The Complete Libretto

LES MISÉRABLES

By Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schonberg

Lyrics by Herbert Kretzmer

Based on the book by Victor Hugo

Prologue - WORK SONG

[1815, Toulon, France. The chain gang, overseen by brutal warders, works in the sun.

Prisoners

Look down, look down

Don't look 'em in the eye

Look down, look down,

You're here until you die

The sun is strong

It's hot as hell below

Look down, look down,

There's twenty years to go

I've done no wrong!

Sweet Jesus hear my prayer!

Look down, look down,

Sweet Jesus doesn't care

I know she'll wait,

I know that she'll be true!

Look down, look down,

They've all forgotten you

When I get free ya won't see me

Here for dust!

Look down, look down

Don't look 'em in the eye

How long O Lord

Before you let me die?

Look down, look down,

You'll always be a slave

Look down, look down,

You're standing in your grave

Javert

Now bring me prisoner 24601

Your time is up

And your parole's begun

You know what that means

Valjean

Yes, it means I'm free

Javert

NO!

It means you get

Your yellow ticket-of-leave

You are a theif

Valjean

I stole a loaf of bread!

Javert

You robbed a house!

Valjean

I broke a window pane!

My sister's child was close to death

And we were starving!

Javert

And you will starve again

Unless you learn the meaning of the law.

Valjean

I know the meaning of these 19 years

A slave of the law

Javert

Five years for what you did

The rest because you tried to run

Yes 24601

Valjean

My name is Jean Valjean

Javert

And I am Javert

Do not forget my name

Do not forget me

Chorus

Look down, look down

You will always be a slave

Look down, look down

You're standing in your grave.

Valjean

Freedom is mine. The earth is still.

I feel the wind. I breathe again.

And the sky clears, the world is waiting.

Drink from the pool. How clean the taste

Never forget the years, the waste.

Nor forgive them, for what they've done.

They are the guilty, everyone.

The day begins...

And now lets see

What this new world

Will do for me!

[He finds work on a farm.]

Farmer

You'll have to go

I'll pay you off for the day

Collect your bits and pieces there

And be on your way.

Valjean

You've given me half

What the other men get!

This handful of tin

Wouldn't buy my sweat!

Laborer

You broke the law

It's there for people to see

Why should you get the same

As honest men like me?

Valjean

Now every door is closed to me

Another jail, another key, another chain

For when I come to any town

They check my papers

And they find the mark of Cain

In their eyes, I see their fear:

`We do not want you here.'

[He comes to an inn.]

Innkeeper's Wife

My rooms are full

And I've no supper to spare

I'd like to help a stranger

All we want is to be fair

Valjean

I will pay in advance

I can sleep in a barn

You see how dark it is

I'm not some kind of dog!

Innkeeper

You leave my house

Or feel the weight of my rod

We're law-abiding people here

Thanks be to God.

[They throw him out.]

Valjean

And now I know how freedom feels

The jailer always at your heels

It is the law!

This piece of paper in my hand

That makes me cursed throughout the land

It is the law!

Like a cur

I walk the street

The dirt beneath my feet.

[He sits down despairingly outside a house from which emerges the Bishop of Digne.]

Bishop

Come in, Sir, for you are weary

And the night is cold out there.

Though our lives are very humble

What we have, we have to share.

There is wine here to revive you,

There is bread to make you strong,

There's a bed to rest till morning,

Rest from pain, and rest from wrong.

Valjean

He let me eat my fill

I had the lion's share

The silver in my hand

Cost twice what I had earned

In all those nineteen years

That lifetime of despair

And yet he trusted me.

The old fool trusted me -

He's done his bit of good

I played the grateful serf

And thanked him like I should

But when the house was still,

I got up in the night

Took the silver

Took my flight!

[Taking the silver cup, he runs off, but is brought back by two constables.]

VALJEAN ARRESTED/VALJEAN FORGIVEN

Constables

Tell his reverence your story

Let us see if he's impressed

You were lodging there last night

You were the honest Bishop's guest.

And then, out of Christian goodness

When he learned about your plight

You maintain he made a present of this silver--

Bishop

That is right.

But my friend you left so early

Surely something slipped your mind

[The bishop gives Valjean two silver candlesticks.]

You forgot I gave these also

Would you leave the best behind?

So Messieurs you may release him

For this man has spoken true

I commend you for your duty

May God's blessing go with you.

But remember this, my brother

See in this some higher plan

You must use this precious silver

To become an honest man

By the witness of the martyrs

By the Passion and the Blood

God has raised you out of darkness

I have bought your soul for God!

WHAT HAVE I DONE (Valjean's Soliloquy)

Valjean

What have I done?

Sweet Jesus, what have I done?

Become a thief in the night

Become a dog on the run

And have I fallen so far

And is the hour so late

That nothing remains but the cry of my hate,

The cries in the dark that nobody hears,

Here where I stand at the turning of the years?

If there's another way to go

I missed it twenty long years ago

My life was a war that could never be won

They gave me a number and murdered Valjean

When they chained me and left me for dead

Just for stealing a mouthful of bread

Yet why did I allow that man

To touch my soul and teach me love?

He treated me like any other

He gave me his trust

He called me brother

My life he claims for God above

Can such things be?

