Opened on March 12, 1987. Closed May 18, 2003 after 6,680 performances — 16.2 years. 8 Tony Awards in 1987, including Best Musical; 5 Drama Desk Awards in 1987, including Outstanding Musical; Grammy Award for Best Musical Cast Show Album in 1988 and 1991 Les Misérables, colloquially known as Les Mis or Les Miz, is a sung-through musical based on the 1862 novel by Victor Hugo. It is one of the most popular and highest-grossing stage musicals of all time. Set in early 19th-century France, Les Misérables tells the story of Jean Valjean, a French convict, and his journey of redemption. After stealing a loaf of bread for his sister's starving child, Valjean is imprisoned for 19 years and released in 1815. When a bishop inspires him with a tremendous act of mercy, Valjean breaks his parole, changes his name and starts his life anew. He becomes wealthy and adopts an orphan, Cosette. A police inspector named Javert pursues Valjean over the decades in a single-minded quest for "justice." The plot leads the characters to Paris, where they are swept up in the events of a revolutionary period in France, as a group of young idealists attempts to overthrow the government from a street barricade. Wiki link