#a reflection of starlight

[strengthtojourneyon]

Watched the Arena tour and if I don't talk about it I WILL EXPLODE

Oh my word, I was so excited for this show and let me tell you it did not disappoint. It was my first time seeing a stage production of the musical and it completely outshone the film, and the arena tour specifically was such a perfect show from top to bottom, I'll never forget how it felt hearing those opening notes from the live orchestra.

Ugh it was just so cool!!! And the actors oh my word lemme talk about the actors for a sec -

Killian Donnelly:

This man has the voice of an angel. An angel. He understood Valjean so well, portrayed him as this quiet, careful character, who kept his emotions and secrets close to his chest. That was until the final song where he finally allowed himself to feel and to show his emotions without inhibition....heartbreaking 10/10. And like I said, his actual singing was so, so haunting. Bring Him Home was definitely a highlight, his tenor is just so pretty and melodious!! And yet at other times his voice is so strong and decisive, like in The Confrontation and Who Am I - honestly the talent that man has is insane. He was perfect and from now on he is my favourite Valjean.

Bradley Jaden:

This man. THIS MAN. He has altered my brain chemistry permanently. Watching him play Javert has become one of those life derailing, permanently changing how I view the musical forever experiences akin only to the first time I read AROS. Holy heck is this man the perfect Javert! I was legit so excited when he came out for the first time! Honestly, he just was Javert. He truly embodies what it means to become your character (it helps that he looks like him too, with his long hair and wolfish grins) and his voice??? Hello???? Stars was a masterpiece, I swear I have never heard it sung so beautifully in my life! The way he knelt and did the cross on the edge of the stage instead of raising his baton above his head over-dramatically? The quiet devotion and faith in every note? The juxtaposition of Javert's inner thoughts and how he presents himself to others? This man!! And when Javert died I swear he had everyone on the edge of their seats. He so perfectly encapsulated the distress of the character, balancing drama and emotion and melody all at once to flawlessly depict such an important scene. I don't care what anyone else says, he is the greatest Javert of all time in my opinion.

And also, why the hell is there no Bradley Jaden fanclub here? He needs one!! I'll be president myself if I have to!

Rachelle Ann Go:

Supermodel looks and superstar voice, I don't know what more to say. She portrayed Fantine with a bit more fire, a little more resistance than I am used to, but I'm all for it. She had that "I've lost everything, so I no longer care anymore" type attitude that makes perfect sense for her character. When she came back for the epilogue she had this ethereal grace to her that really made her feel like a real angel.

Jac Yarrow:

He really does suit Marius, both looks and personality wise. His voice was enchanting <3 I nearly fell in love with him myself, no wonder Eponine and Cosette were both into him! Seriously though, he completely slayed Empty Chairs at Empty Tables. He was also really very sweet when Eponine died, green flags all around, wholesome Marius energy that I am here for all the way.

Jo Stephenson:

I prefer my Cosettes blonde, but aside from that, Jo did an excellent job with the character. I really thought she encapsulated the quiet dignity and elegance of older Cosette very well. She hit all her notes perfectly and I had no idea she was an understudy until I read my programme. Kudos to her she did really well and I look forward to seeing her again in a role of her own.

James D. Gish:

Good grief, what a heartthrob. Stunningly handsome and deeply passionate, he is everything you could ever ask Enjorlas to be. I really could hear the emotion in every word he sung, his battle cries stirred the hearts of the entire audience! Still, he never came off as uncaring or overbearing towards his friends, but rather as encouraging and confident, exemplifying the traits of a true leader. It was so, so heartbreaking when he died, everyone really adored him and I genuinely cannot find any fault with his performance. It was perfect. He was perfect. Huge kudos to my new favourite Enjorlas.

Beth Curnock:

Another understudy, but you wouldn't have known it from her performance. As someone who usually listens to the symphonic recording, I was pretty nervous about Eponine. I was worried she would put on that awful accent that Kaho Shimada does (no offense guys, it's not for me). Thankfully Beth did not, her voice was angelic and refined, her clear understanding of the character shone through in her every movement, every note, every action. She was incredible and it was heartbreaking watching her die in Marius's arms. A rising star in the industry for sure.