For I had come to hate this world

This world which had always hated me

Take an eye for an eye!

Turn your heart into stone!

This is all I have lived for!

This is all I have known!

One word from him and I'd be back

Beneath the lash, upon the rack

Instead he offers me my freedom,

I feel my shame inside me like a knife

He told me that I have a soul,

How does he know?

What spirit came to move my life? Is there another way to go?

I am reaching, but I fall

And the night is closing in

And I stare into the void

To the whirpool of my sin

I'll escape now from the world

From the world of Jean Valjean

Jean Valjean is nothing now

Another story must begin!

[He tears up his yellow ticket-of-leave.]

AT THE END OF THE DAY

[1823, Montreuil-sur-Mer. Outside the factory, owned by the Mayor, Monsieur Madeleine (Valjean in disguise).]

The Poor

At the end of the day you're another day older

And that's all you can say for the life of the poor

It's a struggle, it's a war

And there's nothing that anyone's giving

One more day, standing about, what is it for?

One day less to be living.

At the end of the day you're another day colder

And the shirt on your back doesn't keep out the chill

And the righteous hurry past

They don't hear the little ones crying

And the winder is coming on fast, ready to kill

One day nearer to dying!

At the end of the day there's another day dawning

And the sun in the morning is waiting to rise

Like the waves crash on the sand

Like a storm that'll break any second

There's a hunger in the land

There's a reckoning still to be reckoned

And there's gonna be hell to pay

At the end of the day!

[The foreman and workers, including Fantine, emerge.]

Foreman

At the end of the day you get nothing for nothing

Sitting flat on your butt doesn't buy any bread

Workers

There are children back at home

And the children have got to be fed

And you're lucky to be in a job

And in a bed!

And we're counting our blessings!

Women

Have you seen how the foreman is fuming today?

With his terrible breath and his wandering hands?

It's because little Fantine won't give him his way

Take a look at his trousers, you'll see where he stands!

And the boss, he never knows

That the foreman is always in heat

If Fantine doesn't look out

Watch how she goes

She'll be out on the street!

Workers

At the end of the day it's another day over

With enough in your pocket to last for a week

Pay the landlord pay the shop

Keep on grafting as long as you're able

Keep on grafting till you drop

Or it's back to the crumbs on the table

You've got to pay your way

At the end of the day!

Girl

What have we here, little innocent sister?

Come on Fantine, let's have all the news!

[She grabs the letter from Fantine.]

"Dear Fantine you must send us more money...

Your child needs a doctor...

There's no time to lose!"

Fantine

Give that letter to me

It is none of your business

With a husband at home

And a bit on the side

Is there anyone here

Who can swear before God

She has nothing to fear?

She has nothing to hide?

[They fight over the letter. Valjean rushes over to break up the squabble.]

Valjean (as M. Madeleine)

What is this fighting all about?

Will someone tear these two apart?

This is a factory, not a circus!

Now come on ladies, settle down

I run a business of repute

I am the Mayor of this town

[To the foreman...]

I look to you to sort this out

And be as patient as you can---

[He goes back into the factory.]

Foreman

Now someone say how this began!

Girl

At the end of the day she's the one who began it

There's a kid that she's hiding in some little town

There's a man she has to pay

You can guess how she picks up the extra

You can bet she's earning her keep sleeping around

And the boss wouldn't like it!

Fantine

Yes it's true there's a child

And the child is my daughter

And her father abandoned us leaving us flat

Now she lives with an innkeeper man and his wife

And I pay for the child

What's the matter with that??

Women

At the end of the day she'll be nothing but trouble

And there's trouble for all when there's trouble for one

While we're earning our daily bread

She's the one with her hands in the butter

You must send the slut away

Or we're all gonna end in the gutter

And it's us who'll have to pay

At the end of the day!

Foreman

I might have known the bitch could bite

I might have known the cat had claws

I might have guessed your little secret

Ah, yes, the virtuous Fantine

Who keeps herself so pure and clean

You'd be the cause I had no doubt

Of any trouble hereabout

You play a virgin in the light

But need no urgin' in the night.

Girl

She's been laughing at you

While she's having her men

Women

She'll be nothing but trouble again and again

Workers

You must sack her today

Sack the girl today!

Foreman

Right my girl!

On your way...

I DREAMED A DREAM

[Fantine is left alone, unemployed and destitute.]

Fantine

There was a time when men were kind

When their voices were soft

And their words inviting

There was a time when love was blind

And the world was a song

And the song was exciting

There was a time

Then it all went wrong

I dreamed a dream in times gone by

When hope was high

And life worth living

I dreamed that love would never die

I dreamed that God would be forgiving

Then I was young and unafraid

And dreams were made and used and wasted

There was no ransom to be paid

No song unsung

No wine untasted

But the tigers come at night

With their voices soft as thunder

As they tear your hope apart

And they turn your dream to shame

He slept a summer by my side

He filled my days with endless wonder

He took my childhood in his stride

But he was gone when autumn came

And still I dream he'll come to me

That we'll live the years together

But there are dreams that cannot be

And there are storms we cannot weather

I had a dream my life would be

So much different from this hell I'm living

So different now from what it seemed

Now life has killed

The dream I dreamed.

