople123 Actually... Nick Jonas DID play Marius... both at the West End and this 25th Anniversary Concert that you're watching RIGHT NOW.

  • @welikepeople123 blasphemy thants no blasphemy thats an abomination i'm sure victor hugo is turning over in his grave

  • @immunocop ... Excellent counterpoint to all the pointless Nick Jonas bashing. People also dissed the Harry Potter books as being poorly written compared to this classic and that classic. Whatever one's opinion of JK Rowling's writing skills, the reality is that her books have likely inspired an entire generation of kids to read, which is no mean feat in the age of video games and computers. I've seen many 6 and 7 year olds clutching 500+ page Harry Potter tomes rather than Nintendo DSes.

  • @immunocop a justin bieber Marius!? That doesn't even bear thinking about! *shudder*

  • @immunocop

    Brrrrr, terror just got a new meaning....

  • @immunocop I'm having the same experience with my 16yo son. He had no interest in the storyline until he saw NJ.

  • @immunocop if bieber became marius i think that id stick dull nine inch nail in my eyes...... jonas did an ok job

  • @DJangelrose42o I totally agree with the knife to the eyes, after doing my ears, of course... I think NJ did OK too - a whole lot better than I, or any of these YouTube backbenchers, could have done. Shame all these armchair critics don't realize they're not important enuf for Cameron Mackintosh to consult them on casting decisions. There's a reason he cast NJ as Marius, and who am I to argue with the man who made Les Mis what it is?

  • @immunocop Oh my god * Blacks out *

  • @giniethesinger I still wake up in cold sweats after thinking that one up... I need to stop eating pizza just before bed - oh, the nightmares... :-)

  • @immunocop hhahahahh ;) Same.. I can't even imagine what Les Miserables fans ( including me ) would do to the people who pick the actors and singers for Les Miserables if they chose Justin Bieber..ughhh :0

  • @immunocop Oh God. Thanks for putting THAT image in my head.

  • @immunocop The same thing happened with my nine-year-old cousin. Now my high school's thinking of putting on Les Mis, and she wants to be young Cosette. :)

  • @immunocop He'd be a good Chris in Miss Saigon when he's a little older

  • wow

  • Two words: Brilliance

  • @LOTR4ever1 Epic fail.

  • Alfie is a amazing ValJean! And I love Colm too!

  • I dont care if its not in sync .. coz i like to close my eyes whilst its on, its BEAUTIFUL :)

  • one of the better Valjean's <3

  • *sniffles* can some1 pass me a tissue

  • Thumbs up if you can still hear Alfie Boa over all the others near the end.

  • I l0ve it <3

  • all the actors were and are great...i was there for th original cast and believe all the subsequent casts were phenominal

  • I was unbelievably lucky to be there ! :( if only it was on again so i could go again

  • Everyone will have their personal preferences when it comes to casting but, hey, it's been running 25 years! That's a lot of performers!!! Appreciate it for what it is: a fantastic piece of concert theatre.

  • I personally think that the 25th Anniversary Concert was wonderful. Obviously people will compare it to the 10th but I think you have accept them as completely different entities. The 10th was amazing because it brought together a great (and well known) cast. The 25th was a celebration that united cast members old and new. Salonga was amazing and it was great to hear an operatic Valjean. We had an age appropriate Marius, Cosette and Eponine and the staging was brilliant.

  • VALJEAN! DONT DIE PLEASE! CAN WE MAKE IT LES HAPPINESS?!?

    -Brandon

  • Oh my. Alfie's even tearing up. I sobbed so hard through this.

  • The part from 6:10 onward is so powerful... and the true meaning of Christianity summed up. If everyone, regardless of their religion, lived according to those lyrics, the world would be a much better place...

  • I always cry when I see Gav'roche.He's awesome.

  • This song makes me cry every time i hear it,no matters who are the singers, it always is so beautiful...I love it!!!

  • Finale is so much more emotional than the TAC.

  • Amazing! I start my day in tears.

  • Amazing!  I start my day in tears.

  • wow if my friends where to find out what I'm watching they beat my ass but I love this musical the 10th anniversary better

  • its out of sync

  • this makes me so happy. always.

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  • OMG so nice video!