Sebastian Sero:

Incrediably talented for a 12 year old. He made an excellent Gavroche, I wish we could have seen even more of him. He nailed the part completely, he had the perfect amount of sass and resilience that made him perfect for the role. Whenever I imagine Gavroche now, I will imagine him.

Marina Prior:

So I didn't actually know who she was before I watched the show, I was super confused why the audience cheered for ages when Madame Thenardier cam out lmao. What kind of pitiful excuse for an Australian am I? Regardless, she played the role really well and the audience just adored her. She and Matt Lucas were such a talented comedic duo and even with all of her silliness, her incredible talent for singing shown through her every note. To the point that her husband broke the fourth wall to go "It's not phantom, love" which was so funny.

Matt Lucas:

Absolutely hilarious. Every time Thenardier came onto the stage the audience knew they were in for a good time. I loved how confident Matt was with the character that he felt he could add his own personal touches, with all his fun little quips. He just had this infectious energy to him that really drew you in. (Side note - the background choreography in Beggars At The Feast being just the rest of the cast swaying is freaking hilarious to me). If I had one small criticism, it would be that his evil laugh at the end of Dog Eats Dog was not nearly evil enough for my taste, but that's a very, very small thing and ultimately does in no way diminish his spectacular performance.

So that's the actors, and if you're still here, here's my thoughts on my three ships:

Valvert:

Oh boy, strap in buddy-

HOLY HECK THE CHEMISTRY BETWEEN KILLIAN AND BRADLEY. Dude. Dude the Valvert vibes were off the charts. Soft valjean x sharp Javert if you can understand what I mean. From the beginning, Javert has to be all gay about giving Jean his paper, slapping it onto his chest (just admit you wanna touch him, dude) and then during the MsurM era you could just tell they were into each other. Trust me bro, those longing glances were frequent. Ooooh and the confrontation. Masterpiece. Both of them were so dramatic, Javert was raving and spitting and the toxic yoai levels were crazzzzy. Especially when they actually were looking at each other!! Oh and when Javert was interrogating Thenardier he gets all lost in his thoughts thinking of Valjean and accidentally grabs Thenardier's coat (imagining what you wanna do to Valjean, buddy?) heck even Thenardier is like "what the hell dude. Get your repressed gay ass away from me". During First Attack you could really see longing in Valjean's eyes as he frees Javert. Longing to keep him prisoner or longing for a world where they were on the same side? It's up to interpretation. And Javert lunges at him and Valjean keeps him at bay with his knife, their faces only inches apart....bro I cannot be normal about this, ever.

Marisette:

What can I say? They were really very cute. It felt like every opportunity they got they would kiss. Just gentle, wholesome love the whole way through. They remain my beloved token straight couple. Their gentle tenderness was a good contrast to all of the toxic yaoi/doomed yaoi going on around them.

Enjoltaire:

Gotta say, not too big of an Enjoltaire vibe in this show, Enjorlas did seem to be more patient with Grantaire though. He was a little more open to him, a bit more gentle when he tried to stop him from singing in Drink With Me. Also it was hilarious when Grantaire stole his microphone in Red and Black and then hopped happily away so his boyfriend could have it back. That was giving bickering married couple/playful banter vibes and I was all for it.

Additional thoughts:

Absolutely excellent show all around. There is less acting as a result of it being an arena tour but it still felt like a full, complete, easily understood show. I adored every minute and when Valjean and the bishop hugged at the end I burst into tears.

If I was to have one small criticism it would be that Javert should have been in the final song. It's 2025, we shouldn't be pushing the narrative that people are unforgivable and that those who commit suicide don't get into heaven. Come on now.

But that aside, I highly recommend it! I just wish I could have stayed and watched that performance over and over again. It was life changing for sure!!

[bunnyinatree]

I was going through my old sketchbook last night and found all of these pages for what remains my favorite fic ever: “A Reflection of Starlight” by @autumngracy. I only ever digitized and posted one of the sketches (which you can see in the bottom left corner of the first drawing), but these rough sketches made me smile, so I decided to post the rest of them as they are C:

[image ID: three pages of pencil sketches. On the first page is a scene from Chapter 7 of AROS. Javert is in bed, looking angrily at Valjean. He asks, “Are you saying I am not human?” Valjean holds up his hands in surrender and says, “No! I am saying—I am saying you have never…” He pauses, looking down in thought, then looks back up and finishes, “—been treated like one.” Javert looks unsettled by this but quickly composes himself and looks to the side, crossing his arms. “I don’t want to be human. I want to be respectable,” he says. Valjean throws up his hands in exasperation. (I think this pose is a reference to something, but I forget what!)

