NEW YORK (AP) – That familiar feeling of being hunted has returned for Alfie Boe: He’s about to be Broadway’s latest Jean Valjean.
The English tenor takes over the part of Prisoner 24601 from Ramin Karimloo in “Les Miserables” on Tuesday, four years after Karimloo replaced him as Valjean in the West End.
“It’s been a while but the role hasn’t left me. He’s still there,” Boe said after a recent rehearsal. “My mind feels a little bit mashed at the moment but it’ll come untangled, I’m sure.”
Valjean is a special role for Boe, one that raised his profile when he sang it in 2010 to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the musical.
“That was the moment that turned my career around,” he said. “It’s something that I’ll respect for the rest of my career, something I hold very dear to my heart.”