LOVELY LADIES

[The docks. Sailors, whores and their customers, pimps, etc. Fantine wanders in.]

Sailors

I smell women

Smell 'em in the air

Think I'll drop my anchor

In that harbor over there

Lovely ladies

Smell 'em through the smoke

Seven days at sea

Can make you hungry for a poke

Even stokers need a little stoke!

Whores

Lovely ladies

Waiting for a bite

Waiting for the customer

Who only comes at night

Lovely ladies

Waiting for the call

Standing up or lying down

Or any way at all

Bargain prices up against the wall

Old Woman

Come here, my dear

Let's see this trinket you wear

This bagatelle...

Fantine

Madame, I'll sell it to you...

Old Woman

I'll give you four

Fantine

That wouldn't pay for the chain

Old Woman

I'll give you five, you're far to eager to sell, it's up to you.

Fantine

It's all I have

Old Woman

That's not my fault

Fantine

Please make it ten

Old Woman

No more than five

My dear, we all must stay alive!

Whores

Lovely ladies

Waiting in the dark

Ready for a thick one

Or a quick one in the park

Long time short time

Any time, my dear

Cost a little extra if you want to take all year!

Quick and cheap is underneath the pier!

Crone

What pretty hair

What pretty locks you got there

What luck you got, it's worth a centime my dear

I'll take the lot

Fantine

Don't touch me leave me alone

Crone

Let's make a price, I'll give you all of ten francs

Just think of that!

Fantine

It pays a debt

Crone

Just think of that

Fantine

What can I do? It pays a debt.

Ten francs may save my poor Cosette!

Sailors

Lovely lady!

Fastest on the street

Wasn't there three minutes

She was back up on her feet

Lovely lady!

What yer waiting for?

Doesn't take a lot of savvy

Just to be a whore

Come on, lady

What's a lady for?

Whores (in counterpoint)

Lovely ladies

Lovely little girls

Lovely ladies

Lovely little ladies

Lovely girlies

Lovely little girls

We are lovely, lovely girls

Lovely ladies

What's a lady for?

[Fantine re-emerges, her long hair cut short.]

Pimp

Give me the dirt, who's that bit over there?

Whore 1

A bit of skirt, she's the one sold her hair.

Whore 2

She's got a kid sends her all that she can

Pimp

I might have known

There is always some man

Lovely lady, come along and join us!

Lovely lady!

Whores

Come on dearie, why all the fuss?

You're no grander than the rest of us

Life has dropped you at the bottom of the heap

Join your sisters, make money in your sleep!

[Fantine goes off with one of the sailors.]

That's right dearie, let him have the lot

That's right dearie, show him what you've got!

Old men, young men, take 'em as they come

Harbor rats and alley cats and every type of scum

Poor men, rich men, leaders of the land

See them with their trousers off they're never quite as grand

All it takes is money in your hand!

Lovely ladies

Going for a song

Got a lot of callers

But they never stay for long

Fantine

Come on, Captain

You can wear your shoes

Don't it make a change

To have a girl who can't refuse

Easy money

Lying on a bed

Just as well they never see

The shame that's in your head

Don't they know they're making love

To one already dead!

FANTINE'S ARREST

[Bamatabois is a well dressed gentleman.]

Bamatabois

Here's something new, I think I'll give it a try.

Come closer you! I like to see what I buy

The usual price, for just a slice of your pie

Fantine

I don't want you, no, no, m'sieur, let me go.

Bamatabois

Is this a trick? I won't pay more!

Fantine

No, not at all.

Bamatabois

You've got some nerve, you little whore

You've got some gall.

It's the same with a tart as it is with a grocer

The customer sees what he gets in advance

It's not for the whore to say 'yes sir' or 'no sir'

It's not for the harlot to pick and to choose

Or lead me to a dance!

[He hits her with his stick, she claws at his face, drawing blood.]

Fantine

I'll kill you, you bastard, try any of that!

Even a whore who has gone to the bad

Won't be had by a rat!

Bamatabois

By Christ you'll pay for what you have done

This rat will make you bleed, you'll see!

I guarantee, I'll make you suffer

For this disturbance of the peace

For this insult to life and property!

Fantine

I beg you, don't report me sir

I'll do whatever you may want

Bamatabois

Make your excuse to the police!

[Javert enters, accompanied by constables.]

Javert

Tell me quickly what's the story

Who saw what and why and where

Let him give a full description

Let him answer to Javert!

In this nest of whores and vipers

Let one speak who saw it all

Who laid hands on this good man here?

What's the substance of this brawl?

Bamatabois

Javert, would you belive it

I was crossing from the park

When this prostitute attacked me

You can see she left her mark

Javert

She will answer for her actions

When you make a full report

You may rest assured, M'sieur,

That she will answer to the court.

Fantine

There's a child who sorely needs me

Please M'sieur, she's but that high

Holy God, is there no mercy?

If I go to jail she'll die!

Javert

I have heard such protestations

Every day for twenty years

Let's have no more explanations

Save your breath and save your tears

Honest work, just reward,

That's the way to please the Lord.

[Fantine gives a last despairing cry as she is arrested. Valjean emerges from the crowd.]

Valjean

A moment of your time, Javert

I do believe this woman's tale

Javert

But M'sieur Mayor!