[In the second image, there is a three-panel comic of a scene from Chapter 4, sketched out twice with varying detail. The first panel features a glowering Javert. He says, “The girl is asking too many questions. She is irritating me.” The second panel features Valjean looking confused, with a question mark next to his face. The third panel has Javert out of focus in the foreground; behind him is Cosette, sitting at a table looking cute and waving at Valjean with a smile.

[The final image is based on Chapter 22. It features Javert kicking down Valjean’s door, in the style of Candace from “Phineas and Ferb.” He is shouting, “YOU INSUFFERABLE IDIOT!” End image ID.]

[le-loup-et-lion]

So I just realized something very funny

[cl-imprinting]

suddenly remembered something I made many years ago

[chromiumhater]

Listening to A Heart Full of Love and cursing AutumnGracy as I realize things about chapter 34 of ARoS

[lesbiansouhiyori]

finally finished reading AROS and I dont think I will ever recover

[autumngracy]

Not me telling myself this was going to be a one shot (it's not even done yet)

The “oh I could definitely write this fanfic in under 5000 words and it really wouldn’t take me that long” voice in your head is actually the devil speaking

[strengthtojourneyon]

Jealousy - Valvert comic part 1

My first ever valvert comic! :D Valjean and Javert's outfits are the same ones they wear in one of the party scenes in A Reflection of Starlight by @autumngracy

[le-loup-et-lion]

Hello,

Big fan of AROS (reread it for the second time straight), so I have a question: are you planning to finish it?

(No pressure, of course! Just... asking).

Yes my brain broke and yes I've been suffering from severe depression and burnout for the past 10 years straight, BUT the only thing that will stop me from finishing this fic is a premature death ❤

[linusbenjamin]

The Boys 4.04 ☼ Wisdom of the Ages

[rabnerd28]

The girlboss feminism of post 2018 StEx really makes it obvious that whoever is working on this show is always 5-10 years behind on actual feminist talking point

[ruusukultakruunu]

[strengthtojourneyon]

Justice and Joy

"God will delight when we are creators of justice and joy..."

I'm ridiculously proud of this one! I was inspired by the chorus of this hymn we sang in church, which spoke about Justice and Joy - the two ideals Javert and Valjean embody, that put them in conflict with one another. Javert has his sword, cold and cruel like he is perceived, and Valjean has flowers to show his gentle, forgiving nature.

The best part of this one is because the two sides are symmetrical to each other, you can view them this way as well!

[inspirehorizon]

A moonlit glow on waters below

[spivecream]

evil male volta >:(. evil male volta >:(. evil male volta >:(. evil male volta >:(. evil male volta >:(. evil male volta >:(. evil male volta >:(. evil male volta >:(. evil male volta >:(. evil male volta >:(. evil male volta >:(. evil male volta >:(. evil male volta >:(. evil male volta >:(. evil male volta >:(. EVIL MALE VOLTA >:(. EVIL MALE VOLTA >:(. EVIL MALE VOLTA >:(. EVIL MALE VOLTA >:(. EVIL MALE VOLTA >:(. EVIL MALE VOLTA >:(. EVIL MALE VOLTA >:(. EVIL MALE VOLTA >:(. EVIL MALE VOLTA >:(. EVIL MALE VOLTA >:(. EVIL MALE VOLTA >:(. EVIL MALE VOLTA >:(. EVIL MALE VOLTA >:(. EVIL MALE VOLTA >:(. EVIL MALE VOLTA >:(. EVIL MALE VOLTA >:(. EVIL MALE VOLTA >:(. EVIL MALE VOLTA >:(. EVIL MALE VOLTA >:(. EVIL MALE VOLTA >:(.

[strengthtojourneyon]

@autumngracy

Sometimes a slow burn will leave me crying sobbing wailing over a kiss and maybe wanting to hunt down the author with a spear