Reviewed by Lovell Estell III
Studio/Stage
Through July 26
In considering Planta Genista’s production of British playwright Jonathan Holloway’s adaptation of the Victor Hugo classic, the phrase that readily comes to mind is “work in progress.”
The action is set in Paris — not the strife-torn city years removed from la grande revolution — but in the years between 1936-1945, when the ugly specters of WWII and fascism were looming over Europe. It is here we find Pere Madeleine (George Almond) a respected citizen and the wealthy owner of a cabaret, who is actually former convict and thief Jean Valjean, who is being relentlessly pursued by Inspector Juvert (Joe Hulser). Enter Fantine (Savannah Crafton), and her young daughter Cosette (the delightful Sophia Lilinoe Cesario), whom Valjean befriends. Fantine gradually falls victim to poverty and illness, and Valjean finds himself the de-facto guardian and parent of Cosette, and they are soon on the run, caught up in the violence and uncertainty of the era.
This show clocks in at nearly three hours, but it feels more like six. Director Jed Alexander’s pacing is excruciatingly ponderous, and the pall of tedium grows exponentially from the opening cabaret scene on. The novel’s grand core themes of love, self-sacrifice and courage are barely articulated, and performances are all patchy, especially the deadpan Almond, who often mutters his lines indecipherably.
Studio/Stage, 520 N. Western Ave., L.A., Fri.-Sat., 8 pm.; Sun., 7 p.m.; through July 26. https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1654460
