#LND FEEDING US SO WELL

[sncrly0urs]

WHAT THE FUCK GUYS THEY TURNED THE SCHOOLYEAR PHOTO EDITS OF THEM INTO OUTFITS IM GOUNG CRAZY??2=@+&)@+_=#?:

[empty-vessel-of-a-person]

I Feel Like when Sylus takes over LnDS, Zayne equally gains more recognition.

By now, you know the drill. This is just my general opinion about the boys. I MAYBE WRONG!!! But this is just my view of things. You are entitled to your own opinion and mine won't matter. So if you are up for it, please enjoy what my delulu brain is telling me.

I notice that after the introduction of Sylus, Zayne gains more attention as well. I feel like Rafayel steps down a bit not in a bad way tho and here are a couple of reasons why I think so.

As I mentioned before, Zayne and Sylus are completely opposite yet similar and this becomes a crucial aspect of the emotion the girlies is experiencing when interacting with the 2 boys.

I cannot dismiss the fact that Sylus, while still being less visual (if you know what I mean) still manages to overstimulate us. Yes, that means including me, a Zayne girlie. You cannot deny the fact that he is visually appealing and appetizing.

Sylus feeds our fantasies openly more than what Zayne can offer. Most of us, have a clear image of him in our head. Making a version of any of the boys to make our self reach that euphoria feeling. (Pls don't deny it)

And here comes why Zayne is essential to Sylus character to us. It may sound like Zayne is a side character to Sylus but the thing is, Zayne makes us feel grounded when Sylus overstimulates us. Hidden Motive and Lost Oasis is the best example of this.

Lost Oasis gives us more heightened pleasure while Hidden Motive gives us a more romantic and serene approach to intimacy.

Depending on your preference and personality, Sylus and Zayne is the epitome of secure and stable relationship which is why I think some openly compares them, when we can just accept and enjoy their difference.

As a girl, I know you will agree that Zayne can give us the stable, simple and normal life but in the back of our heads, we know that we want to be edged and manhandled by Sylus.

I admit my mistake in judging Sylus before his release and I sincerely apologize for doing so. But while I admit that I am physically attracted to Sylus, I am emotionally leaning more to Zayne because he gave me the feeling of domestic bliss (Anyone who is also an INFJ will understand me more)

In conclusion, Sylus and Zayne gave girls the emotional and physical needs we dream about which I guess why they both gained more popularity in the release of LnDS v.2.

[andrewlloydwebber]

What are some good Phantom blogs to follow?! I’ve become obsessed recently and it doesn’t seem like a super active fandom (because the show is 30+ years old)

You’re asking a bad Phantom blog about good Phantom blogs?

all kidding aside! I would say it’s a pretty active fandom (as well as the only one I really engage in on a deep level, so who knows if that’s really true). I think what you might find is that it’s rather splintered... it’s more of a cluster of small fandoms with significant overlap. Leroux’s first chapters were published 113 years ago and in the mean time there’s been a shit ton of adaptations in general in addition to 33 years of performances of the musical and related media. So you have people who are musical fans, Leroux fans, Phantom of the Paradise fans, 2004 movie fans, people who seem to traffic exclusively in AUs, and even LND fans. not everyone really is united in common interests so that’s why it feels that way.

I am kind of an odd duck in that I am not an E/C shipper at all. Not one bit. No offense, fascinating dynamic, but I don’t see it as romantic. So I don’t really follow any hardcore fans of that pairing. That also means that I really don’t read fanfiction because no one really writes what I want to read (at least the last time I checked). so i don’t really follow those types of content

you gotta follow @operafantomet if you don’t already. Her blog is a wealth of information, not only the latest news (at which her blog keeps us better updated than official channels) but on costume and behind the scenes knowledge and hundreds of amazing photos! Literally if I could only follow one blog it would be her.

