SEVEN CANADIAN PERFORMERS
TO JOIN COLM WILKINSON IN THE CAST OF
LES MISÉRABLES
FOR ITS EXCLUSIVE TORONTO RETURN ENGAGEMENT
OPENING JULY 21, 1998 AT THE PRINCESS OF WALES THEATRE
Susan Gilmour, Michael Todd Cressman, Timothy Howar, Sharon Matthews, Regan Thiel & Jessica-Snow Wilson Hired To Perform Leading Roles of 'Fantine,' 'Enjolras,' 'Marius,' 'Madame Thénardier,' 'Cosette' & 'Eponine'
Seven Canadian performers have been chosen to join Colm Wilkinson in the acclaimed American National Company of Les Misérables for its exclusive Toronto return engagement. The landmark Boublil and Schönberg musical will begin performances July 15, 1998 at the Princess of Wales Theatre, with an official press opening set for July 21st.
Leading the list of Canadian performers is Susan Gilmour, who previously played the role of the wronged factory girl 'Fantine' in the acclaimed Toronto and First Canadian Touring companies. In addition, Canadians Michael Todd Cressman (cast as the idealistic student leader 'Enjolras'), Timothy Howar (cast as 'Marius,' the young student who falls in love with 'Cosette'), Sharon Matthews (cast as the scheming Madame Thénardier) Regan Thiel (cast as 'Cosette,' the adopted daughter of 'Jean Valjean' who falls in love with 'Marius'), Jessica-Snow Wilson (cast as 'Eponine,' the street-wise daughter of the Thénardiers) and Diana Kaarina (cast in the Ensemble) were chosen to join Les Misérables from auditions in Toronto.
Mr. Cressman, Mr. Howar and Miss Thiel have already joined the American National Company in the United States. Miss Gilmour, Miss Kaarina, Miss Matthews and Miss Wilson will also join the show prior to the exclusive return Toronto engagement.
The Toronto engagement of Les Misérables will star Colm Wilkinson, who will recreate his legendary performance of 'Jean Valjean' for the first time since leaving the original Broadway company in 1987. Toronto will be the only city in North America in which Wilkinson will perform 'Valjean.'
Les Misérables has been embraced by Canadian audiences over the past decade. The epic musical first premiered in Canada at the Royal Alexandria Theatre in 1989, winning rave reviews and captivating audiences. Across Canada there have been a total of four different productions of Les Misérables, including a bi-lingual production in Montreal, that have grossed more than $120 million. In Toronto alone, Les Misérables has grossed more than $65 million. Seen by more than 40 million people worldwide, Les Misérables is one of the greatest musical successes in history. The show's global box-office receipts now exceed $1.8 billion, a figure even greater than the highest-grossing film of all time, "Titanic" ($1.5 billion).
Internationally, there have been 32 productions of Les Misérables, in 26 countries, in 15 different languages. To date, over 27,000 performances of Les Misérables have taken place throughout the world. The show has won more than 50 major theater awards throughout the world. There have been 32 recordings of the musical, including the Grammy Award-winning Broadway cast recording, the Grammy-Award winning complete symphonic version, and the London 10th Anniversary Concert recording.
On March 12, 1997 the Broadway production of Les Misérables celebrated its 10th Anniversary with the premiere of a completely new production directed by Trevor Nunn and John Caird, featuring a new company of actors, changes in staging, scenery refurbishment, lighting design modifications, a new state of the art sound system, and all new costumes and wigs. Toronto audiences will experience these enhancements to the show, as they have been incorporated into the American National Company.
To purchase tickets, call TicketKing at (416) 872-1212 or go to the Princess of Wales Theatre Box Office. American Express Cardmembers can call (416) 872-5464 for tickets to some of the best seats in the house reserved exclusively for Cardmembers. American Express Cardmembers will also be able to redeem points for tickets through the Membership Rewards Program by calling (800) 668-2639.
