French spectacular!
3 Nov 2006
The opening night of the musical, Notre-Dame de Paris was truly highly anticipated.
Being a French enthusiast, I wanted to be part of the magic and grandeur of the opening night. Be mesmerized! Be captivated! I was prepared to indulge in every single moment of the musical.
Being the debut show, the atmosphere was great for a musical as the red carpet streamed in guests in gowns and suits, and many others in the audience who had great respect for the evening also came dressed for the event.
The show began with the musical hit, Le Temps des Cathedrales, as Gringoire took the stage. This was the one of the most iconic scenes in the musical and I was filled with rather high expectations from Gringoire, considering the fact that I was first drawn to the musical by this very scene . Gringoire is the narrator of the story, a poet in Paris. Played by Cyril Nicclolai, he had given a pleasing performance but not as impressive as the original cast played by Bruno Pelletier. The musical mainly depicts a complicated love story in which three men, the hunchback bellringer (Quasimodo), the priest of Notre-dame(Frollo) and a soldier (Phoebus) whom were all attracted to a gypy (Esmeralda). As it goes, a heart can only belong to one and so this sparked off the hatred, revenge in this story. In short, the very extremes of obsession; one, which turned a man evil in his jealousy & unfulfilled desire and another quiet obsession gone unrequited. Rejections. Friendship. The harsh reality that Beauty & the Beast doesn't exist in this story.
The acrobatics incorporated with the musical were splendid. There was a scene where Quasimodo climbed down from the tall wall of the cathedral.
Déchiré sees the part of the show where Phoebus was split between two women, and male acrobats dancing in the background. The scene had a very strong visual impact. Beau comme le soleil is another beautiful track sang by Esmeralda and Fleur-de-lys on their admiration and love for Phoebus.
There are screens with subtitles which I would much prefer to be removed as they are mere distractions from the stage, even though I still couldn't understand fluent french, I chose to focus more on the music and the live scenes which are more meaningful than spending time to decipher the interpretations flashed across.
Though the remaining of the cast are not from the original cast in 1998; Quasimodo (Matt Laurent), Esmeralda (Nadia Bel), Phoebus (Laurent Ban), Clopin (Roddy Julien),Phoebus (Jerome Collet), Fleur-de-lys (Chiara de Bari), music is definitely still the selling point of the musical. Though every single verse is in French, you can't help but fall in love with the music and keep asking for more. And to Cyril's credit, he brought the audience to a high with an encore of the hit at the end of the show. The audience response was admirable as they were welcoming in their applauses and at the end of the musical, even the VIP guests rose from their seats and took honour to show their appreciation for the cast.
Though I took too many sneaks before the actual musical resulting the fall in the surprise and 'wow' elements, the night was certainly a feast to the ears. Notre-Dame de Paris marked my very first time to a musical and my very first french musical!
check out more on the musical www.notredame.com.sg
The opening night of the musical, Notre-Dame de Paris was truly highly anticipated.
Being a French enthusiast, I wanted to be part of the magic and grandeur of the opening night. Be mesmerized! Be captivated! I was prepared to indulge in every single moment of the musical.
Being the debut show, the atmosphere was great for a musical as the red carpet streamed in guests in gowns and suits, and many others in the audience who had great respect for the evening also came dressed for the event.
The show began with the musical hit, Le Temps des Cathedrales, as Gringoire took the stage. This was the one of the most iconic scenes in the musical and I was filled with rather high expectations from Gringoire, considering the fact that I was first drawn to the musical by this very scene . Gringoire is the narrator of the story, a poet in Paris. Played by Cyril Nicclolai, he had given a pleasing performance but not as impressive as the original cast played by Bruno Pelletier. The musical mainly depicts a complicated love story in which three men, the hunchback bellringer (Quasimodo), the priest of Notre-dame(Frollo) and a soldier (Phoebus) whom were all attracted to a gypy (Esmeralda). As it goes, a heart can only belong to one and so this sparked off the hatred, revenge in this story. In short, the very extremes of obsession; one, which turned a man evil in his jealousy & unfulfilled desire and another quiet obsession gone unrequited. Rejections. Friendship. The harsh reality that Beauty & the Beast doesn't exist in this story.
The acrobatics incorporated with the musical were splendid. There was a scene where Quasimodo climbed down from the tall wall of the cathedral.
Déchiré sees the part of the show where Phoebus was split between two women, and male acrobats dancing in the background. The scene had a very strong visual impact. Beau comme le soleil is another beautiful track sang by Esmeralda and Fleur-de-lys on their admiration and love for Phoebus.
There are screens with subtitles which I would much prefer to be removed as they are mere distractions from the stage, even though I still couldn't understand fluent french, I chose to focus more on the music and the live scenes which are more meaningful than spending time to decipher the interpretations flashed across.
Though the remaining of the cast are not from the original cast in 1998; Quasimodo (Matt Laurent), Esmeralda (Nadia Bel), Phoebus (Laurent Ban), Clopin (Roddy Julien),Phoebus (Jerome Collet), Fleur-de-lys (Chiara de Bari), music is definitely still the selling point of the musical. Though every single verse is in French, you can't help but fall in love with the music and keep asking for more. And to Cyril's credit, he brought the audience to a high with an encore of the hit at the end of the show. The audience response was admirable as they were welcoming in their applauses and at the end of the musical, even the VIP guests rose from their seats and took honour to show their appreciation for the cast.
Though I took too many sneaks before the actual musical resulting the fall in the surprise and 'wow' elements, the night was certainly a feast to the ears. Notre-Dame de Paris marked my very first time to a musical and my very first french musical!
check out more on the musical www.notredame.com.sg
Picture from www.notredame.com.sg
Lune performed by Bruno Pelletier
posted by Jerylene at 16:55
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