Preston Truman Boyd as Javert in Les Misérables. (Photo courtesy MurphyMade)

The Broadway tour of “Les Misérables” is coming to the Civic Theatre in October for a two-week engagement, the longest run of the popular musical since the ‘90s. Typically the show set in 19th century France based on Victor Hugo’s novel of the same name sells out quickly, so this is giving more San Diegans the opportunity to see the production.

One of the longest-running Broadway musicals ever, Jenny Bates, of the press and marketing team, has had the unusual experience of getting to spend much of her 22 year career exclusively on one production. She began at the tail-end of the musical’s first run that ended in 2003, then the revivals in 2006 and 2014. Originally from San Diego, Bates spoke with sdnews.com about her experience with the show and what local audiences can look forward to in October.

You’ve been with “Les Miz” for 22 years. Can you tell me about that journey?

I was very lucky to get an internship at Broadway San Diego through a theater marketing class I took at San Diego State University in my undergrad and worked as an intern for about a month at Broadway San Diego and then they asked if I wanted to learn how to do publicity and I became their press rep, for lack of better word at the time, for about a year and a half. And then “Les Misérables” came through in one of the seasons for San Diego and I was very lucky to be at the right place at the right time when they were looking to hire somebody to do publicity for the tour nationally and I, at a very young age, was able to take that leap and move to New York City and then one of the national press reps for “Les Misérables” since 2001. But of course missing then always taking great care to continue my relationship with the Broadway San Diego team which always feel like an extension of my family and always a pleasure. To continue bringing “Les Miz” to San Diego with the Broadway San Diego team and then other subsequent tours that I’ve had the pleasure of handling the press and marketing for.

For your job on the “Les Miz” press and marketing team, do you stay in New York or travel with the tour?

A little bit of both, mainly from New York City. But when we launch a national tour, we’ll be out with the company doing photo calls, shoots, press training, and in fact, I am going to be there with the company in San Diego. It’s always a pleasure to have my big show in my hometown. So we want to be out there to say hello.

Do you have any way to estimate how many times you’ve seen “Les Miz”?

Great question. I can only imagine it’s a couple hundred times. And so I would say many more times with the various photo calls and rehearsals and little experiences that I’ve done over the years, but I think in total, if I was to sit down and say how many times have I watched it from beginning to end, I would say over 200 times.

Having seen it so many times, what remains magical about the show?

I love the way audiences respond to the show. I also love hearing what an entire theater of enrapt patrons sounds like that silence when a show like “Les Miz” is so powerful that it really brings everybody in a collective kind of silence and taking that big breath together as only the theater can do it. It is stunning to hear a crowd just go wild, even from the first downbeat to the very last note. It continues to be magical.

I remember when we relaunched this particular tour in Cleveland last October, so it’s almost been a year since we’ve been back out on the road. It truly was such an emotional experience for everybody involved. It’s a beautifully emotional show. But to feel that wave of emotion coming back from our COVID intermission, if you will, it was truly stunning. And I couldn’t hold the tears back. In fact, the show makes me weep every time, even after 21+ years working on the show.

In the tour coming to San Diego, is there anything you hope the audience will take note of?

I think the audience would love to know that every single aspect of this production, every single person who works on this show, is at the top of their game. We are so lucky to have Nick Cartell as our Jean Valjean and he was with the tour that started in 2017. We’re thrilled to have him back as our Valjean, along with Preston Truman Boyd, who’s playing Javert. So the both of them have been with the tour before. They have been our tour leaders for the last year and are absolutely magical.

Haley Dortch is our Fantine. She is truly stunning. She will take your breath away with her portrayal of Fantine.

This is actually new news, we are thrilled to be welcoming back Phoenix Best as Éponine for the San Diego engagement. She played Éponine in tour back in 2017 and has since then gone on to play roles on Broadway and other national tours. And we get to have her for San Diego and I believe one other engagement after. So she is returning to the barricade to wow audiences.

I just know that from the top down, every single person is truly the top of their game. And when we launch a tour like “Les Miz” everybody, everybody comes to watch it. So Cameron Mackintosh was there in Cleveland (in 2022), our producer, Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg, the composer and librettist were there in Cleveland to make sure that this show was ready to go– our directors, our star music supervisors from London, everybody. They have their hand on this production on this tour. And it truly is the best it’s ever been in all of my years.

What changes in “Les Miz” have occurred since you started?

When I started, the show really had a very clear direction. Like an actor was directed very specifically on how to do that role. It has since evolved. The actor and directors work together to really breathe life into the roles that makes the show timeless and even more fresh and more connective with what audiences might feel, seeing how this particular actor brings themselves to the to the role. You’re still going to get the “Les Miz” you know and love but I think that there’s an extra life with the way that Laurence Connor and James Powell direct this show. Again, letting the characters breathe and really live in the people that that perform the role on a nightly basis.

The production has changed since I started. The original production that was on the road back when I started in 2001 was the iconic turntable version, but for the 25th anniversary of the show in 2009 Cameron Mackintosh gifted the opportunity for this iconic show to be reimagined. And he brought on Laurence Conner and James Powell, our two directors, to do a new staging that has now become the global standard of “Les Misérables.” Everywhere you go and you see an official production of “Les Miz” across the globe, this is the production people see and it has been enhanced with more sets, more layers that really make the show so vibrant and you feel like you’re there in Paris. You see the layers of projections that incorporate beautiful artwork that Victor Hugo, the writer of “Les Misérables,” actually did. He was an artist and those pieces of art are included into Matt Kinley’s scenic design. The way that the projections work with our layers of scenic design and costumes, it’s truly breathtaking.

There is a moment in the show that I’ll tell you is my favorite visually, and I won’t give too much away, but it is when Valjean and Javert go to the sewers from the barricade and how the scenic design goes from the barricade into the sewers. I arrive there and if I’m not sitting in the theater, watching the whole show, I will make a point to go to the theater, go into the house and make sure I watch the transition because it is so cool.

Is staying attached to one show for so long unique?

It’s very lucky to have the opportunity to have a show that has such a longevity as “Les Miz.” Most shows don’t tour for as long as “Les Miz” has successfully done, triumphantly done. It’s an absolute honor to continue to be asked to represent the show. It’s like my child. It’s as close to a child as I think I will ever have. The magic of what producer Cameron Mackintosh has done with his shows, he’s created shows that people want to see over and over again because they have stories that are timeless.

As you grow up, especially with a show like “Les Miz,” you’re going to find yourself in different characters. When I was in my teens and early 20s, I identified with the lovers – with Éponine and Cosette and Marius and finding true love as a young adult. As you get older, you identify with the characters that are at a different part in their lives like Fantine, Valjean. Soon maybe I’ll identify more with the Thénardiers as I get a little older.

It’s an atypical career to have a show that has lasted as long as “Les Miz” has and continues to last. People always want to come and see that type of show; they will find different things to enjoy and connect with every time that they come and see it.

Overall, what are some of the great parts about your career?

Getting to come home for work. I love visiting San Diego. It’s been such a treat to be able to come home to help and harvest the shows at Civic Theatre. But travel is really exciting. Getting to see the country and all of the theaters has been wonderful. And just getting to work with the creative teams on the shows that I work on, has just been a dream come true.

I was in the theater and did local theater when I was growing up in San Diego and if I told my young self that this was the career I was going to be able to have, I would never believed it and feel very very fortunate.

I get to bring my my niece to see Broadway shows at the Civic Theatre now because my whole family is still in San Diego.

Find tickets and additional information at https://www.broadwaysd.com/upcoming-events/les-Misérables-2023/ or call 619-564-3000.