Valjean

You've done your duty

Let her be

She needs a doctor, not a jail.

Javert

But M'sieur Mayor!

Fantine

Can this be?

Valjean

Where will she end -

This child without a friend?

I've seen your face before

Show me some way to help you

How have you come to grief

In a place such as this?

Fantine

M'sieur, don't mock me now, I pray

It's hard enough I've lost my pride

You let your foreman send me away

Yes, you were there, and turned aside

I never did no wrong

Valjean

Is it true, what I have done?

To an innocent soul?

Had I only known then...

Fantine (in counterpoint)

My daughter's close to dying

If there's a God above

He'd let me die instead

Valjean

In His name my task has just begun

I will see it done!

I will see it done!

Javert

But M'sieur Mayor!

Valjean

I will see it done!

Javert

But M'sieur Mayor!

Voices

Look out! It's a runaway cart!

THE RUNAWAY CART

[The crowd parts to reveal that the cart has crashed, trapping M. Fauchelevant.]

Voices

Look at that!

Look at that!

It's Monsieur Fauchelevant!

Don't approach! Don't go near!

At the risk of your life!

He is caught by the wheel!

Oh, the pitiful man.

Stay away, turn away,

There is nothing to do..

There is nothing to do..

Valjean

Is there anyone here

Who will rescue the man?

Who will help me to shoulder

The weight of the cart?

Voices

Don't go near him, Mr. Mayor

The load is heavy as hell

The old man's a goner for sure

It'll kill you as well.

[Valjean attempts to lift the cart. They manage to pull Fauchelevant clear.]

Fauchelevant

M'sieur le Mayor, I have no words

You come from God, you are a saint.

[Javert takes Valjean aside.]

Javert

Can this be true?

I don't believe what I see!

A man your age

To be as strong as you are...

A memory stirs..

You make me think of a man

From years ago

A man who broke his parole

He disappeared

Forgive me, Sir,

I would not dare!

Valjean

Say what you must, don't leave it there.

Javert

I have only known one other

Who can do what you have done

He's a convict from the chain gang

He's been ten years on the run

But he couldn't run forever

We have found his hideaway

And he's just been re-arrested

And he comes to court today.

Of course he now denies it

You'd expect that of a con

But he couldn't run forever,

No, not even Jean Valjean!

Valjean

You say this man denies it all

And gives no sign of understanding or repentance?

You say this man is going to trial

And that's he's sure to be returned

To serve his sentence?

Come to that, can you be sure,

That I am not your man?

Javert

I have known the thief for ages

Tracked him down through thick and thin

And to make the matter certain

There's the brand upon his skin

He will bend, he will break

This time there is no mistake.

[Javert leaves, Valjean is alone.]

WHO AM I? (The Trial)

Valjean

He thinks that man is me!

He knew him at a glance!

That stranger he has found

This man could be my chance

Why should I save his hide

Why should I right this wrong

When I have come so far

And struggled for so long?

If I speak, I am condemned

If I stay silent, I am damned!

I am the master of hundreds of workers

They all look to me

How can I abandon them, how can they live

If I am not free?

If I speak, I am condemned

If I stay silent, I am damned!

Who am I?

Can I condemn this man to slavery

Pretend I do not see his agony

This innocent who bears my face

Who goes to judgement in my place

Who am I?

Can I conceal myself for evermore?

Pretend I'm not the man I was before?

And must my name until I die

Be no more than an alibi?

Must I lie?

How can I ever face my fellow man?

How can I ever face myself again?

My soul belongs to God, I know

I made that bargain long ago

He gave me hope, when hope was gone

He gave me strength to journey on

[He steps in front of the court]

Who am I?

Who am I?

I am Jean Valjean!

[He unbuttons his shirt to reveal the number tattooed to his chest.]

And so Javert, you see it's true,

That man bears no more guilt than you!

Who am I?

24601!

COME TO ME (Fantine's Death)

[Fantine is lying in a hospital bed, deleriously dreaming of her daughter Cosette.]

Fantine

Cosette, it's turned so cold

Cosette, it's past your bedtime

You've played the day away

And soon it will be night.

Come to me, Cosette, the light is fading

Don't you see the evening star appearing?

Come to me, and rest against my shoulder

How fast the minutes fly away and every minute colder.

Hurry near, another day is dying

Don't you hear, the winter wind is crying?

There's a darkness which comes without a warning

But I will sing you lullabyes and wake you in the morning.

[Valjean enters.]

Valjean

Oh, Fantine, our time is running out

But Fantine, I swear this on my life

Fantine

Look, M'sieur, where all the children play

Valjean

Be at peace, be at peace evermore.

Fantine

My Cosette...

Valjean

Shall live in my protection

Fantine

Take her now

Valjean

Your child will want for nothing

Fantine

Good M'sieur, you come from God in Heaven.

Valjean

And none will ever harm Cosette

As long as I am living.

Fantine

Take my hand,

The night grows ever colder.

Valjean

Then I will keep you warm.

Fantine

Take my child, I give her to your keeping.

Valjean

Take shelter from the storm

Fantine

For God's sake, please stay till I am sleeping

And tell Cosette I love her

And I'll see her when I wake...

[She dies with a smile; Javert arrives.]

