![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Jul. 2nd, 2013 11:23 amSo much as I enjoy The Hunchback of Notre-Dame as a totally ridiculous novel, secretly I think that the real reason for its existence is to serve as the basis for Notre-Dame de Paris the French musical, which I love with a TREMENDOUS AND FIERY PASSION.
Don't get me wrong: Notre-Dame de Paris is exactly as cheesy and ridiculous as you would expect. But I love the music deeply and unironically, and I even more I love how it manages to put all the social conscience that Hunchback doesn't actually have back into the story, and turns a deeply racist book into a story that does its level best to grapple with racism, and exile, and exoticization and diaspora. I kind of love that a lot.
. . . I also love the fact that it earnestly fits in songs to go along with all of the lengthy Hugo digressions that have nothing to do with the plot -- imagine if Les Mis had done that! We now pause this musical so Gavroche can sing a song about argot! HOW GREAT WOULD THAT BE -- and the completely over-the-top staging and nonsensical dancing. I LOVE EVERYTHING, OKAY.
( Under the cut, a play-by-play with screencaps, you guys know the drill )
Don't get me wrong: Notre-Dame de Paris is exactly as cheesy and ridiculous as you would expect. But I love the music deeply and unironically, and I even more I love how it manages to put all the social conscience that Hunchback doesn't actually have back into the story, and turns a deeply racist book into a story that does its level best to grapple with racism, and exile, and exoticization and diaspora. I kind of love that a lot.
. . . I also love the fact that it earnestly fits in songs to go along with all of the lengthy Hugo digressions that have nothing to do with the plot -- imagine if Les Mis had done that! We now pause this musical so Gavroche can sing a song about argot! HOW GREAT WOULD THAT BE -- and the completely over-the-top staging and nonsensical dancing. I LOVE EVERYTHING, OKAY.
( Under the cut, a play-by-play with screencaps, you guys know the drill )
