 Les Mis at the Palace Theatre, London |
The original arena version of Les Misérables opened in Paris on September 18, 1980 at the Palais des Sports.
The London debut took place five years later, on October 8, 1985 at the Barbican Theatre before moving to the Palace Theatre on December 4, 1985. The show closed there on March 27, 2004 to re-open at the Queen’s Theatre on April 1, 2004, where it currently plays. The show opened in New York on March 12, 1987 at the Broadway Theatre before moving to the Imperial Theatre, where it closed on May 18, 2003, which made it the second longest-running musical in Broadway history. It won 8 Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Best Book and Best Score. Only three years after the original run closed, Les Misérables began a return to Broadway on 9 November 2006 at the Broadhurst Theatre for a limited run that was subsequently made open-ended. The revival closed on 6 January 2008. There is talk of another Broadway revival to open in 2014. There have been dozens of other productions, national tours and now, most recently, amateur productions. It has been seen by millions of people worldwide. Besides London, the show is still on tour in the U.S., and can currently be seen in the Czech Republic, Korea and Japan. A movie version of the musical was released in 2012. If you’re interested, you can watch a commercial from the show’s Broadway run. |
 Les Mis at the Imperial Theatre in New York |
Les Mis at the Queens Theatre in London