When “Les Miserables” takes the stage at the Dennis Flyer Theater on the Camden County College campus July 26, Cherry Hill will have a large representation among the cast.
Twenty Cherry Hill residents have been cast in the play, and Cherry Hill High School East theater teacher Tom Weaver is the director. Mainstage Center for the Arts is putting on the play. Weaver has been affiliated with Mainstage since it was founded in 1989.
It is common for high school theater students to participate in plays during the summer. However, “Les Miserables” drew a lot of interest from various Cherry Hill students. Max Hoffman, a 2014 graduate of Cherry Hill High School East who will be attending New York University for theater in the fall, was extremely excited to land the role of Marius Pontmercy.
“I’ve always wanted to play Marius, so it’s very exciting that I finally have the chance,” Hoffman said. “I see a lot of myself in him so I really enjoy playing the part.”
“This year, a lot of them felt like they would fit right into this,” Weaver said.
Many cast members are performing in “Les Miserables” for the first time. There is a lot of anticipation among them as opening night draws near.
“Being in this show has always been a dream of mine. I never thought I’d get to do ‘Les Miserables’ at such an early age,” said Elisabeth Siegel, who will be playing Fantine in the show.
The production has been a challenge for Weaver himself. He said it has been one of the toughest shows he has directed so far, along with “Aida,” Cherry Hill East’s spring musical.
“It’s harder because it’s just three hours of music,” he said. “It moves blisteringly fast. It has been equally as challenging, but it has been equally as fun.”
The familiarity between some of the Cherry Hill kids and Weaver has helped, but both Weaver and the cast agree working with the best students from all over South Jersey has been really special. There are 15 different high schools represented in the show.
“I feel like we have a very dynamic cast that works well together, and that chemistry will definitely be visible and effective on the stage,” said Sarah Robbins, who is playing the role of Cosette.
Hoffman believes working with a group of people from outside Cherry Hill has helped prepare him for NYU.
“It’s been wonderful working with a group of people that aren’t all from my high school,” Hoffman said. “It’s a great working transition from doing shows with people I’ve known for four years into working off of people I don’t really know.”
It hasn’t just been the students working with other high schools. The vocal director for the show, Jason Neri, is the music director at Camden Catholic High School and has been critical to making rehearsals successful.
“I was so grateful that he is willing to do this,” Weaver said.
Weaver is hoping the community will make the trip to Blackwood to see the students in action. He said some people don’t like “Les Miserables” because of the sadness enveloped in the story. However, he said the cast has looked beyond that and wants to portray some more positive themes in their performance.
“‘Les Mis’ is all about hope,” Weaver said. “It is all about belief.”