THE CONFRONTATION

Javert

Valjean, at last,

We see each other plain

`M'sieur le Mayor',

You'll wear a different chain.

Valjean

Before you say another word, Javert

Before you chain me up like a slave again

Listen to me! There is something I must do.

This woman leaves behind a suffering child.

There is none but me who can intercede,

In Mercy's name, three days are all I need.

Then I'll return, I pledge my word.

Then I'll return...

Javert

You must think me mad!

I've hunted you across the years

A man like you can never change

A man... such as you...

Valjean (in counterpoint)

Believe of me what you will

There is a duty that I'm sworn to do

You know nothing of my life

All I did was steal some bread

You know nothing of the world

You would rather see me dead

But not before I see this justice done

I am warning you Javert

I'm a stronger man by far

There is power in me yet

My race is not yet run

I am warning you Javert

There is nothing I won't dare

If I have to kill you here

I'll do what must be done!

Javert (in counterpoint)

Men like me can never change

Men like you can never change

No, 24601,

My duty's to the law

You have no rights

Come with me 24601

Now the wheel has turned around

Jean Valjean is nothing now

Dare you talk to me of crime

And the price you had to pay

Every man is born in sin

Every man must choose his way

You know nothing of Javert

I was born inside a jail

I was born with scum like you

I am from the gutter too!

[Valjean breaks chair and threatens Javert with the broken piece. Turns to Fantine.]

Valjean

And this I swear to you tonight

Javert

There is no place for you to hide

Valjean

Your child will live within my care

Javert

Wherever you may hide away

Valjean

And I will raise her to the light.

Valjean & Javert

I swear to you, I will be there!

[They fight, Javert is knocked out. Valjean escapes.]

CASTLE ON A CLOUD

[Young Cosette is working as a drudge in the Thenardier's inn at Montfermeil.]

Young Cosette

There is a castle on a cloud,

I like to go there in my sleep,

Aren't any floors for me to sweep,

Not in my castle on a cloud.

There is a room that's full of toys,

There are a hundred boys and girls,

Nobody shouts or talks too loud,

Not in my castle on a cloud.

There is a lady all in white,

Holds me and sings a lullabye,

She's nice to hear and she's soft to touch,

She says "Cosette, I love you very much."

I know a place where no one's lost,

I know a place where no one cries,

Crying at all is not allowed,

Not in my castle on a cloud.

Oh help! I think I hear them now,

and I'm nowhere near finished sweeping and

scrubbing and polishing the floor.

Oh, it's her! It's Madame!

Mme. Thenardier

Now look who's here

The little madam herself!

Pretending once again she's been `so awfully good',

Better not let me catch you slacking

Better not catch my eye!

Ten rotten francs your mother sends me

What is that going to buy?

Now take that pail

My little `Mademoiselle'

And go and draw some water from the well!

We should never have taken you in in the first place

How stupid, the things that we do!

Like mother like daughter, the scum of the street.

Eponine, come my dear, Eponine, let me see you

You look very well in that new little blue hat

There's some little girls who know how to behave

And they know what to wear

And I'm saying thank heaven for that.

Still there Cosette?

Your tears will do you no good.

I told you fetch some water from the well in the wood...

Young Cosette

Please do not send me out alone

Not in the darkness on my own!

Mme. Thenardier

Enough of that, or I'll forget to be nice!

You heard me ask for something,

And I never ask twice!

[Young Eponine pushes Cosette out. Thenardier says good night to his daughter as the inn fills up for the evening.]

MASTER OF THE HOUSE

Drinkers

Come on you old pest

Fetch a bottle of your best

What's the nectar of the day?

[Thenardier enters with a flask of wine.]

Thenardier

Here, try this lot

Guaranteed to hit the spot

Or I'm not Thenardier

Drinkers

Gissa glass a' rum

Landlord, over here!

Thenardier

[To himself] Right away, you scum

[To customer] Right away, m'sieur

Drinkers

God this place has gone to hell

So you tell me every year

Mine host Thenardier

He was there so they say,

At the field of Waterloo

Got there, it's true

When the fight was all through

But he knew just what to do

Crawling through the mud

So I've heard it said

Picking through the pockets

Of the English dead

He made a tidy score

From the spoils of war

Thenardier

My band of soaks

My den of dissolutes

My dirty jokes, my always pissed as newts.

My sons of whores

Spent their lives in my inn

Homing pigeons homing in

Then fly through my doors

And their money's as good as yours

Drinkers

Ain't got a clue

What he put in this stew

Must have scraped it off the street

God what a wine!

Chateau Neuf de Turpentine

Must have pressed it with his feet

Landlord over here!

Where's the bloody man?

One more for the road!

Thenardier, one more slug o' gin.

Just one more, or my old man is gonna do me in.

[Thenardier greets a new customer.]

Thenardier

Welcome, M'sieur

Sit yourself down

And meet the best

Innkeeper in town

As for the rest

All of 'em crooks

Rooking their guests

And cooking the books

Seldom do you see

Honest men like me

A gent of good intent

Who's content to be

Master of the house

Doling out the charm

Ready with a handshake

And an open palm

Tells a saucy tale

Makes a little stir

Customers appreciate a bon-viveur

Glad to do a friend a favor

Doesn't cost me to be nice

But nothing gets you nothing

Everything has got a little price!

