‘Les Miserables’ Star Savors a French Role

Jean Valjean, where are you?

That was the panicky buzz on Tuesday night at Birraporetti’s, site of the bash that christened the opening of “Les Miserables” at the Orange County Performing Arts Center.

Party-goers were afraid they’d miss the chance to talk with the hero of the musical based on the Victor Hugo classic.

With the crush, where would they find him? Sans stage makeup, how would they know him? Was he the short gent with the glasses? The tall one with the hat? The shy guy in the corner?

Not to worry.

It may have been midnight before Jean Valjean (Brian Lynch) swept into the party with its brimming buffet and Vive La France! decor, but he was wide-eyed and ready to talk. (He was the hunk with the honey-color beard and the piercing baby-blues.)

But first, a plunge into the pasta. Lynch was starved.

Guests zeroed in. How did he like Segerstrom Hall? “Beautiful,” he said.

And the part--what was it like to play a man who goes from embittered chain-gang member to saint?

“I reach deep down to the roots of my upbringing,” said Lynch, partying with his wife, Mary Jean, and his son Jonathon,7, at his side. “I use my religion--I was raised Roman Catholic--and my spirituality.

“Jean Valjean wears his religion on his sleeve. He wants to get close to his community. Having the opportunity to emulate his goodness is a dream. It’s a wonderful part.”

Mary Jean Lynch noted that her husband’s role was “in character,” she said, beaming. “It’s a good match of person with character. Brian is very loving, generous, strong. And he knows who he is.” The couple have been married nearly 12 years. “We were high-school sweethearts,” Mary Jean said.

J.P. Dougherty played the role of Thenardier--the innkeeper whose character is the antithesis of Valjean’s. Dougherty was perfectly evil as the foul-minded, ill-mannered, sticky-fingered lout who tosses urchins around like beach balls.

How does Dougherty arrive at this evil place of mind? “Musta been something in my past,” he deadpanned. As for Segerstrom Hall, Dougherty said, “it was more imposing than the ‘Les Miserables’ set itself.”

Center president Thomas Kendrick thought the production played better in Segerstrom Hall than at the Shubert in Los Angeles. “Segerstrom Hall helped the production focus totally on the players,” Kendrick said. “It was a very smooth opening night.”