“I dreamed a dream…” of starring in a production of Les Misérables.
It’s a common fantasy, whether for the aspiring divas who memorized the words to “On My Own” at age 8, the failed thespians who never had the chance to belt Jean Valjean’s “Soliloquy,” or even just the untalented among us who harbored pipe dreams of leading a revolution set to rousing music. With a splashy, Oscar-bound film adaptation of the cherished musical hitting screens at Christmastime, we’re all stifling a jealous rage that the likes of Anne Hathaway, Hugh Jackman, and Russell Crowe get to play the roles of the dreams we dream.
Others, however, have long swapped wishful thinking about starring in Les Miz with staging flash mobs of the show’s best numbers. The next best thing to Broadway? As a particularly joyous wedding flash mob set to “One Day More” goes viral, here’s a retrospective on the best public displays of Les Misérables love.
Copenhagen Wedding’s ‘One Day More’
Surprise wedding performances of Justin Bieber and Chris Brown tracks are for chumps, as this flash mob from a reception thrown in Copenhagen proves. This is not goofy dance moves and half-hearted lip-syncing. This is full-throated belting of “One Day More” by people who sound like trained singers. Dinner and a show? Psh. Try wedding and a show.
Warsaw Shopping Plaza’s ‘One Day More’
Having strange people dressed as peasants loudly sing show tunes in your face while you’re shopping might be charming for some. For others, it’s a nightmare. Both reactions are captured as the cast of a Polish production of Les Miz belts “One Day More”—in Polish—at the Zlote Tarasy shopping plaza in Warsaw.
Wisconsin State Capitol’s ‘Do You Hear the People Sing?’
Perhaps no protest song has been staged that’s as spirited or stirring as “Do You Hear the People Sing?,” making it an appropriate choice for demonstrators at the Wisconsin state capitol last year. With negotiations at a standstill during the prolonged debate with Gov. Scott Walker over his proposal to strip public employees and their unions of collective bargaining rights, protesters’ anger hit a high note as they festooned the capitol’s rotunda with banners and signs and powerfully sang “Do You Hear the People Sing?” in unison.
New York’s Food Court’s ‘One Day More’
“One Day More” seems to be a popular choice for flash mobs, no? The theater department from Mexico High School in New York turned their local mall food court into a pop-up dinner theater, performing Les Miz’s signature number with gusto as patrons guzzled their Starbucks.
Toronto Metro’s ‘Do You Hear the People Sing?’
This effort is admittedly less “flash mob” and more “stand and sing on the subway.” Oh, Canada.
‘It’s a Brad, Brad World’ Sings ‘One Day More’
Definitely the most professionally filmed on the list. Definitely one of the sweetest on the list. Definitely the only one to feature a solo from Megan Mullally on the list. Brad Goreski is the former assistant to stylist Rachel Zoe, and Bravo gave him his own reality show, It’s a Brad, Brad World, to follow his attempt to break out on his own. His partner threw him an anniversary party in the show’s first season and gifted him with a “One Day More” flash mob starring his mom, co-workers, college friends, and, yes, Karen from Will and Grace. Brad, in return, gifted him with lots of squeals.
University of Toronto’s ‘One Test More’
Students in an engineering class completely undermine the notion that we’re all either right brain or left brain with One Test More,” their rewrite of “One Day More,” ribbing their professor about their studying anxiety. OK, with lyrics like “I did not pee before the test,” it’s not exactly a Tony-worthy masterpiece. But extra credit is deserved for the twist at the end.
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