Marius

I really liked reading about Marius, and his friends, and his grandfather.  All the personalities and struggles were so insightful to me.    Take for example Hugo's description of Marius as a poor college student.  Privation gives birth to power of soul and mind; distress is the nurse of self-respect; misfortune is good breast for great souls.  It is with great poverty as with everything else, it gradually becomes endurable.  Marius had never given up for a single day.  He had undergone everything, in the shape of privation; he had done everything, except get into debt.  For him a debt was the beginning of slavery.  In all his trials he felt encouraged and sometimes even upborne by a secret force.  The soul helps the body, and at certain moments uplifts it.

Here are a few favorite descriptions of the young men from the Friends of the A B C.  I wish that my boys would find such deep friends when they reach this age.
Combeferre loved the word citizen, but he preferred the word man.  He believed in all dreams: railroads, the suppression of suffering in surgical operations, the fixing of the image in the camera obscura, the electric telegraph, the steering of balloons.  Combeferre represented the philosophy of the revolution.

 Enjolras represented the logic of the revolution.  Enjolras was now a man, but he seemed a child still.  His twenty-two years of age appeared seventeen;  he was serious, he did not seem to know that there was on the earth a being called woman.  

Jean Prouvaire was addicted to love; he cultivated a pot of flowers, played on the flute, made verses, loved people, mourned over women, wept over childhood, confounded the future and God in the same faith and blamed the revolution for having cut off a royal head, that of Andre Chenier.  He was well read, all day he pondered over social questions: wages, capital, credit, marriage, religion, liberty of thought, liberty of love, education, punishment; and at night he gazed upon the stars, those enormous beings. 

And I do want to share a few passages about M. Gillenormand, Marius' grandfather who raises him, but keeps the boy's father away and for it, is rejected when Marius comes of age.
Old men need affection as they do sunshine.  It is warmth.  

And the old man resumed in an angry and stern voice: "Come now, what do you want of me?" 
"Monsieur," said Marius, "I know that my presence is displeasing to you, but I come only to ask one thing of you, and then I will go away immediately."
"You are a fool!"  said the old man.  "Who's telling you to go away?"
This was the translation of those loving words which he had deep in his heart: Come, ask my pardon now!  Throw yourself on my neck!  M. Gillenormand felt Marius was going to leave him in a few moments, that his unkind reception repelled him, that his harshness
was driving him away; he said to himself, and his anguish increased; and as his anguish immediately turned to anger, his harshness augmented.  He would have had Marius comprehend, and Marius did not comprehend; which rendered the goodman furious. 

He continued: "What! you have left me! me, your grandfather, you have left my house to go nobody knows where; you have a afflicted your aunt, you have been leading the life of a bachelor, amusing yourself; you have not given me a sign of life, and now at the end of four years, you come to my house, and have nothing to say but that!"
This violent method of pushing the grandson to tenderness produced only silence on the part of Marius.

Marius had lived too little as yet to know that nothing is more imminent than the impossible, and that what we must always foresee is the unforeseen.  He was a spectator of his own drama, as a play which one does not comprehend.

Victor Hugo is equally talented in his writing of adventure as he is in romance.
 At night, when they were there, this garden seemed a living and sacred place.  All the flowers opened about them, and proffered them their incense;  they too opened their souls and poured them forth to the flowers:  the lusty and vigorous vegetation trembled full of sap and intoxication about these two innocent creatures, and they spoke words of love at which the trees thrilled.

                             
                             Pick which cast takes your fancy. 
 This concludes Les Mis week.  Sorry I didn't make it to Eponine or Javert, but I still hope you have enjoyed it.

Cosette

In the place she was called the Lark, only the poor Lark never sang.

The doll is one of the most imperious necessities, and at the same time one of the most charming instincts of  female childhood.  To care for, to clothe, to adorn, to dress, to undress, to dress over again, to teach, to scold a little, to rock, to cuddle, to put to sleep, to imagine that something is someone - all the future of woman is here.  The child becomes a little girl, the little girl becomes a big girl, the big girl becomes a woman.  The first baby takes the place of the last doll.

At certain hours, everything seems impossible; at other hours everything appears easy;  Jean Valjean was in one of those happy hours.  To be in France, to be in England, what did it matter, if he had Cosette with him?  Cosette was his nation.

Words of Wisdom in Love by Victor Hugo

"How beautiful she is!" he said in dismay.  "What is to become of me?"  Here in fact is the difference between his tenderness and the tenderness of a mother.  What he saw with anguish, a mother would have seen with delight. 