@glassprism is another essential follow if you’re looking for bootleg information (she used to publically gift audios, doesn’t anymore, please don’t bug her, but still has a lot you can download on her blog) and show analysis. Seriously, she knows her stuff and really gets the show on deep level and she can give you opinions on pretty much any trio member. And she’s got one of the largest collections of bootlegs, so if you want to trade, go to her! 

@roadtophantom is the World Tour expert! Seriously, she knows EVERYTHING and her blog is like a nice little condensed feed of everything going on in World Tour land. She’s also on Instagram. Also very lovely and runs the blog @jonathan-roxmouth for your Jrox needs!

okay i’m getting kind of tired of typing all these things. i am sticking to mostly phantom blogs so also check out @tookmyflight @ange-de-la-musique @marleneoftheopera @allthefights @oopperan-kummitus... okay forgetting a bunch but this will give you a good starting point! there’s more i’m missing but perhaps they’re not really “phantom blogs” just... “blogs that post phantom”

[glassprism]

Love Never Dies US Tour Review - 4/29/2018

As stated in my previous post, I’m going to attempt to write a more in-depth review while the show is fresh in my mind and while I am still able to decipher my notes (which were done in the dark and are pretty illegible). I’m not going to review every song, and where I do review it, I might just stick to differences from the Australian DVD or any other things I noticed. Because really, we all know how this show goes.

My cast for this show was:

Phantom - Bronson Norris Murphy (alt.)

Christine - Rachel Anne Moore (alt.)

Raoul - Sean Thompson

Meg - Alyssa McAnany (u/s)

Madame Giry - Karen Mason

Gustave - Jake Heston Miller

‘Til I Hear You Sing’: Unfortunately, the first song of the show was somewhat spoiled by the curtain, which featured this sun-like cut-out whose spikes ended up obscuring most of Christine’s portrait (so I never saw if it moved) and part of the Phantom.

Bronson Norris Murphy (BNM from here on out) had a fine voice. He immediately came off as a very tormented figure, hunched over on his chair and throwing himself around (”an emotional ball of angst” is how I thought of him and it pretty much stuck throughout the show). He was very theatrical in his gestures at times, which sometimes worked for me and sometimes didn’t. I also noticed, and enjoyed, how the show used a spotlight to show what is presumably daylight coming through, and how BNM sang to it as well as the portrait. Insert some meta here on symbolism about light and music and acceptance.

‘Coney Island Waltz’/‘Only For You’/’Ten Long Years’ - There’s not a lot for me to say here, except that the disappearance of that curtain with the sun cut-out vastly increased my enjoyment of the show, and I also noticed a quick appearance of a Monkey Girl, because why not throw in some visual shout-outs to the original as well?

As noted in my thoughts, Alyssa McAnany’s Meg was somewhere in a middle ground between Sharon Millerchip’s chirpier but more broken interpretation and Mary Michael Patterson and Summer Strallen’s angry, embittered version. Also, I have never shipped Christine/Meg harder than in LND, because I have friends I haven’t seen in two years, let alone ten, and I don’t talk about them the way Meg does. Karen Mason, as noted, was a bit of a weak point. Her Madame Giry was harsher with Meg than Maria Mercedes in the Australian DVD, and lacked the mystery (what remains of it in LND) of Liz Robertson’s Giry in London.

‘Christine Disembarks’ - My main notes in here are “I hope they cut out the yodeling reporter” (they didn’t, but he was less obnoxious) and wondering why everyone else was affected by the rain except for Christine and Gustave, who showed no reaction at all, as if the Phantom was having a Thor effect where he creates a rainless circle around the people he likes. I did note that Jake Heston Miller’s Gustave had a very lovely voice.

‘What a Dreadful Town’/’Look With Your Heart’ - As stated in my quick thoughts, Sean Thompson’s Raoul was a bit all over the place in how sympathetic he was. On the one hand, he seemed more aggressive in this scene than Simon Gleeson or Austria’s Julian Looman (my favorite LND Raoul, because he was just so sweet). However, the show added in a touching moment here between Raoul and Gustave, where they both play with the music box, perhaps the one father-son bit between the two. He also has a loving embrace with Rachel Anne Moore’s (RAM from here on about) Christine, holding her close to him for several seconds. So it evens out, I suppose.

