When I come to theater I am after some magic. What exactly do I mean by magic? Well, a well-made solid production (or any art work for that matter) usually fits the formula: 1+1=2, while the one with magic in it is more like 1+1=6¿#dh7. In the new production of Notre-Dame de Paris the musical (NDDP) I found exactly this kind of magic in Victor Hugo's story, Riccardo Cocciante's music, Hiba Tawaji's Esmeralda and Daniel Lavoie's Frollo.
The main magic of the show is built on Hugo's timeless story driven by romantic and sexual passions but curiously lacking a single proper romantic couple. However I would argue that it's exactly the theme of unrequited love which echos in so many hearts.
The music of NDDP has some true magic, even if only for the fact that it does not fade and does not get tired with years. I can only imagine the effect it would've had with live musicians.
Hiba Tawaji. It is difficult to play a romantic female lead, they are the most boring ones, but Hiba does it with a natural ease. She looks the part and also sings and dances with equal professionalism, but her magic is not about that. The main thing in her is a rare stage charisma, the one of the luminous quality. One can't take one's eyes off her, she is as if lit from within. In any case, there is no question why this girl ignited all these passions - how could she manage not to?
But the main magic of the show is Daniel Lavoie who as Claude Frollo gets to carry the theme of unrequited love to the ultimate heights, and in my opinion he is the main reason to see the play, so the rest of this very subjective post will be about him.
Ironically Lavoie, who was expected to assure continuity and provide the comfort of name/face recognition to the fans of the musical - ended up introducing the biggest creative change into the production. His character is the only unrecognizable one in this French revival (not just in appearance, of course). Gone is the fresh-faced big-eyed first-time-in-love young intellectual, this time we see a tough man in power who falls into an absolute abyss of his own passions. Naturally, the distance of the fall is huge this time around and that makes watching his dizzying trip down even more exciting...
Of course, while speaking of Lavoie, it is difficult not to mention his vocals. And so yes, the voice of his Frollo sends shivers down the spine, his every note is filled to the brim, and the audience familiar with the singer is also well familiar with this effect.
Also, I am never tired of mentioning the rare presence which Lavoie possesses and which allows him to effortlessly fill out the entire huge stage of Paris's Palace of Congresses (unfortunately, no video can capture something like this in entirety). But I would like to mention two aspects of this work that made me discover a new Daniel Lavoie the musical theater performer, the aspects that are fundamentally different from Lavoie's work as a solo performer.
Firstly, in the musical Lavoie openly demonstrates great emotions, passion and vulnerability, something he avoids in his solo work. It's not in his personal style to "tear passions to tatters", but in the NDDP he does exactly that, and with what gusto! The internal torture, the lust, the shame, the frustration, the fury - turns out Lavoie is a perfect channel for these emotions (that magic factor), his psycho-physical makeup is ideal for the big-scale theatrical expression. And since these emotions are the show's raison d’être - basically we come to the musical to get thrown off our feet by other people's passions! - Lavoie's Frollo makes the musical.
Secondly, I want to dwell on the actor's craft of Lavoie's work in NDDP, which I personally got to appreciate for the first time, having only seen solo performances before. It's fascinating to observe how precise his physical characterization of Frollo is. His huge eyes (which are probably visible even from the back row) first present the world with an icy-cold stare and later they are torn open by the agonizing madness (and taking you to its abyss right along). The quintessential actor's face perfectly expresses big emotions but also very nuanced smaller, "hidden" ones (and Frollo gets to hide a lot!) The arm gestures are commanding (when directed at others), or neurotic and helpless (when directed at himself or his unattainable object of desire). The posture goes from straight and imposing to the bent and broken. There is also a range of walks - from confident steps of a person used to his power over others to the wobbly legs and tottering of someone who has lost his footing for good... Lavoie's character building tools are rich and he uses them skillfully, and this can only be discovered in a musical! This alone may be worth the price of admission, but then there is that voice...
In short, Daniel Lavoie in NDDP-2016 is a magic of musical theater at its best, so a huge thanks goes to the producers who gave it to the audience.
P.S. A small, but very important update in the new production: they have finally fixed the Greek word, now it is the proper "Aνάνκη". Hip-hip-hooray!
Daniel Lavoie in a heart-wrenching Tu vas me detruire. Video from December 2 2016 performance, courtesy of Tatiana.
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