NOV. 27- DEC. 3, 2014 ----------------------------Cover Story • Les Misérables--------------------------- Ballads and Barricades By Jen Poiry-Prough ment supporting the melody lines that are always felt that American productions of Les some of the most beautiful phrases ever Misérables had a disadvantage because they For the past 5 years, Rich Najuch and written for the stage,” he says. “Cameron didn’t have the versatility of dialect that Brit- Joel Froomkin have produced delightful Macintosh called them ‘magic notes.’ This ish actors were able to employ,” he explains. holiday Supper Club shows at the New Hun- show is filled with themes that support the “In British productions, simply by changing tington Theatre. But to end the inaugural melody, but are absolutely breathtaking. It’s regional dialect the actors are not only able season of their main stage theatre Different one of the only shows I know where the au- to transform their characters, but they can Stages, they decided to do a bit of a 180. dience can hum the accompaniment. That’s also make clear statements regarding geo- Rather than a lighthearted holiday caba- extraordinary.” graphic location, social status and class.” ret show, they are mount- Another enhance- ing a grand production of ment Froomkin is bring- the most heart-wrenching, ing to his production tear-jerking and univer- centers on the characters sally beloved musical in themselves. He has turned history: Les Misérables. to the source material, What makes this sto- the Victor Hugo novel, to ry – about the oppressed gain insights. “I’ve really Saturday, Nov. 29 • 8pm • $15/$30 poor and a 19th century spent time with the novel French student revolution trying to understand these SUCH A NIGHT that ends tragically – so characters,” he says, “and perfect for the holidays? get back to the root of the THE MUSIC OF THE LAST WALTZ “The show’s most show’s origins.” w/KENNY TAYLOR, powerful lyric is ‘to love Froomkin contends G-MONEY, DAVID TODORAN, another person is to see that as rabid as Les Mis- the face of God,’” says érables’ theater fans are, HOLLIE SHELTON, JOHNNY Froomkin, who is the ar- this fandom did not nec- MENDEZ & KEVIN JACKSON tistic director for Differ- essarily translate to last ent Stages, “and I think year’s film production of it’s such a beautiful mes- the musical. “I think the Saturday, Dec. 20 • 6pm • $5/$10 sage for this time of year. film was visually a beauti- The show touches people ful piece of work,” he ad- in a very profound way mits, “but I felt there were A C2G and makes us so aware musical choices which of the power we have for lost a great deal of the vis- CHRISTMAS good. There is great joy in ceral affect this score can w/THE REINDEER QUARTET, the journey of these char- LES MISERABLES have on its audience.” SUNNY TAYLOR, HANNAH acters.” Wednesdays-Sundays, Rather than the oper- BUSHONG, SMOOTH EDGE 2, Froomkin sees a Dec. 4-21 (showtimes vary) atic score that was origi- connection between the Different Stages Theater nally written, he says that THE GREG BENDER BAND writing of Victor Hugo, the film “shied away from who wrote the novel the 528 N. Jefferson St., Huntington that in an effort to keep & MIKE CONLEY musical is based on, and Tix.: $44-$59, 260-454-0603 things ‘real.’ The orches- Charles Dickens, who wrote the holiday www.different-stages.com tration was so quiet that you didn’t feel the classic A Christmas Carol. In fact, he says, music in your gut the way you do when it’s the musical’s creators had been inspired to In addition to the “magic” of the music, washing over you in a theater. There was no write the show after seeing a West End adap- Different Stages’ space adds another layer bass, no heartbeat.” tation of another Dickens novel. of depth to the production. “The intimacy He places the blame on modern cin- “Les Misérables and A Christmas Carol of [our stage] allows a special bond between ema’s apparent “fear” of singing. “Film di- are both allegories of redemption,” Froom- the audience and the performer,” he says. rectors feel like they have to apologize for kin says. “The path of one man to accept The intimacy of the stage will not take [singing in film],” he says. “You hardly ever love in his heart and embrace his own po- away from the grandness of the produc- hear people sing in the trailers of musicals tential goodness. Scrooge takes his journey tion. “The set is truly epic,” he says, and it anymore. They [minimize the singing] so in one night and Valjean’s journey takes 40 includes the show’s famous barricade. “The it plays as ‘natural.’ But it really has to be years, but they are on the same path. Tiny production will move in a very cinematic the opposite; the emotion has to be bigger so Saturday, Jan. 17 • 8pm • $12/$25 Tim opens the heart of Scrooge, and Valjean way, but the audience will have the oppor- that the energy justifies bursting into song.” is transformed when he meets little Co- tunity to feel connected to the show in a way He also had the same complaint of the sette.” that is unique.” film that many moviegoers had: “There were JANIS JOPLIN Like the Dickens story, Les Misérables As in the past, Froomkin will utilize pro- performers in the film that simply didn’t certainly appears destined for all-time clas- jections against the backdrop of the set for have the musical chops to sing the score the TRIBUTE sic status with universal appeal. added texture to transform the set in what he way it should be sung,” he says. “It’s not easy to pinpoint what makes calls “a very painterly way.” In contrast, Froomkin’s cast members GO TO OUR WEBSITE something the most successful musical in He also believes that the cast that he and have strong, theatrically trained voices. “We history,” says Froomkin, but he points out Najuch have assembled has something spe- really wanted the score sung,” he says. “Our FOR TICKET INFO & MORE that one of the factors is its universal rel- cial. “In my mind what makes the difference company are all stellar musicians with in- ALL SHOWS ALL AGES evance. “The characters are so rich that ev- between a good production of this show and credible voices, and the sound they produce eryone in the audience can connect and find a great production is the ensemble,” he says, is going to be breathtaking.” their own personal way into the story,” he “and we have cast an extraordinary group Different Stages audiences are already says. of very versatile actors who work together familiar with three of the production’s stars. As for Froomkin, his love of the musical beautifully.” Two appeared in this season’s The Sound of began with its orchestration. Froomkin’s expertise in dialects will “There are passages in the accompani- also play into the production value. “I have Continued on page 8 2 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- www.whatzup.com ----------------------------------------------------------November 27, 2014 whatzup Volume 19, Number 17 he holiday festivities really take it up a notch now that Thanksgiving is soon to be in the rear view. This week we feature a variety of holiday events – and yes, we consider our cover story on Les Misérables to be among them T(you’ll need to read Jen Poiry’s feature on page 2 to learn the connection between Victor Hugo’s epic novel and Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Story, but we digress). EMBASSYFESTIVALOFTREES Fort Wayne Ballet’s The Nutcracker (page 4) and the History Center’s Festival of Gingerbread (page 5) may seem a bit more obvious, but we think there’s always room for another Christmas tradition in northeast Indiana. Besides the features on upcoming Christmas events, we bring you this week a few Christmas gifts – like Terry Ratliff’s new art gallery rising right next to the NOVEMBER 26 - DECEMBER 3 Phoenix (page 7) and Such a Night (page 6), a second helping of the recreation More than 50 beautifully decorated trees all in of The Band’s famous farewell concert from 1976. And for those of you who laughed through the Civic’s Shrek, which ended its run with a sold out show this the splendor of the historical Embassy Theatre past Sunday, we get up close and personal with the green ogre himself, actor Jeff Salisbury (page 9). That’s a lot to digest during the Thanksgiving weekend, but it’s only a sampling of EVENTS the treats that await you as you flip through the pages of your favorite free enter- tainment weekly. So read on, make plans to go out and have some fun and help us Animated holiday windows keep whatzup free by telling everyone you meet and greet along the way – espe- Breakfast with Santa cially our advertisers – that whatzup sent you. For a complete schedule, • features ROAD NOTEZ ................................. 16 FLIX ................................................ 18 visit fwembassytheatre.org On Film and Stage, Nichols’ Star Shone Brightly LES MISéRABLES .......................................2 Ballads and Barricades ON BOOKS .....................................20 Why Football Matters: My Education in the Game TICKETS THE NUTCRACKER ..........................................4 Seasonal Paws de Deux SCREEN TIME ............................... 20 As Expected, Mockingjay, Part 1 Crushes $7 for adults, $3 for children FESTIVAL OF GINGERBREAD ......................5 Edible Architecture DIRECTOR’S NOTES ...................... 22 12 and under Barefoot in the Park SUCH A NIGHT ..............................................6 Another Last Waltz $12.50 Breakfast with Santa tickets TERRY RATLIFF ............................................7 • calendars On sale Nov.