The ad was created by Dewynters and used the famous 'Les Miserables' logo, which is a drawing representing one of the characters Cosette.
But instead of wearing her usual costume, she was shown wearing a bowler hat, hotpants and suspenders, and posing provocatively -- much like the famous image of Minnelli in the film 'Cabaret'. The ad appeared in national newspapers promoting the opening of 'Les Miserables' in Berlin.
The advertising watchdog received five complaints about the ad, which ran on behalf of the show's producer Cameron Mackintosh. People said that it was tasteless and offensive because it showed a child in a sexually provocative pose.
The advertiser argued that it was one of a series of ads that feature Cosette wearing different outfits appropriate to the markets in which they were shown.
It also argued that the ad ran in the Sunday Times' Culture magazine, which was written for a mature, cultured audience and that the witty reference to 'Cabaret' would be appreciated by sophisticated theatre-going readers.
However, the Advertising Standards Authority upheld the complaints, because the illustration of Cosette was a very young girl in provocative clothing. It told the advertisers not to use the ad again.
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