Nothing much to say about ‘Look With Your Heart’. I did think Anna O’Byrne played the mother-son moments a bit better, as she acted bit more mature in those scenes, but RAM did fine here as well. I might mention here that I adored RAM’s voice - fuller and richer than O’Byrne’s and clearer than Sierra Boggess’s. She doesn’t quite beat out Louise Fribo (my favorite Christine vocally, because she was luminous), but she came very close.

‘Beneath a Moonless Sky’/’Once Upon Another Time’/’Ten Long Years of Yearning’ - Probably one of the biggest differences I noted between the Lewis/O’Byrne pairing and the Murphy/Moore pairing was the emotion the latter poured into it. I think I wrote down something like, “BAMS is still stupid but at least they’re passionate about it.”

BNM did a lot with his physicality, hunching over, gesturing wildly with his hands or clutching desperately onto Christine. He could also be quite volatile emotionally, often shouting or weeping during his scenes. I did wonder if his constant crouching walk was an attempt to make his Phantom look older, but if so, it wasn’t quite successful - he raved and ran around too much to really look like an older man. RAM was quicker to panic, such as when the Phantom lifted Gustave, her voice breaking in barely restrained crying during other scenes, and at one point slamming her hands on the piano and screaming, “Who are you?!” at the Phantom. I think the pair were basically feeding off each other’s energy, which was interesting to watch, if sometimes overwhelming in just how much they SHOUTED at each other.

I also noted what looked like two almost-kisses, one in BAMS and one in OUAT. There also seemed to be a lyric change: after the Phantom says, “I had to, we both knew why!”, Christine says “I don’t know why” instead of repeating “We both knew why”. It was probably done to give the show a little more sense - Christine really didn’t know why the Phantom up and ditched her, though she probably guessed at the reason in the last ten years. Towards the end of the song, the Phantom described Gustave as, “Full of life.. full of you... my Christine”, to which I just wrote, “okay WTF Phantom.”

‘Dear Old Friend’ - I actually have very little to write here. Raoul’s concern for Gustave when the latter took off at the beginning of the song added some more sympathy points to him. Christine and Meg were bit too little-girlish during the song, holding hands and swinging them rather wildly. The crowd of loudly squealing fans around Christine, while Meg is ignored, was amusing. It was also here that I noticed how energetic my audience was, as they laughed at Madame Giry and Raoul’s lines: “It’s him.” “Him? (laughter) You work for him?” “Now so do you.” (more laughter)

Sean Thompson slightly flubbed a line, accidentally addressing Christine as “Madame Giry” (he’s only supposed to say “Madame”) when he tells her he’ll see her at the concert.

‘Beautiful’/’Beauty Underneath’/’Phantom Confronts Christine’ - I’ve always found Gustave singing Christine’s vocalization to be a tad creepy, and seeing it live has only reinforced this opinion. Watching the Phantom do the exact same hand movements he used for Christine in the original show on his son, and seeing Gustave breathe and arch his body in the same way as Christine, was... weird. BNM’s acting didn’t alleviate the creepiness in this scene at all, if anything increasing it by clinging onto Gustave’s shoulders and stroking his face. I think he was trying to convey how desperate the Phantom was for companionship and understanding, but didn’t quite make it work, at least for me. There was also a funny moment to me where it looked he shoved Gustave at a mirror so hard Gustave kind of face-planted into it.

The audience laughed when Gustave shoved the Phantom away in horror, which I thought was rather cruel.

BNM did an interesting thing during his confrontation with Christine, initially flinching away from her comforting hand, then accepting it and gripping it tightly. (”BNM is a walking ball of angst,” I wrote.) RAM was more emotional during this scene, sounding conflicted and pitying, but tore herself away from the Phantom forcefully at the end.

