Les Misérables 25th Anniversary Concert at the O2

Caption: Alfie Boe, Colm Wilkinson, Ramin Karimloo and Nick Jonas

Credit: Credit: Courtesy of Dan Wooller

Enjoy this extraordinary concert at the O2 Arena in London.

No one could have guessed on October 8, 1985, when Les Misérables opened in London at the Barbican Theatre, that it would become a worldwide phenomenon. Audiences embraced it from the start, creating a “people’s musical” that has played in 42 countries and has been seen by nearly 60 million people. In 2010, the legendary musical celebrated its 25th birthday, and to mark the occasion, producer Cameron Mackintosh staged an extraordinary concert at the O2 Arena in London. Les Misérables 25th Anniversary Concert at the 02 airs Sunday, August 21 at 8:30 p.m. WXXI-TV.

With more than 500 actors and musicians — including Alfie Boe, Jenny Galloway, Katie Hall, Nick Jonas, Norm Lewis, Matt Lucas, Lea Salonga, Samantha Barks and Ramin Karimloo — Les Misérables 25th Anniversary Concert includes the October 2010 cast of the long-running Original Production at London’s Queen’s Theatre and members of the original 1985 London cast, including Colm Wilkinson. This concert was also shown in cinemas worldwide.

Heading the cast is Alfie Boe (Jean Valjean), one of Britain’s leading tenors and best-selling recording artists, who shot to fame while starring in Baz Luhrmann’s La Bohème on Broadway, winning a Tony Award for his performance. Matt Lucas (Thénardier), one of Britain’s most successful comic actors and writers, was seen as Tweedledee and Tweedledum in Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland. Jenny Galloway is regarded as a legendary Madame Thénardier and has played the part many times, including the 10^th Anniversary concert at the Royal Albert Hall.