by Lorie Lewis Ham
Les Miserables opened Friday night at the Reedley Opera House and runs until the beginning of August. We wanted to share with you a great promo video that was made for the show–below the video is all the basic info you need! Hope you go out and support local theatre and enjoy this fun show. Watch for a review here at KRL on Wednesday!
Video provided by RCTC
Reedley’s River City Theatre Company proudly presents its summer blockbuster Les Misérables from July 12 through Aug. 4 at the Reedley Opera House.
Based on the French novel by Victor Hugo, the musical replaces the originally scheduled Oklahoma! as the summer show in River City Theatre’s 10th Anniversary season lineup.
Director Mark Norwood got word this past November that Music Theatre International (MTI) had released the rights to the full show for amateur productions. A slightly edited “school edition” (shorter by about 30 minutes) has been available for school productions since the early 2000s, but not for community theater companies like RCTC.
“We immediately jumped on the opportunity,” Norwood said. “We knew that the show would eventually be released to groups such as ours.”
Set in early 19th century France, Les Misérables tells the story of the peasant Jean Valjean, who serves 19 years in prison for stealing a loaf of bread for his starving family. After breaking parole to start a new life, he is ruthlessly tracked down by police inspector Javert. They become intertwined with a group of young revolutionaries as the story unfolds almost entirely in song.
“It is certainly an incredible opportunity for performers to sink their teeth into some incredible musical theater,” Norwood said.
The operatic score is extremely vocally demanding for the lead roles, requiring not only the vocal chops but the stamina to perform for nearly three hours. RCTC board member Erik Valencia said that the cast is made up of an amazing group of actors from throughout the Central Valley who are ready to deliver the goods.
“Les Misérables is one of the most beloved theatre titles, so we had tremendous interest at auditions from some of the top talent in the Valley,” Valencia said. River City Theatre’s Les Mis’ cast is made up of actors from Reedley, Fresno, Clovis, Kingsburg, Dinuba, Hanford, Visalia and Tulare.
“The fact that the rights have just been released for full amateur production, and the fact that, RCTC is one of the first theatre companies in the Valley to produce it, makes it a pretty exciting project for all,” Valencia said.
When: Performance Dates: July 12, 13, 14, 18, 19, 20, 21, 25, 26, 27, 28 August 2, 3, 4
Where: Reedley Opera House, 1720 10th Street, Reedley, CA
Rating: Parental Guidance is suggested
Price: Sundays at 2 p.m. and Thursdays at 8 p.m. – $20 (dessert available for purchase)
Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. – $25 (includes dessert)
Dinner and Show – $38 (dinner served Fridays and Saturdays, reservation required)
Phone: (559) 638-6500 or toll free (866) 977-6500
Website: www.reedleyrivercitytheatre.org
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