“Black – the night that ends at last!” Indeed, the night that is the drought after Les Miserables’ last showing in Singapore, circa 2015, has finally ended at last. Now running for a limited season till 10th May 2026, Les Miserables The Arena Spectacular has landed at Sands Theatre in Marina Bay Sands – here’s what you need to know about Les Mis.
Just so you know, prior to the 2015 run at Esplanade Theatre, Les Mis had only come to Singapore 20 years before that – that’s 1985, if you’ve lost count. Fittingly, 2025 marks the 40th anniversary of this iconic musical.
Beyond that dearth between showings, this version of Les Miserables is the most electrifying one yet, as The Arena Spectacular might clue you in to.
Lea Salonga as Madame Thenardier.
Image credit: Les Miserables The Arena Spectacular
It’s different from the record-breaking Les Miserables The Staged Concert that’s played more than 200 shows in the West End, with what’s touted as “an extraordinary new design specifically created for larger venues”, and new set and lighting designs. Celebrated Les Mis alumni, if you haven’t already seen, have also returned to the stage for this special edition.
Image credit: Les Miserables The Arena Spectacular
We’re talking Lea Salonga herself, who has played both Eponine and Fantine on Broadway, who’s back to play Madame Thenardier, alongside our very own Nathania Ong, who takes on the role of Eponine.
This edition of the world’s longest-running musical only hit the stage in September in 2024, and the World Tour has seen it played in the UK, Europe, and Australia, before hitting China, Taiwan and Japan last year.
If you’re not already geeking out, here’s the lowdown on what this hit musical is about:
Les Mis the musical is based on an 1862 novel of the same name by Victor Hugo, set in early 19th-century France. The story is centred around Jean Valjean, a French peasant who steals a loaf of bread for his sister’s starving child and gets caught.
He’s imprisoned for 19 years before he’s released on parole. However, he realises that as an ex-convict, there are no second chances for him. He takes on a new identity as Monsieur Madeleine, becoming a successful businessman and Mayor.
Without spoiling it further, the rest of the story unfolds against the backdrop of the French Revolution, examining the social injustices and abject poverty of the time – as echoed in one of the most recognisable lines from the score, which goes, “Do you hear the people sing, singing the song of angry men?”
Tickets are still available on the MBS website, as well as Klook and Sistic. Prices start from $64, and the show will go on till 10th May 2026 with performances every day except on Mondays. Each performance is 3 hours and 5 minutes long, including a 20-minute intermission, and they play nightly at 8pm, except on Sundays when the evening show is at 6.30pm.
The matinee performances are at 2pm on Saturdays and 1pm on Sundays.
Hot on the heels of the Disney Adventure cruise light-up, MBS is taking on a new set of colours this weekend with a special light-up of The Marina Bay Sands Towers and The Shoppes roofline.
They’ll be lit up in gold, while the ArtScience Museum will be illuminated in blue, with a projection of Cosette.
Selected songs from the show will also be broadcast along the Marina Bay Waterfront Promenade, while the Singapore Flyer will be aglow in red, white and blue – the iconic colours of Les Mis.
If you “dreamed a dream” that Les Mis would play in Singapore once more, the time is here. We promise you’ll be moved to tears hearing the songs IRL – we were.
Date: Till 10th May 2026
Time: Tue-Fri 8pm | Sat 2pm, 8pm | Sun 1pm, 6.30pm
Address: 10 Bayfront Avenue, B1-69/70, Sands Theatre, The Shoppes, Marina Bay Sands, Singapore 018971
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Cover image adapted from: Les Miserables The Arena Spectacular
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