Master of the house

Keeper of the zoo

Ready to relieve 'em

Of a sou or two

Watering the wine

Making up the weight

Pickin' up their knick-knacks

When they can't see straight

Everybody loves a landlord

Everybody's busom friend

I do whatever pleases

Jesus! Won't I bleed 'em in the end!

Thenardier & Drinkers

Master of the house

Quick to catch yer eye

Never wants a passerby

To pass him by

Servant to the poor

Butler to the great

Comforter, philosopher,

And lifelong mate!

Everybody's boon companion

Everybody's chaperone

Thenardier

But lock up your valises

Jesus! Won't I skin you to the bone!

[To another new customer...]

Enter M'sieur

Lay down your load

Unlace your boots

And rest from the road

This weighs a ton

Travel's a curse

But here we strive

To lighten your purse

Here the goose is cooked

Here the fat is fried

And nothing's overlooked

Till I'm satisfied

Food beyond compare

Food beyond belief

Mix it in a mincer

And pretend it's beef

Kidney of a horse

Liver of a cat

Filling up the sausages

With this and that

Residents are more than welcome

Bridal suite is occupied

Reasonable charges

Plus some little extras on the side!

Charge 'em for the lice

Extra for the mice

Two percent for looking in the mirror twice

Here a little slice

There a little cut

Three percent for sleeping with the window shut

When it comes to fixing prices

There are a lot of tricks he knows

How it all increases

All those bits and pieces

Jesus! It's amazing how it grows!

Thenardier & Chorus

Master of the house

Quick to catch yer eye

Never wants a passerby

To pass him by

Servent to the poor

Butler to the great

Comforter, philosopher,

And lifelong mate!

Everybody's boon companion

Gives 'em everything he's got

Thenardier

Dirty bunch of geezers

Jesus! What a sorry little lot!

Mme. Thenardier

I used to dream

That I would meet a prince

But God Almighty,

Have you seen what's happened since?

Master of the house?

Isn't worth me spit!

`Comforter, philosopher'

- and lifelong shit!

Cunning little brain

Regular Voltaire

Thinks he's quite a lover

But there's not much there

What a cruel trick of nature

Landed me with such a louse

God knows how I've lasted

Living with this bastard in the house!

Thenardier & Drinkers

Master of the house!

Mme. Thenardier

Master and a half!

Thenardier & Drinkers

Comforter, philosopher

Mme. Thenardier

Ah, don't make me laugh!

Thenardier & Drinkers

Servant to the poor

Butler to the great

Mme. Thenardier

Hypocrite and toady

And inebriate!

Thenardier & Drinkers

Everybody bless the landlord!

Everybody bless his spouse!

Thenardier

Everybody raise a glass

Mme. Thenardier

Raise it up the master's arse

All

Everybody raise a glass to the master of the house!

THE BARGAIN

[Valjean and Young Cosette arrive at the now empty inn, hand in hand.]

Valjean

I found her wandering in the wood

This little child, I found her trembling in the shadows

And I am here to help Cosette

And I will settle any debt you may think proper

I will pay what I must pay

To take Cosette away.

There is a duty I must heed,

There is a promise I have made

For I was blind to one in need

I did not see what stood before me

Now her mother is with God

Fantine's suffering is over

And I speak here with her voice

And I stand here in her place

And from this day and evermore

Mme. Thenardier

Let me have your coat, M'sieur

Valjean

Cosette shall live in my protection

Thenardier

You are very welcome here

Valjean

I shall not forsake my vow

Thenardier

Take a glass

Mme. Thenardier

Take a chair

Valjean

Cosette shall have a father now!

THE WALTZ OF TREACHERY

Thenardier

What to do? What to say?

Shall you carry our treasure away?

What a gem! What a pearl!

Beyond rubies is our little girl!

How can we speak of debt?

Let's not haggle for darling Cosette!

Dear Fantine, gone to rest

Have we done for her child what is best?

Shared our bread, shared each bone

Treated her like she's one of our own!

Like our own, Monsieur!

Valjean

Your feelings do you credit, sir

And I will ease the parting blow

[He pays them.]

Let us not talk of bargains or bones or greed

Now, may I say, we are agreed?

Mme. Thenardier

That would quite fit the bill

If she hadn't so often been ill

Little dear, cost us dear

Medicines are expensive, M'sieur

Not that we begrudged a sou

It's no more than we Christians must do!

M. and Mme. Thenardier

One thing more, one small doubt

There are treacherous people about

No offense, please reflect

Your intentions may not be... correct?

Valjean

No more words, here's your price.

Fifteen hundred for your sacrifice

Come, Cosette, say goodbye,

Let us seek out some friendlier sky.

Thank you both for Cosette

It won't take you too long to forget.

[Valjean and Cosette leave the inn.]

Come, Cosette, come, my dear

From now on I will always be here

Where I go, you will be.

Cosette

Will there be children

And castles to see?

Valjean

Yes, Cosette,

Yes, it's true

There's a castle just waiting for you...

LOOK DOWN

[1832. The teeming, squalid streets of Paris. Beggars, urchins, prostitutes, students, etc.]

