On May 2 and 4, the Lexington High School Drama Company (LHSDC) and LHS’s Drama Department put on their annual musical production, performing the musical rendition of Victor Hugo’s novel Les Misérables.
Created by Herbert Kretzmer, Claude-Michel Schönberg, Alain Boublil, and Jean-Marc Natel, Les Mis follows French ex-convict Jean Valjean after he is released from a 19-year prison sentence in 1815. Valjean is chased by a police officer, Javert, then adopts a young girl and fights in the French Revolution.
LHS’s version of Les Mis was directed by drama teacher Carly Kalivas, and featured senior Ezra Rudenko as Valjean. The production consisted of efforts from not only the cast, but also the run crew, stage crew, costume crew, production team, and pit orchestra. Preparations began in February and required joint cooperation, ultimately acting as a stressful but fun experience.
Actors in particular had to learn music, blocking, and character work. Some actors faced difficulties with their roles, especially due to Les Mis’s nature as a serious and political piece. Nonetheless, the process was exciting to the cast members.
“Jean Valjean is not a character that I normally play […] So it was very different for me to play someone who had a lot of ups and downs, a lot of levels, a lot of emotions, a lot of high notes,” Rudenko said. “But it was such a fun process coming to try these new things.”
Natalie Schroeder, a senior who was part of the costume crew, helped with hair styling . For this production, actors had frequent costume changes, especially with their wigs. Schroeder recalls one moment when an actress had to quickly change her wig from her long hair to her short hair.
“I’m the one who was helping with the hair, so I will be there to help get her wig off so that she would have that immediate transition into her short hair. […] Actors were assigned quick changes so for me it was fun standing off the side actors would run off,” Schroeder said.
Though participants in the musical were nervous before opening night, the show went consistently well and was a memorable experience for everybody.
“I wouldn’t have personally changed anything that happened for all three shows,” Rudenko said. “If there was one thing I could have done better, [it would have been to] honestly just live in the moment longer because you don’t realize how fast it goes until it’s over.”
Although mistakes are inevitable, teamwork and communication both on-stage and off-stage were essential for making the musical shine.
“Even if you don’t really know what you’re doing, the people around you are very much there to help and support you and aid whatever you’re struggling with,” Schroeder said. “At the end of everything, you’re basically like a tiny family.”
For students debating whether to join the musical next year, Rudenko encourages them to partake in the fun, community-building experience.
“Believe in yourself because you can go really far,” Rudenko said. “You will make friends that you will never forget, even the people who you think you’ll never ever talk to, you will find lifelong friends in them.”