Women play with their beauty as children do with their knives.  They wound themselves with it.

And then, oddly enough, the first symptom of true love in a young man is timidity, in a young woman, boldness.  This is surprising, and yet nothing is more natural.  It is the two sexes tending to unite, and each acquiring the qualities of the other.  

As he was in Heaven, it was quite natural that he should forget the earth.  Alas!  who has not experienced all these things?  why comes there an hour when we leave this azure, and why does life continue afterwards?

"In my Life/A Heart Full of Love"

from the 25th Anniversary Concert  Nick Jonas plays Marius and can not live up to Michael Ball, but I can appreciate how much younger the story feels with this cast, which is true to the novel.  I am very impressed with Katie Hall,  her expressions and her high notes.

Jean Valjean

Jean Valjean - what a man!  I am not going to be a thorough as I was with Fantine's plot line.  Just some great quotes from Victor Hugo and some beautiful music.

"He had no weapon but his hate.  He resolved to sharpen it in the galleys and take it with him when he went out."

"His conscience weighed in turn these two men, the bishop and Jean Valjean.  Anything less than the first would have failed to soften the second."

"The pupil dilates in the night, and at last finds day in it, even as the soul dilates in misfortune, and at last finds God in it."

"He bore me through death in every form which he put aside from me, and which he accepted for himself.  All courage, all virtue, all heroism, all sanctity, he has it all, Cosette, that man is an angel!"

"Bring Him Home" from 25th Anniversary Concert

                                         "Who am I? 24601" from the 10th Anniversary Concert

Les Miserables - Fantine

Soon after I chose to feature Les Miserables for this week's Musical Monday, I decided to have a whole week of Les Miserables.  Today I will focus on Fantine, the most tragic of all Victor Hugo's characters.  Stay tuned for spotlights on all your favorites.  

When I listened to the original London and Broadway  Les Mis soundtracks as a teenager, I thought Fantine sounded very matronly, so I was surprised when I read the book and found out Fantine was only twenty years old when we first meet her.  

"Fantine was beautiful and remained pure as long as she could.  She was a pretty blond with fine teeth.  She had gold and pearls for her dowry; but the gold was on her head and the pearls in her mouth" 

"She loved Tholomyes.  To him, it was a fling; to her a passion."

I didn't register in my mind the first time I read "She wept.  It was her first love, as we have said; she had given herself to this Tholomyes as to a husband, and the poor girl had a child."

Cosette is almost two years old when Tholomyes leaves and never looks back.

"It will be seen that Fantine possessed the stern courage of life.  She had already valiantly renounces her finery, was draped in calico, and had put all her silks, her ribbons, and laces on her daughter - the only vanity that remained, and that a holy one."

"The woman had nothing in the world but this child, and this child had nothing in the world but this woman."

Mistaking Madame Thenardier as a decent woman, Fantine asks if she would take care of Cosette while she goes to find work.  "The sight of your little ones, so pretty, and clean, and happy, has overwhelmed me.  I said: there is a good mother; they will be like three sisters, and then it will not be long before I come back.  Will you keep my child for me?"

After Fantine loses her job at the factory, she sells whatever she can in order to pay the Thenardiers for "taking care" of her daughter Cosette.  She sells her last piece of jewelry, her hair and then her teeth; finally she resorts to prostitution, always desperate to provide for her precious daughter.

Then she looked at Fantine, who sadly turned her shorn head.  Fantine had grown ten years older since evening. 
 "Bless us!" said Marguerite,"what is the matter with you, Fantine?" 
 "Nothing,"said Fantine.  "Quite the contrary.  My child will not die with frightful sickness for lack of aid.  I am satisfied "  So saying, she showed the old woman two Napoleons that glistened on the table. 
 "Oh!" said Marguerite.  "Why there is a fortune!  Where did you get these louis d'or?" 
"I got them," answered Fantine.  At the same time she smiled.  The candle lit up her face.  It was a sickening smile, for the corners of her mouth were stained with blood, and a dark cavity revealed itself there.
The two teeth were gone.  She sent the forty francs to Montfermeil. And this was a ruse of the Thenardiers to get money.  Cosette was not sick.

Fantine loses another job and declares"Come! I will sell what is left."  The unfortunate creature became a woman of the town.

After years of not being able to properly care for herself, Fantine collapses from a weak chest and is never  reunited with Cosette in this life.  Here is her heart wrenching song "I Dreamed a Dream."