  • The beginning of this is so magical. Man is a BOSS

  • I just don't understand why everyone is so caught up in bashing the actor whom they don't feel was as good as another. Isn't musical theater about the freedom of interpretation? If someone did it the same as another i don't think i would respect it as much. Everyone who is singing at this level is way better than any of us. They all deserve a high amount of respect and awe. I personally happy we have so many interpretations of such a wonderful musical :)

  • @MultiZo123 Well... it depends. I sing better than Nick Jonas. And I'm not a professional singer. The other performers are amazing, by the way.

  • @SydBarker ... And if they cast YOU as Marius, how many tickets can they sell based on that casting choice?

  • @Lupin788 They can cast Justin Bieber as Marius and sell millions. But it wouldn't be Les Miserables now would it?

  • @sybaris22 ... The difference is that Nick Jonas actually has a stage muscial resume, including Broadway and more specifically, Les Miserables. And I don't think anyone will dispute that he has a much stronger voice than Bieber. I think the issue for many critics is not that Nick Jonas is doing Les Miz. Lots of pop stars do gigs in musicals. They're primarily upset he's been picked to do the 25th anniversary concert over others they see as more deserving based on vocal talent.

  • @Lupin788 Well there you go. It is quite obvious that N. Jonas playing Marius was not an artistic choice rather it was an economic one.

  • @Lupin788 They can't cast me as Marius, I'm a baritone.

    By the way, it' Les Misérables, they don't need tricks to sell tickets. And we don't need teen idols who can't sing.

  • @MultiZo123 These characters are very strong. They are based on strong personalities. As we engage ourselves (invest if you will) in the evenings production we must as, human beings, take up strong opinions about one performance or another. This is OUR nature. Of course it shows poor form to "bash" someone as you say but, like interpretive song and dance, the expression can be all over the place.

    My favorites in the production are the Thenediers but than again who would say otherwise.

  • @MultiZo123 It's a fair point, Alfie Boe is no Colm but then who the hell is? But I've seen four different actors perform Valjean live and they all easily surpassed his performance. There's more to playing the role than good singing.

  • @MultiZo123 I fully agree with what you say, it's the music and not whoever sings that makes it so wonderful !!

  • @MultiZo123 - I SO AGREE WITH YOU 100%

  • @MultiZo123 If you're talking about Nick Jonas, I will say that he's not as terrible as I thought he'd be. I don't think he can be called a great Marius by any means, and for the 25th anniversary edition, there were plenty of actors/singers with a much more powerful voice that should have been cast over him.

  • I watched this on tv today and its really good in my opinion, I dunno why half you people are shooting down these singers.

  • @jthm1989

    Cause they're all used to listening to the 10th :P I think if this was the first version of Les Mis they heard, they'd understand and have a little more respect, lol.

  • wtf does that... jonas boy on that stage as marius? are the broodway producers that desperate? fml

    *facepalm* *facedesk*

  • @1991corina1 don't blame it on america blame the uk :D

  • valjean shouldnt have saved nick jonas...

  • Also, that moment when the singing changes to the music of "on my own". That moment always takes my breath away as well.

  • It never fails....every single time I see this, there is that one part where Fantine and Eponine bith start singing together. Each and every time that one glorious moment sends shivers down my spine and gives me goosebumps.

  • When ever Alfie's voice started to crack from crying, I LOSE IT. It's so emotional. They all did a great job<3

  • I think Nick Jonas did wonderful in this version!! He displayed the innocence and inexperience and confusion of young love with the role of Marius extremely well.

  • @yomeaka Yes. Nick Jonas does seem very confused during this. Mostly because he is like "Why are there so many people with talent on this stage."

  • @yomeaka I totally understand you're point with that. He did do very well. But when you compare him to a voice as powerful as Alfie Boe or Ramin Karimloo (Enjolras) he just doesn't stand up to them vocally. He jsut wasn't ready for this role.

  • @loopyknutjob97 Or at least not ready for this role in this venue, with these other performers, at this time. An acquaintance of mine who is a *big* Nick fan was curious about this performance 'cause she'd heard about it. When I played her this finale, *her* reaction was, 'OMG, he sounds like a baby next to everyone else.' I.e., not that his performance was bad, but that his voice isn't as large as everyone else's. But if he trained for stage, would his voice lose the character his fans love?

  • I wish this would play correctly. stupid slow computer!

  • When Fantine and Eponine duet it honestly sounds like angels singing. -tear-