Beggars

Look down, look down, and see the beggars at your feet

Look down and show some mercy if you can

Look down and see

The sweepings of the streets

Look down, look down,

Upon your fellow man!

Gavroche

How do you do? My name's Gavroche

These are my people, here's my patch

Not much to look at, nothing posh

Nothing that you'd call up to scratch

This is my school, my high society

Here in the slums of Saint Michele

We live on crumbs of humble piety

Tough on the teeth, but what the hell!

Think you're poor?

Think you're free?

Follow me, follow me!

Beggars

Look down, and show some mercy if you can

Look down, look down, upon your fellow man

[An old beggar woman finds a young prostitute occupying her patch.]

Old Beggar Woman

What you think yer at?

Hanging round me pitch?

If you're new around here, girl

You've got a lot to learn

Young Prostitute

Listen you old bat

Crazy bloody witch

'Least I give my customers

Some pleasure in return

Old Beggar Woman

I know what you give!

Give 'em all the pox!

Spread around your poison

Till they end up in a box

Pimp

Leave the poor old cow,

Move it, Madeleine

She used to be no better

Till the clap got to her brain

Beggars

When's it gonna end?

When we gonna live?

Something's gotta happen now or

Something's gonna give...

It'll come, it'll come, it'll come

It'll come, it'll come, it'll come

Enjolras

Where the leaders of the land?

Where are the swells who run this show?

Marius

Only one man - and that's Lamarque

Speaks for these people here below

Beggars

See our children fed

Help us in our shame

Something for a crust of bread

In Holy Jesus' name

Urchin

In the Lord's Holy name.

Beggars

In his name, in his name, in his name...

Marius

Lamarque is ill and fading fast!

Won't last the week out so they say

Enjolras

With all the anger in the land

How long before the judgement day?

Before we cut the fat ones down to size?

Before the barricades arise?

Gavroche

Watch out for old Thenardier

All of his family is on the make

Once ran a hash-house down the way

Bit of a swine and no mistake

He's got a gang

The bleeding layabout

Even his daughter does her share

That's Eponine, she knows her way about

Only a kid, but hard to scare

Do we care?

Not a cuss!

Long live us, long live us!

Beggars

Look down, look down, and show some mercy if you can

Look down, look down, upon your fellow man!

THE ROBBERY

[Thenardier assembling his gang.]

Thenardier

Everyone here, you know your place

Brujon, Babet, Claqusous

You, Montparnasse, watch for the law

With Eponine, take care.

You turn on the tears

No mistakes, my dears

Mme. Thenardier

These bloody students on our street

Here they come slumming once again

Our Eponine would kiss their feet

She never had a scrap of brain

Marius

Eponine, what's up today?

I haven't seen you much about.

Eponine

Here, you can always catch me in.

Marius

Mind the police don't catch you out!

Eponine

Here, whatcher doing with all them books?

I could have been a student too!

Don't judge a girl on how she looks...

I know a lot of things I do!

Marius

Poor Eponine, the things you know

You wouldn't find in books like these.

Eponine

I like the way you grow your hair

Marius

I like the way you always tease

Eponine

Little he knows!

Little he sees!

[Valjean arrives with Cosette, now grown up.]

Mme. Thenardier

Here's the old boy. Stay on the job and watch out for the law.

Eponine [to Marius]

Stay out of this.

Marius

But Eponine...

Eponine

You'll be in trouble here

It's not your concern

You'll be in the clear

[She pushes Marius away.]

Marius

Who is that man?

Eponine

Leave me alone!

Marius

Why is he here? Hey, Eponine!

[He begins to follow her, and bumps into Cosette.]

I didn't see you there, forgive me.

Thenardier

Please M'sieur, come this way

Here's a child that ain't eaten today.

Save a life, spare a sou

God rewards all the good that you do.

Wait a bit. Know that face.

Ain't the world a remarkable place?

Men like me don't forget

You're the bastard that borrowed Cosette!

[Thenardier grabs Valjean and rips open his shirt, revealing the number on his chest.]

Valjean

What is this? Are you mad?

No, Monsieur, you don't know what you do!

Thenardier

You know me, you know me.

I'm a con, just like you.

Eponine

It's the police! Disappear!

Run for it! It's Javert!

JAVERT'S INTERVENTION

[Javert and constables break up the fight. Valjean picks himself up and looks for Cosette, who is with Marius.]

Javert

Another brawl in the square

Another stink in the air!

Was there a witness to this?

Well, let him speak to Javert!

M'sieur, the streets are not safe,

But let these vermin beware

We'll see that justice is done!

Look upon this fine collection

Crawled from underneath a stone

This swarm of worms and maggots

Could have picked you to the bone!

I know this man over here

I know his name and his trade

And on your witness, M'sieur,

We'll see him suitably paid.

[Valjean and Cosette have disappeared.]

But where's the gentleman gone?

And why on earth did he run?

Thenardier

You will have a job to catch him

He's the one you should arrest

No more bourgeois when you scratch him

Than that brand upon his chest!

[The constables search for Valjean.]

Javert

Could it be he's some old jailbird

That the tide now washes in

Heard my name and started running

Had the brand upon his skin

And the girl who stood beside him

When I turned they both had gone

Could he be the man I've hunted?

Could it be he's Jean Valjean?

