Read carefully, because if you are a fan of music, theatre, or the arts--hell, if your only credit is that you have a soul--you need to see the 25th Anniversary of the London Phantom of the Opera.
Tonight's London evening performance was beamed live around the world into cinemas, and my mom and I were lucky enough to stumble on an announcement for it. We got tickets yesterday, and showed up at our local theater this morning (11am corresponded to the opening of the evening curtain in London). The surround sound as you waited for the performance to begin was magical: you heard the orchestra warming up, you heard the murmur of the London audience being seated around you. A vista of the filling Albert Hall was on screen...
Now, I love the show, and have seen it three times before. I figured this one would be pretty neat, but "neat" is not a strong enough superlative! Ramin Karimloo was phenomenal. Tears-in-the-eyes phenomenal. Along with a Gold Medal Phantom we had a Christine who is not only drop-dead gorgeous (my God, her eyes), but an amazing actress. She was in love, she was frightened, she was happy... There was a point during Music of the Night that she shed a single tear through closed eyes, and I just about died. Raoul was equally as good, and equally as beautiful. (Total baby, though--I'm two years older than him!)
After a performance with brilliant staging, the most detailed costumes you'll ever see, and an amazing orchestra accompaniment, Andrew Lloyd Webber himself stepped out on stage, gave a speech, and then brought the original creative team out on stage! And THEN! He brought out the original London cast, PLUS Sarah Brightman, Michael Crawford, and four past Phantoms. Sarah and the four Phantoms (no Michael) sang "Phantom of the Opera", and after Sarah was whisked away, the gentlemen (including longest-running Phantom John Owen-Jones) sang "Music of the Night".
Without a hint of exaggeration: every few minutes I got goosebumps all over again. Even half a world away, in a movie theatre, this was an absolutely breath-taking performance from start to finish. If you can possibly manage it, see this show!
(Or at the very least, buy the thing when it comes out on Blu-ray!!)
2 comments:
Couldn't have said it better myself... Absolutely magnificent!
Yes, I loved it! I'm just wondering why Michael Crawford (THE phantom, for me) didn't sing. Have been trying to find something.
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