Alabama Shakespeare Festival Forced To Cancel Planned 'LES MIZ'
By: Eddie Varley Dec. 17, 2008
"Les Misérables," the biggest show on the Alabama Shakespeare Festival's 2008-2009 schedule has become the casualty of the nation's economic downturn reports the Montgomery Advertiser.
The Advertiser details that "ASF, the "state theater" and one of the top Shakespeare theaters in the world, has prided itself on productions that reflect current issues. But it hadn't planned on this year's biggest issue, the economic crisis, to take center stage at the festival. In fact, one of the most important performances at ASF has become the theater's economic performance.
"The theater is just responding to what's going on nationally," ASF spokeswoman Meg Lewis told the paper.
On Tuesday, part of that response came in the form of canceling what was to have been the centerpiece of the upcoming schedule. After projections that the current ASF musical "A Christmas Carol: The Musical," would only sell about 60 percent of its sales goal when it wraps up Dec. 24, ASF canceled "Les Misérables," which would have cost the theater about $1.3 million to mount in Montgomery.
Although ASF considered delaying putting on the musical until 2010, it was unable to secure the rights for that year.
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