Thenardier

In the absence of a victim,

Dear Inspector, may I go?

And remember when you've nicked him,

It was me who told you so!

Javert

Let the old man keep on running

I will run him off his feet!

Everyone about your business

Clear this garbage off the street!

STARS

Javert

There, out in the darkness

A fugitive running

Fallen from God

Fallen from grace

God be my witness

I never shall yield

Till we come face to face

Till we come face to face

He knows his way in the dark

But mine is the way of the Lord

And those who follow the path of the righteous

Shall have their reward

And if they fall

As Lucifer fell

The flame

The sword!

Stars

In your multitudes

Scarce to be counted

Filling the darkness

With order and light

You are the sentinels

Silent and sure

Keeping watch in the night

Keeping watch in the night

You know your place in the sky

You hold your course and your aim

And each in your season

Returns and returns

And is always the same

And if you fall as Lucifer fell

You fall in flame!

And so it has been

And so it is written

On the doorway to paradise

That those who falter and those who fall

Must pay the price!

Lord let me find him

That I may see him

Safe behind bars

I will never rest

Till then, this I swear

This I swear by the stars!

Gavroche

That inspector thinks he's something

But it's me who runs this town!

And my theater never closes

And the curtain's never down

Trust Gavroche, have no fear

Don't you worry, auntie dear,

You can always find me here!

EPONINE'S ERRAND

[Eponine is alone in the square.]

Eponine

Cosette! Now I remember!

Cosette! How can it be?

We were children together

Look what's become of me...

[Marius returns.]

Good God! Oh, what a rumpus!

Marius

That girl, who can she be?

Eponine

That cop! He'd like to jump us

But he ain't smart, not he.

Marius

Eponine, who was that girl?

Eponine

Some bourgeois two-a-penny thing!

Marius

Eponine, find her for me!

Eponine

What will you give me?

Marius

Anything!

Eponine

Got you all excited now,

But God knows what you see in her

Ain't you all delighted now

[She refuses Marius' money.]

No, I don't want your money sir...

Marius

Eponine, do this for me...

Discover where she lives

Be careful how you go

Don't let her father know...

'Ponine! I'm lost until she's found!

Eponine

You see, I told you so!

There's lots of things I know...

[Marius leaves.]

'Ponine... she knows her way around...

RED AND BLACK (The ABC Cafe)

[The ABC Cafe, where the students, led by Enjolras, meet to discuss their revolutionary plans.]

Combeferre

At Notre Dame

The sections are prepared!

Feuilly

At rue de Bac

They're straining at the leash!

Courfeyrac

Students, workers, everyone

There's a river on the run

Like the flowing of the tide

Paris coming to our side!

Enjolras

The time is near...

So near.. it's stirring the blood in their veins!

And yet beware...

Don't let the wine go to your brains!

For the army we fight is a dangerous foe

With the men and the arms that we never can match

Oh, it's easy to sit here and swat 'em like flies

But the national guard will be harder to catch.

We need a sign

To rally the people

To call them to arms

To bring them in line!

[Marius enters.]

Marius, you're late.

Joly

What's wrong today?

You look as if you've seen a ghost.

Grantaire

Some wine and say what's going on!

Marius

A ghost you say... a ghost maybe

She was just like a ghost to me

One minute there, and she was gone!

Grantaire

I am agog!

I am aghast!

Is Marius in love at last?

I have never heard him `ooh' and `aah'

You talk of battles to be won

But here he comes like Don Ju-an

It's better than an o-per-a!

Enjolras

It is time for us all

To decide who we are...

Do we fight for the right

To a night at the opera now?

Have you asked of yourselves

What's the price you might pay?

Is it simply a game

For rich young boys to play?

The color of the world

Is changing

Day by day...

Red - the blood of angry men!

Black - the dark of ages past!

Red - a world about to dawn!

Black - the night that ends at last!

Marius

Had you been there tonight

You might know how it feels

To be struck to the bone

In a moment of breathless delight!

Had you been there tonight

You might also have known

How the world may be changed

In just one burst of light!

And what was right

Seems wrong

And what was wrong

Seems right...

Grantaire [mocking...]

Red...

Marius

I feel my soul on fire!

Grantaire

Black...

Marius

My world if she's not there...

All

Red...

Marius

The color of desire!

All

Black...

Marius

The color of despair!

Enjolras

Marius, you're no longer a child

I do not doubt you mean it well

But now there is a higher call

Who cares about your lonely soul

We strive toward a larger goal

Our little lives don't count at all!

All

Red - the blood of angry men!

Black - the dark of ages past!

Red - a world about to dawn!

Black - the night that ends at last!

Enjolras

Well, Courfeyrac, do we have all the guns?

Feuilly, Combeferre, our time is running short.

Grantaire, put the bottle down!

Do we have the guns we need?

Grantaire [drunk]

Give me brandy on my breath

And I'll breath 'em all to death!

Courfeyrac

In St. Antoine they're with us to a man!

Combeferre

In Notre Dame they're tearing up the stones!

Feuilly

Twenty rifles good as new.

[Gavroche rushes in, shouting.]

Gavroche

Listen!

Jean Prouvaire

Double that in Port St. Cloud!

Gavroche

Listen everybody!

Lesgles