                                   This is Lea Salonga performing at the 25th Anniversary concert.


You know a new movie version is coming out this Christmas don't you?  Here's a taste of Anne Hathaway.

Another Love Song

I find myself singing love songs to Teddy all the time.  His first year I used to make up songs like..."Oh his name is Edward Eyre, but we call him Teddy Bear..."

Now that Ted's getting older I've been going back to my favorites that I've been singing for years to his older brothers.   "Silly Love Songs" by Paul McCartney

"Have I Told You Lately That I Love You" by Rod Steward

I didn't realize this song was written by Van Morrison.  pick which artist version you prefer

"I Can't Get Enough of You Baby" by Smash Mouth

Pippin

I was introduced to Pippin when my high school choir sang "Corner of the Sky".  I loved the sentiment of the song and  quickly found the soundtrack and piano music at the Carnegie Mellon library to teach myself the rest of the score.

Written by Stephen Schwartz,  Pippin opened on Broadway in 1972.  The music at times has a jazzy, hippy, or disco feel and definitely has very fun yet deep lyrics.  I could tell from the lyrics that Pippin is on a journey, trying to find meaning in his life, but I never could figure out the rest of the plot.  Here is a link to Wikipedia to give you lots more details in case you are interested.

                                                                 There are love songs

And here is the famous "Corner of the Sky"  from a 2009 production in Staten Island, NY performed by Billy Piscopo.  You can tell by the costumes, this director/designer stayed true to the hippy feel of the original

From the Broadway production in 1981,  here is one of my favorite songs"Kind of Woman". It's so fun to see it acted out on stage and hey! the lead playing Pippin is the greatest american hero!  William Katt

I would highly recommend purchasing this soundtrack.  It's great to sing to, and great to dance to.

Into the Woods

Today let's talk about Stephen Sondheim's clever and deep show about "what happens after happily ever after?"  This show opened on Broadway in 1987 and starred Bernadette Peters as the witch from the story of Rapunzel.  The play also includes characters from Cinderella, Jack and the Bean Stalk and Little Red Riding Hood with a brief appearance of Sleeping Beauty and Snow White.

My friend Fara introduced me to this show a year later when she made me a tape cassette recording of the soundtrack.   I remember all the talking within the music drove my mom a little crazy; I can understand now, you can only handle so much noise in the car when you are driving.

But as I am writing this I realize, Into the Woods  was the first musical I studied and learned without my parents introducing it to me.  A moment in my story of independence.

Okay, let's get on with the pictures and music.

The baker and his wife with the Witch

Little Red Riding Hood with the Wolf (who quickly changed to play Cinderella' prince)

impressive costume change

                       Red, Jack, Cinderella, and the Baker with the witch, after she has become beautiful

Did you know Amy Adams just performed in a revival this summer in Central Park?

Here is one of my favorite songs.  These princes have gorgeous voices and are so funny as they debate who suffers more agony - one whose princess runs away, or one whose is in a tower?

This is a great sampling of the Central Park production with Amy Adams.  The costumes are definitely more wild, less traditional.  I wish I could have attended, the acting looks fab.

Chaplin

I just spent the weekend with my parents in New York City!  I'll spend another post telling the whole story, but today let's talk about Chaplin.  As we stood in line to buy discount Broadway tickets, I whittled down my top choices and awaited our fate with giddy delight.  Chaplin offered us the best seats, row P in the Orchestra section.

Though I am not in love with the music, I would highly recommend this show for the acting and the story.  The story of Charlie Chaplin was heartfelt and enjoyable.  

The show stars Rob McClure as Charlie Chaplin & Jenn Colella as Hedda Hopper.  Performances by Wayne Alan Wilcox and Erin Mackey were also strong.  Costumes are all in grays, blacks, and whites until the final scene, and show off the fun styles of the nineteen teens and twenties.

                                                   Here is a clip to give you the feel.

And here is an interesting clip to show you about making a short movie to go along with a scene.  That's something I haven't mentioned yet - there is fun use of film mixed into this theatre production.

Next time you are in New York you should consider Chaplin.

Starting Over

Oh my goodness!  I came home from my Newport Beach vacation and was very overwhelmed with laundry and housework.  Since then the boys have started school and soccer, and I have traveled to Lake Como, Lake Powell and Oakland, CA.

  So many things for me to share, but I got it in my head that I needed a new look for my blog, and I wasted several nights attempting my own graphic design.   In the end I decided to just use one of the templates from blogger.  Now I'm ready.

