on Harry, you might get a kick out of Harold Bloom's take.

http://wrt-brooke.syr.edu/courses/205.03/bloom.ht...

But time has flown, so you'll probably miss this.

I feel so fortunate to be able to express my love for the theatre and to sometimes reflect on the political or cultural impact of a show.

I’m just going to respond to one thing here. For those that object to “injecting politics” into a show like Les Mis, let me say this:

As I have expressed in other posts here at BH, the left have an unending opportunity to inject their philosophy and their perspective at all stages of the creation of a play. From the leftist universities where aspiring playwrights are supposed to be educated, to the leftist non-profit theatres where young playwrights are supposed to be developed, to the Democratic Party-funding theatre owners’ and producers’ offices where young playwrights need to sell their product, to the workshop or rehearsal process where young playwrights have their visions molded by bohemian actors and directors, all the way through opening night where young playwrights have their work evaluated and reviewed through the prism of leftist theatre critics.

I work in an industry which allows politics to be injected at every stage of the creative process and now you are asking me to sit silently when, on those rare occasions, I finally see something on stage that moves me at my deepest level and speaks to my fundamental values.

I am constantly asked to work on “Rent” or “A Chorus Line” and to overlook the politics and appreciate the talent that is up on the stage… and I do, I really do. But when I see my values and my politics up on the stage once in a blue moon, I will stand up and I will cheer and I will tell the world why.

Thanks, again, for reading.

* The parallel between Valjean and Javert is showcased in the musical to great effect; much of their revealing numbers (“What Have I Done” and “Stars”) are even set to same music. (And in a nice book-ending way, so is “Javert’s Suicide”.) I found this a beautiful illustration of Hugo’s relentless emphasis on *values*. Both men pursue them diligently; Javert only realizes too late his are tragically distorted. But that revelation actually doesn’t make him any less conscientious, and true to his own code: when he realizes he’s fundamentally wrong about Valjean, he takes the only logical course to a man of real principles.

* The portrayal of the Thernardiers are, to me, a tragic missed opportunity. I suppose you need some comic relief in all this revolution and romance, but these are the *true* villains of the story — characters *without* values, amoral, in a “world where the dog eats the dog” — and to portray these wretches as humorous gamesters *badly* misses this point. Because they’re funny we’re not really supposed to take them seriously — and we really should.

Oh, and Valjean was in prison for 20 years, not 17. At least in the musical.

I have seen the show numerous times and also believe that it’s one of the best Broadway has seen.

The Tenth Anniversary DVD IS a gem!!