Inspired by the work of Victor Hugo, this tragic musical tale examines the lives of revolutionary peasants and young idealists in 19th-century France.
Jean Valjean is released from prison after 19 years for the crime of stealing bread to feed his sister and her starving family and then attempts to find a job in regular society.
Shunned and broken, he steals again but is then redeemed, assumes a new identity and watches the cycle of poverty and shame from a different vantage point.
Basically, there is love, sadness, prostitution, consumption, revenge, revolution and plenty of big, hit numbers, including “I Dreamed a Dream,” “One Day More” and “On My Own.”
Presented by Broadway in Cincinnati, this touring production features new staging and scenery inspired by the paintings of Hugo.
Feb. 11-23. Tickets start at $31. Aronoff Center, 650 Walnut St., Downtown, cincinnatiarts.org.
This article appears in Jan 22 – Feb 4, 2020.