I then thought "where do I begin?"  It's like starting over -  thus the John Lennon song from my childhood.  I am looking forward to writing again.

Aspects of Love

In 1989 Andrew Lloyd Webber wrote the beautiful music to a soap opera of a musical, Aspects of Love. The two disc cd set of the London production includes dialogue mixed into the singing, helping the listener to figure out the plot.    

Michael Ball was the star of the show, playing the part of Alex Dillingham, a young man of seventeen who falls in love with an older actress.  The show follows him into his thirties and the audience witnesses the many aspects of love.

Here are performances  for two different award shows.  The top was for the British Royal Variety Performance in 1989, the bottom was for the American Tony Awards in 1990.

You can easily see why Michael Ball was the star, smooth and handsome with a powerful voice.

Annie Get Your Gun

This weekend Arthur gave a talk in Primary about "Thou Shalt Not Covet" and  then I read an article about simplifying our possessions.  This morning I looked into my wallet and found myself singing "taking stock of what I have and what I haven't...."  So I decided its a perfect day for Annie Get Your Gun.

         My high school performed this show during my senior year, so I know all these songs well.
Here are a few pictures to show some of the fun actress who have played the part of Annie Oakley.

                                                                   Judy Garland

                                                        What a set of lungs!  Miss Ethel Merman

Prince of Egypt

I love this movie.  I have seen it many times and never tire of it.  I  remember reading the introductory captions in the movie theater, and being very impressed with Steven Spielberg.  He was being a missionary, he was sharing his beliefs with the world in a way that we all could enjoy and understand.  

   

So often we brush through stories in the bible and miss the opportunity to imagine what it really was like for the brothers, sisters and prophets that we are reading about.  Though there are creative details added to the story of Moses, Prince of Egypt really helps us comprehend the grandeur of growing up as royalty in the time of the pyramids, and then the shock of discovering Moses' real origin.

My very favorite song is "Through Heavens Eyes" sung by Jethro, Moses' soon to be father'n law.  It always fills me with hope, if we could just keep this perspective always.

Secret Garden

I started reading The Secret Garden this summer. I learned from the Introduction of the book that Francis Hodgson Burnett was from Manchester, England and immigrated to America when she was fifteen years old.  She was a very successful author, her career spanned sixty years.  Both the English and the Americans claimed her as their own.  

A hundred years later, The Secret Garden is the story that has stood the test of time.  The musical adaption, with book and lyrics written by Marsha Norman and music composed by Lucy Simon, opened on Broadway  in 1991.  The score is full of beautiful, beautiful music. 

I've chosen "Come to My Garden/Lift Me Up" which is sung by the late Lily and her son Colin, as her spirit calls him to her favorite place.  

This version is from London's production and the voices are so clear and sweet.

Well, the men in this show have an amazing duet as well.  Here is "Lily's Eyes" sung by Archibald Craven and his brother the Dr.    Hope you enjoy.

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

I hope these musical clips bring a little joy to your day; either pleasure from fond memories or enjoyment through new introductions.

Today is a good oldie, Chitty Chitty Bang, Bang.  What a creative story line!  The 1968 movie is loosely based on an Ian Fleming novel, The Magical Car. The list of characters include: an inventor, an heiress to a candy factory, a general for a grandpa, a scary, scary child catcher, pirates, a silly king and queen, a toy maker, and two children of course.

One of my favorite scenes was this "Doll on a Music Box"  with Caractatus (played by Dick Van Dyke) and Truly Scrumptious  pretending to be toys for the king, their lives depend on it!

Here is a trailer for the film, with a peek at all your favorite scenes.

Sting

Today we get to hear "Fields of Gold" by Sting, a beautiful, peaceful song about marriage.  

Last Christmas when we were in England, we spent an afternoon driving in the car. My eyes and my mind were enthralled because we discovered on BBC2 Radio, a two hour interview with Sting, in honor of his sixtieth birthday.

  I was fascinated when he told the story of how he decided to quit the Police and go solo.  I think the Police have some of the best songs in rock 'n roll, and Sting said, "well, I knew what life would be like if I stayed".  It was the unknown that drew him to leave.  I was amazed at Sting's adventurous spirit and I think he has succeeded in creating his own genre of music.

This second clip is the official video, but not accessible to hand held devices, so I have included the version above to cover all bases.

Okay, back to the subject of marriage...after all the bumps through life, to have one constant person with you is a blessing.  A blessing that we should take the best care of.  For me, the secret is to remind myself -  along with my testimony, my marriage needs constant nourishment.