And we had Karen Mason’s Madame Giry finish off the song, and Act 1, with demonic-sounding scream, which basically described my feelings on the show so far.

Intermission - I spent my time writing down audience comments. Highlights: “This is terrible... I don’t like this at all” and “I think I need a refresher course... I don’t remember some of this in the first one...”

‘Why Does She Love Me’/’Devil Take the Hindmost’ - Not too much to say about the first song - I noted that Sean Thompson’s Raoul had a good voice, but also that I was too busy watching for the change from the bartender to the Phantom. His appearance got a good laugh from the audience.

I started thinking of DTTH as “the song of the fallen chairs”, because wow, barstools were everywhere on the ground. BNM started it off by twirling a stool out of his way and onto the floor, and Sean Thompson amped it up by tripping over three chairs at once as he stumbled around. I wrote down in my notes that he was really good at looking like a shambling drunk, but thinking over it now, I’m starting to wonder if he didn’t actually trip and fall and just covered it up well. He also played up Raoul’s distraught state at the Phantom’s revelations - less angry and more horrified, like everything he knew had fallen apart. It was a good take and I enjoyed it.

‘Bathing Beauty’ - The big change I noticed here from the Aussie DVD was that the Madame Giry + Meg confrontation did not have a set; instead the pair just spoke in front of the curtains off to the right. It was pretty minimalistic. Meg also appeared carrying her umbrella, and hurled it offstage when she shrieked “NO!” This presumably is how she shatters her (unseen) mirror, which the freaks note in the finale.

‘Before the Performance’/’Devil Take the Hindmost Reprise’ - I noted that, like in previous songs, RAM’s motherly take was a bit more girlish and light-hearted; while Anna O’Byrne was very much a grown woman and an idolized figure to Gustave, RAM was more of a playmate and companion, though still caring. Sean Thompson was, again, kind of aggressive, slamming his hand on Christine’s table at “this hell-spawned demon”. As in other scenes, RAM felt more fragile, a little more breakable, quickly descending into indecision and near-panic at the change in plans.

The Phantom’s appearance in Christine’s dressing room as also a scene that I felt looked far better on the Aussie DVD. The use of camera angles to obscure his appearance and catch Christine’s reaction, the slow pan to reveal the ominously wafting curtain and the Phantom appearing behind it, was very well done. Onstage, the Phantom just sort of... stepped through the window when Christine’s back was turned.

One really interesting thing was just how hypnotized RAM looked. Her gaze was blank and aimed straight ahead and her movements almost mechanical - after the Phantom dropped her earrings in her hand, her arm stayed upright for quite a while. It’s an interesting take and a clear callback to the entrancing qualities of the Phantom’s voice in the original, but it does no favors for giving Christine any agency, so... eeehhh. BNM got a round of applause at his last lines in this scene though, because they were pretty epic.

One last thing was that in the DTTH Reprise, Meg appeared on a railing far above the stage to sing the last line, rather than leading Gustave away as seen in the Aussie DVD.

‘Love Never Dies’ - This song is really not my favorite. Not bad, but not very interesting either. Only thing I thought was a change was that Raoul left when Christine was turned towards audience, so she ended up looking for him and just finding him... gone. This was different from the Aussie DVD, where Christine actually saw him leave, and I missed seeing Christine’s distressed reaction to that; here Christine just looked confused. Still, RAM gave it her all and she was quite the glimmering figure onstage. She got the longest ovation of the show for this song, and it was well-deserved.

Finale - BNM had some nice moments during ‘Ah Christine’, his hand lingering after Christine’s when she moved to read Raoul’s letter, and showing a great deal of concern, in voice and body language, when Christine began to panic. Doesn’t make up for, you know, the stalking and manipulation and possessiveness, but he made an attempt at trying to make the Phantom seem like an actually viable romantic option, I’ll give him that.

