Broadway and West End star Ramin Karimloo and his Broadgrass Band’s ‘Lead Me Home’ tour recently ended on January 29th in the UK.
I’m an enormous fan of the Iranian-Canadian actor/singer who has starred in Phantom of the Opera, Love Never Dies and Les Miserables in the UK, as well as his star turn as Jean Valjean in Les Miserables on Broadway. The seriously woofy and talented Karimloo will begin rehearsals in a few weeks for the upcoming Broadway production of Anatasia.
With the issue of immigration, nations borders and more in the daily news spotlight, I think his heartfelt performance of “Anthem,” from the musical Chess, is more than appropriate.
His voice is just… woof. Effortless tone, gorgeous over-the-bar phrasing. And so easy on the eyes, too 🙂
In case anyone needs to be reminded of the brilliance that is Ramin Karimloo, here’s one of the most recent video performances of Ramin singing “Bring Him Home” from his heart-stopping performance as “Jean Valjean” in Les Miserables on Broadway.
(Couldn’t find a great live theatre clip, but you get the bonus of seeing the handsome face here…)
• He sings! He acts! AND he looks like this! Broadway Style Guide shares workout tips from the fabulous Ramin Karimloo, star of Broadway’s “Les Miserables.”
Randy Report favorite, Ramin Karimloo, currently killing it on Broadway in his starring role as “Jean Valjean” in Les Miserables, closes a sold-out 2012 concert in Chicago with “Make Them Hear You” from Ragtime.
Currently starring on Broadway in the hit revival of Les Miserables as “Fantine,” (former Broadway “Elphaba” in Wicked and created the role of “Molly” in Ghost), Caissie Levy stops the show nightly with the iconic “I Dreamed A Dream.”
The voice. The voice. The voice. The voice.
I can’t say enough about the current revival of Les Miz. I’ve already extolled my uber-crush on leading man Ramin Karimloo’s talent (and the fact that he’s easy on the eyes). I felt it time to give Miss Levy equal time 🙂
And if you dig Miss Levy’s voice as much as I do, check her official website here. She has an EP titled With You and the website has a player where you can listen to the songs in their entirety.
This week, Seth Rudetsky hosted the fab Ramin Karimloo on his popular web series OBSESSED!.
Ramin is currently wowing on Broadway in “Les Miserables” with his Tony Award nominated performance as “Jean Valjean,” and here on The Randy Report where he’s become a bit of an obsession for me. And he wows in this clip with “that voice.”
Seth has a theory that some Andrew Lloyd Webber songs would be easier to sing if the vowels on the high notes were changed. Ramin demonstrates to most excellent results.
However, I think this is an unfair demo considering Ramin can sing the phone book and we’d all be impressed.
In advance of his new EP on Tuesday, Broadway’s newest “Jean Valjean” in Les Miserables, Ramin Karimloo, has released the first video “Losing.”
Karimloo’s EP ‘The Road To Find Out: East’ features “broadgrass music,” a cross between Broadway and Bluegrass to be released on 7 April via Big Hand Recordings.
In the world of theatrical performers, Ramin is known as one of the most formidable talents in the industry and for his leading roles in international theatre productions such as Jean Valjean in Les Misérables and Raoul and Phantom in the Phantom in Phantom of the Opera.
The tracks on ‘East’ include “Oh What A Beautiful Morning” from Oklahoma, a brand new song called “Losing” which Ramin wrote with Hadley Fraser (an English stage actor, who played Javert in Les Misérables) and features Katie Birtill on vocals, “Empty Chairs at Empty Tables” from Les Miserables, and “Broken”, another original track co-written with Hadley.
Ok, so I’ve ‘known’ about Ramin Karimloo for a couple of years now. He was discovered in London and starred in “Love Never Dies,” the sequel to Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “Phantom of the Opera.”
He has also starred in “Les Miserables” playing all three leading male roles, including the 25th Anniversary Concert of “Les Miz” as “Enjolras” that was broadcast worldwide from the O2 Arena, and “the Phantom” in the 25th Anniversary performance of “Phantom of the Opera.”
He just opened in the new revival of “Les Miserables” on Broadway as “Jean Valjean” to wild acclaim. From the New York Times:
Making a sterling Broadway debut, he sets a high standard in the prologue, performing Valjean’s angry soliloquy with fiery intensity and full-throttled vocalism that gradually shades into more nuanced coloring as Valjean puts behind him the grim shadows of his imprisonment and forges a new life.
The highlight of his performance, and perhaps the production as a whole, is Mr. Karimloo’s beautifully restrained but richly felt rendition of “Bring Him Home,” one of the score’s less thundering songs, in which Valjean sends up a prayer for Marius, who has fallen at the barricades after falling for Cosette (Samantha Hill), whom Valjean has raised after her mother’s death. Mr. Karimloo’s croon is as sweet as his belt is big.
So, there.
What I didn’t know is how handsome he is. And his manner in his own concerts is so warm and congenial that you just want to sit for hours and take in the whole package – the voice, the face, the warmth. All of it.
The clip below is from a concert tour he did (this was in Tyler, TX) and he sings an unlikely “I Dreamed A Dream” (the female lead’s song from Les Miz) with power, ease and sensitivity. Just the right balance of masculinity and vulnerability.
And did I mention he’s really hot?
Ramin Karimloo is my new favorite thing.
Right before I was about to hit “Publish” on this post I found this version of Ramin singing “Bring Him Home” from “Les Miz,” but from one of his own concerts. I had to add this.
I seriously encourage you to get to NYC and see Ramin and the entire fab company if “Les Miserables” on Broadway.
