+Zach Miller This is indeed. Many people don't understand why Fantine is such a big character with only I Dreamed I Dreamed whereas Eponine has Own My Own and Little Fall of Rain, but this is so easily forgotten! I think it is more beautiful than Little Fall of Rain.
I think that her performance in the 10th anniversary concert was the best performance Ruthie Henshall ever gave. Her voice was never better. This was by far the best performance of Fantine I have ever heard by anyone. Brilliant!
Warren Flores i have heard every single person who has ever played Fantine sing that note, and NOT ONE comes close to spinning that last note on a haunting thread like Ruthie Henshall. Divine singing!
When listening only to the audio I thought Ruthie was stepping away from the mic on the last note. Watching the video now I realized she controlled the fading note solely with her vocal. Wow. Damn. She is by far and away the best Fantine ever. Dust kicks up whenever I hear her voice in Les Mis.
This song moves me every time I hear it. As a parent (father), my heart breaks that Fantine’s last thought was a longing for her daughter to be with her. The love and sacrifice that a mother is willing to make for her child, which lead to the guilt and burden that Jean Valjean will carry and make amends for the rest of his life, all in this one song.
When I was pregnant with my daughter, a difficult pregnancy that ended tragically I used to sing this just before going to sleep. She would calm down. Till this day, as that was almost 17 years a go, singing that song makes me cry.
This is the perfect example of artistry in the voice, the way Ruthie fades her voice in and out with as her character's strength wanes in and out, man that's why we cry. You can hear her death at the end. That is what so much of our movies are missing today, just emotion and imagry in a voice. Amazing!
I truly am in love with Ruthie Henshall's performance here as Fantine. Her voice is incomparable to any other. I can listen to her all day. :) Lea's performance in the broadway was just touching. She has a strong voice even when she was crying. As for Anne Hathaway's performance, I have to give her credit for being able to sing while she's crying in despair too. She moved me to tears. It's truly tough to act that way for a film. I think she does deserve that Golden Globe award. :)
I'm going to be honest, this song is really comforting. If you forget that Fantine is dying, this would work as one of the best lullabies. Just, her soothing voice and emotion filled tone, and her sweet and comforting words, are honestly to much to handle. She is just so amazing, I give her mad props for this amazing performance. (Also Fantine was amazing as hell hhhhh-)
This always makes me want to cry, and when she sings I Dreamed a Dream. She really shows the emotion and makes you feel it.Other people just sing it, that's it, they don't show the emotion or make you feel it.
Ruthy Henshall was nothing short of extraordinary in this role. You can wrap yourself with her warm rich voice, while being ensured that it tells a story that conveys everything you ever wanted to know about the character she is playing.
This is the 10th Anniversary cast and everyone is amazing. So heart-breaking when Fantine is singing about Cosette. Victor Hugo makes Jean Valjean the epitome of perfection.
***** I disagree. While Hugh's voice is... well... yeah... It suits his face. To listen to the soundtrack it is a little grating. I prefer Anne's version of this for the raw emotion. It can actually bring me to tears whereas this version cannot.
I don't know this show very weel, I'm french, 28 years old and live in France. I've heard this perfom was the best, and my friends shown me. I'm surpirsed, because it's not good, it's fantastic zand this girl has a very great voice ! Thank U for this video !
I first heard this song when my life was falling apart. It was like it reached deep into the chaos and pain I was feeling, giving voice to the emotions I couldn’t express. In the darkest moments, it was there, helping me to feel, to cry, and to heal the screams inside. I’m so grateful for that.
I am a solanga fan but definitely love Ruthie. They both bring such a realness to the part that brings tears to my eyes. And I will not start on colm...that man. My God.
The part that gets me is the last note, the way her voice sounds like it's dying, growing suddenly weaker and colder and come to an end. It really sounds like it's her last breath... Amazing.
This song changed the way I looked at music. Heard it in 96’ during hardcore grunge music era. I didn’t know as a kid that music could be this incredible.
This was an amazing interpretation from Ruthie she has such a beautiful voice and when she sang the last word awake and went soft at the end omg I felt so emotional. Absolutely beautiful. Les Mis is a rare show which has so many beautiful songs which touch you so deeply.
If there was ever a video that deserved a million views, this is it. It's one thing to hit a whistle tone like that, but it's even more impressive how smoothly Ruthie transitions into it.
i love love her version of this song...and i love this song so much..she asks him to take care of her daughter....and Valjean responds he will take her child......i was moved from the first time i saw this and still, every time, i cry
how come 17 dislike this?? its the best voice my ears have heard in my whole life. I keep listening to it over and over and never get bored. Ruthie is amazing. Greetings from Egypt
***** why only the 2 compares to ruth and anne? why not compare different fantines. seems a lot have actually only seen the film and a few little clip bits. has any one just watched celine at the queens recently? opinions please
THIS PERFORMANCE WILL LAST A LONG LONG TIME AS ONE OF THE BEST SHOWS EVER WHAT A PERFORMANCE BY THE STARS AND THE MUSICIANS WISH I WAS THERE 10 ANNIVERSARY
She certainly deserved the standing ovation which I'm sure she got for this. It's July 2024 and my wife and I are going to see Les Mis in London in September to celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary - can't believe 2025 will mark the 40th anniversary of Les Mis!!
Nobody has been able to do "And tell Cosette I love her and I'll see her when I waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaake" better than Ruthie. I've seen the show multiple times, and not even Lea Salonga (whom I adored as Eponine) can hold a candle to her.
Oh my god I forgot about this song. I'm crying. The bittersweet melody of I Dreamed a Dream reprised in this, as Fantine is dying - whatever little hope or joy left in her life is now lost. Cosette is the unexpected, fragile realization of a dream... Her desperate, last, precious dream is found in Cosette's play and childhood joy, and in the fragile hope for a brighter future for Cosette than Fantine had for herself. She says previously that life killed her dream and she's in hell, and now again her dream is being killed in her inability to see through or ensure Cosette's future. Fantine has lost _her own_ future and dream yet again. Some small comfort and hope that Valjean will care for Cosette. A dying desperate hope for her daughter to live a life free from the immense burden and shame that fate or chance had in store for Fantine. Some desperate pleas as she feverishly goes in and out of acknowledging her reality - to not be alone in the end. OOF.
The song is really sad but it comes back again when Val Jean dies where it becomes kind of both sad and happy. The saddest part of this section of the musical is actually the sudden change from this song to the confrontation. It is really striking the mercilessness of the world that leaves no time to rest for people.
