- Fascinated by the ideals expressed in the musical Les Mis?
- Wonder why people would read such a long novel as Les Misérables?
- Love “Les Misérables” and like to share your ideas?
Those are just a few reasons why you’d enjoy this six-week discussion group around PBS Masterpiece’s upcoming broadcast of the BBC’s Les Misérables, which received rave reviews during its British premiere last winter. This six-part miniseries brings Victor Hugo’s epic story of love, forgiveness, and redemption to life on screen yet again, prompting us to consider how his guiding principl
es for life can help us. Schönberg and Boublil’s music and lyrics are not there—but Hugo’s deep understanding of our humanity is.
You are welcome whether you have read Hugo’s novel or not. I look forward to exchanging ideas, as I’ve much enjoyed teaching the novel at UVA and thinking about it for my book To Love Is to Act: Les Misérables and Victor Hugo’s Vision for Leading Lives of Conscience will be published this fall by Swan Isle Press.
Les Misérables will air at 9:00 p.m. Sunday evenings (and stream online) beginning on April 14. Here’s the trailer:
Our discussion group will meet on the following Wednesday evenings (April 17 through May 22) from 7:00-8:15 p.m. at the Gordon Avenue Library small meeting room to share our reactions, questions, and ideas about why this classic still speaks so compellingly to us today. Space is limited! Email me (marva[at]virginia.edu) to save a place, and confirm which days you can attend.