Les Miserables comes to Buskirk-Chumley

From peaks of painted brick in the set and the sound of wood saws humming in the distance, “Les Misérables” is in production, but it’s not a complete performance yet.

The creation of ‘Les Mis’ will be complete and ready for presentation at 7 p.m. June 19 for opening night at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater. The show is produced by Cardinal Stage Company and will run until June 29.

One challenge with the production of “Les Misérables” is that it has been done many times before.

Whether it’s a rendition on Broadway, a high school performance or on the big screen, Cardinal’s production of “Les Mis” promises to be different.

“We’re lucky that “Les Misérables” is a popular name, but we’re not lucky that people have said that they’ve seen it before,” Cardinal State Company Marketing Director Heidi Harmon said.

The conception of “Les Misérables” in Bloomington started one year ago.

Once national companies were given the release to perform ‘Les Mis’ on a stage, Production Director Randy White said he jumped at the opportunity to deliver a performance that could create a lasting impression.

“You’re always trying to find the balance between any title that’s well known and unknown,” White said. “For us, the reasons to see the show now are because it’s an all new local production and it’s a remarkable new set design.”

White said the process for creating “Les Mis” was fast. They started building the set design three months ago and the rehearsal started five weeks ago.

“The time was right because the rights were available,” White said.

“The time was right because I knew some of the singers in town and this was always something that I wanted to do.”

The only aspect that took time was casting. White said it took two or three months to find well-suited performers for the roles.

“Both the Musical Director, Sue Swaney, and myself wanted to make sure that we got the singers as the final piece of the puzzle,” White said.

Pat McRoberts is a veteran to the stage and to the lead role of Jean Valjean.

“There’s not very many people who can sing Valjean,” White said of McRoberts.
 “He’s an amazing singer, but he’s also a dedicated actor.”

The majority of the cast comes from IU’s talent pool in the Jacobs School of
Music, IU theater program graduates or current students.

“Even though we aren’t formally connected to IU,” White said. “We wouldn’t exist without the wonderful people that are here because of IU.”

This includes IU senior and Jacobs School vocal performance major Jordan Goodmon, who plays the role of Cosette, a role she said she has always aspired to portray.

“I have been a fan of ‘Les Mis’ since my sister played Cosette in a production when I was about 10 years old,” Goodmon said.

Goodmon is a seasoned singer and performer, but she said she felt excited and honored to learn from her fellow cast members.

However, a production of this level doesn’t just depend on skill but also a team effort comprising hard work, dedication and practice.

“A production of this size requires nearly daily rehearsals,” Goodmon said. “The chorus in particular plays a huge role in this show, and they’ve been working almost every day since rehearsals began in early May.”

Because the performance is entirely sung, White said the story of each scene is
illustrated through the lyrics.

“There needs to be a full world of everything that is going on in the background to show how the story is moving forward and to make sure that it’s clear storytelling,” White said.

Harmon said the anticipation for opening night of ‘Les Mis’ at the Buskirk Chumley is high.

Tickets can be purchased at the Buskirk box office or online. The base cost for adult tickets is $24.50, $13.50 for students and $9.50 for children, but the prices vary by seating location.

“I’m really excited to see what people think of it,” White said. “We want to make sure that people come and see it, but in the end, I think we’ve done the show justice.”

“I want the crowd’s reaction to be ‘My god, that was an amazing theatrical
experience,’” White said.