It was October 2010. The O2 Arena in London was packed, not for a rock concert or a prize fight, but for a musical that had already been running for two and a half decades. Most shows fade. They get dusty. They become "tourist traps" that people see once and forget. But the 25th anniversary concert of Les Miserables was different. It wasn't just a performance; it was a massive, high-stakes victory lap that almost went off the rails because of one very controversial casting choice.
If you were there—or if you’ve watched the DVD until the disc started skipping—you know the energy was electric. You had over 500 performers on that stage. The sheer scale of it was ridiculous. We’re talking about a show that literally defined the "megamusical" era of the 80s, proving it still had the lungs to out-sing anything on the West End or Broadway.
The Nick Jonas Gamble
Let’s talk about the elephant in the room. Or rather, the pop star in the French Revolution. When Cameron Mackintosh announced that Nick Jonas would play Marius, the theater world basically had a collective meltdown. People were skeptical. Honestly, "skeptical" is putting it lightly. They were furious. They thought it was a cheap marketing ploy to sell tickets to teenagers who wouldn't know a barricade from a bicycle.
And look, if we’re being real, Jonas struggled. Standing next to titans like Alfie Boe and Norm Lewis is a tall order for anyone. His voice, while great for radio, lacked that specific vibrato and power required to fill an arena. During "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables," you could feel the tension. But here’s the thing: his presence brought a whole new generation into the fold. It was a calculated risk that, while musically uneven, ensured the show's longevity. It's a weird paradox. The performance that purists hated is often the reason their kids started liking musical theater.
A "Dream Cast" That Actually Lived Up to the Name
Usually, when a producer says "Dream Cast," they’re lying. It’s usually whoever was available on a Tuesday. But for the 25th anniversary concert of Les Miserables, they actually pulled it off.
Alfie Boe as Jean Valjean was a revelation. Before this, he was mostly known in operatic circles. After this? He was the definitive Valjean for a new era. His "Bring Him Home" was so quiet, so controlled, that 17,000 people in a tin-can arena held their breath at the same time. You could hear the air conditioning. That doesn't happen often.
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Then you had Norm Lewis as Javert. He brought a soulfulness to the role that made the character feel less like a cardboard villain and more like a tragic figure trapped by his own rigid morality. His "Stars" is still, arguably, the best version ever recorded. Lea Salonga, moving from Eponine in the 10th Anniversary to Fantine here, provided a bridge between the show’s history and its present. It felt like a passing of the torch.
- Jean Valjean: Alfie Boe (The powerhouse)
- Javert: Norm Lewis (The authority)
- Fantine: Lea Salonga (The legend)
- Thenardier: Matt Lucas (The chaotic energy)
- Enjolras: Ramin Karimloo (The revolutionary)
Ramin Karimloo as Enjolras is a whole other story. He looked like he walked off a movie set and sang like he was trying to tear the roof off the building. His chemistry with the rest of the student revolutionaries gave the second half of the concert an urgency that often gets lost in the staged version.
Why the Concert Format Worked Better Than the Play
There’s a weird thing about Les Mis. The book is 1,400 pages of Victor Hugo rambling about sewers and Waterloo. The musical is three hours of intense singing. Sometimes, the revolving stage and the heavy sets actually get in the way of the music.
The 25th anniversary concert of Les Miserables stripped all that back. No turntable. No giant barricade moving around. Just microphones, a massive choir, and an orchestra that sounded like a localized thunderstorm. By removing the "theatrics," the raw emotion of Schonberg and Boublil's score took center stage. You weren't watching actors pretend to walk through Paris; you were watching people inhabit the grief and hope of the lyrics.
It also allowed for that massive finale. Having the original 1985 cast come out to sing "One Day More" alongside the 2010 cast and the touring cast? That’s fan service done right. Seeing Colm Wilkinson (the original Valjean) stand next to Alfie Boe was a "passing the baton" moment that brought the house down. It turned a concert into a historical event.
The Sound of 17,000 People Crying
The acoustics of the O2 are notoriously hit or miss. It's a tent, basically. But for this recording, the sound engineering was miraculous. They managed to capture the intimacy of Fantine’s death alongside the roar of "The People's Song."
What most people forget is that this wasn't just one show. They did two performances on that Sunday. The one we see on the recording is a blend of the best moments, but the energy of the evening show—the one where everyone knew they were making history—is what radiates through the screen. Samantha Barks, who played Eponine, was so good in this concert that it basically handed her the role in the 2012 Oscar-winning movie. She outshone almost everyone else on that stage by sheer force of will.
The Technical Hurdle
Managing a choir of hundreds while keeping the lead singers in sync with an orchestra that’s twenty yards away is a nightmare. Conductors usually hate arena shows. But the precision in the 25th anniversary concert of Les Miserables was tight. You don't get that "lag" you often hear in live stadium recordings. It felt immediate. It felt dangerous.
How to Experience the Legacy Today
If you’re looking to dive back into this specific performance, don’t just settle for the YouTube clips. The full Blu-ray or high-definition digital versions capture the facial expressions that you miss in the wide shots. You can see the sweat on Ramin’s brow and the actual tears in Lea Salonga’s eyes.
Steps to get the most out of the 25th Anniversary experience:
- Compare the Valjeans: Watch Alfie Boe’s "Bring Him Home" and then immediately find Colm Wilkinson’s version from 1995. The difference in technique—opera vs. grit—is a masterclass in character interpretation.
- Watch the Background: Look at the "students" on the barricade. Many of them became massive West End stars in their own right. It’s a "who’s who" of British theater.
- Listen for the Orchestration: This version used a slightly more modern, "fuller" orchestration than the original 80s synth-heavy pits. It sounds more cinematic.
- The Finale Encore: Stick around for the very end of the recording. The speeches are a bit long, but the four Valjeans singing together is the peak of the franchise.
The 25th anniversary concert of Les Miserables remains the gold standard for how to celebrate a long-running show. It didn't try to reinvent the wheel; it just reminded everyone why they liked the wheel in the first place. Whether you’re a Jonas Brother apologist or a die-hard Alfie Boe fan, there’s no denying that this specific night in London changed the way we look at "concert versions" of musicals forever. It wasn't just a birthday party. It was a statement that Les Mis is, and probably always will be, the world’s most popular musical.
To truly appreciate the impact, track down the behind-the-scenes footage of the rehearsals. Seeing the original 1985 cast meeting their 2010 counterparts in a drafty rehearsal hall puts the scale of this production into perspective. It wasn't just about the 17,000 people in the arena; it was about the thousands of actors who had worn those rags over twenty-five years. That’s a lot of history to pack into one night, but somehow, they fit it all on that stage.
Actionable Insights for Fans
- Digital Access: The concert is widely available on major streaming platforms like Amazon Prime and Apple TV for rent or purchase.
- Physical Media: Seek out the "25th Anniversary Collector’s Edition" which often includes the 1995 10th Anniversary concert for the ultimate comparison.
- The "Les Mis" Marathon: If you really want to feel the weight of the story, read the "Bishop Myriel" chapters of the novel before watching the concert. It adds a layer of spiritual depth to Alfie Boe’s performance that you can’t get from the lyrics alone.
- Live Experience: While this specific concert was a one-time event, the "Arena Spectacular" world tour currently mirrors much of this staging and scale, bringing that 2010 energy to new audiences globally.