The reprise of ‘Beauty Underneath’ was pretty awesome, and I really hope Jake Heston Miller had fun on top of that spinning walkway (which looked like it was moving really fast, I was impressed). McAnany’s Meg was, as before, more accusatory towards the Phantom, rather than Millerchip’s completely broken, crazed Meg. The gunshots brought quite a few gasps from the audience. RAM did a pretty good job at sounding like she was dying, gasping and singing in short breaths (though still very prettily, of course). I also enjoyed BNM’s reaction to her death, which was less of a big “NO” and more of a series of “Oh no, no God-” before transitioning into the “NO”.

I’m actually not a fan of how the ‘Love Never Dies Reprise’ at the end (Gustave accepting the Phantom while a refrain of ‘Beautiful’ plays is kind of heavy-handed, but I preferred its quieter ending), but as before, BNM played it off nicely, clinging onto Gustave’s coat when he sang. His reaction to Gustave removing his mask was quite good, his hunched over position giving me the sense of resignation and defeat, which turned to slow awe when Gustave touched the deformity.

Ending thoughts - Show got some pretty good applause (someone literally yelled “BEAUTIFUL!” right as the lights went down), and a standing ovation for RAM. Sean Thompson’s Raoul got some boos - why does Raoul hate still exist, le sigh, especially when Madame Giry came off as more villainous? The cast started singing ‘Love Never Dies’ together as RAM and BNM appeared, and there was a BCEFA speech from Karen Mason which got some good laughs. And then I was out of there. I bought a program and had hoped to do some stagedooring, but the cast was taking donations and selfies for BCEFA, so I decided to just head home (though I did snag a shot of BNM and RAM, just without me in the photo). Overall, a quick summary:

Bronson Norris Murphy - Pretty good for an LND Phantom. Sometimes overdid the theatricality of his movements, and was a bit too creepy in some scenes, but played up the Phantom’s instability and desperation while doing his best to add in some more sympathetic moments.

Rachel Anne Moore - Incredibly good voice, Christine felt a little younger and more fragile than some of the others I’ve seen, with some intense passion and love for singing. She and Bronson Norris Murphy had good chemistry together, and played off each other’s emotions very well.

Sean Thompson - Decent Raoul, had a couple of nicer moments, particularly with Gustave and in DTTH.

Alyssa McAnany - Good, strikes a midway point between broken and angry but which is not quite memorable.

Karen Mason - Sharp-ish voice and very harsh towards everyone around her, but I guess she’s playing up the villainous aspect and in that, she succeeds.

Overall, the story is still predictable (my mom guess the entire plotline in the car back home and she’s watched the original maybe once) and the characterizations and continuation of the themes and development of the original are shoddy, but the cast is strong, the music is gorgeous, and the sets and costume design are a lavish riot of color and spectacle, so if you can shut your brain off for 2.5 hours and are willing to spend a couple hundred dollars, you might enjoy it, as I found myself doing so.

[robingurl]

POTO/LND RP - Finding Dog

Notes: This is an rp between me and @kibaweissvulf Background: This our Phantom of the Opera Universe. We fixed Love Never Dies: Christine lives but was injured. They find out she's pregnant again, this time with a girl. The baby is born blind because of Christine's injury. Bells: The bell system Annalise uses was built by Erik solely for his daughter to get around the theater on Coney Island. There are trip wires everywhere that ring a bell at a certain pitch letting Annalise know which direction she going and lets Erik and Christine know where their child is. Annaliese: Annalise's nickname is Anna (think Frozen) and she looks like her father but has her mothers singing voice. She gets over whelmed very easily by all of the sounds and so stays underneath the theater on purpose. She wears a masquerade mask that Erik made her to shield her eyes from people seeing them. Horse: In our world, Erik's best friend is a horse that has a human like personality and does everything with him. We joke he even reads the paper in the morning and sews all of their clothes. Raoul and Meg: we put them together and they have like a gazillion kids. 

Annalise: *is following her father around the hallways her arms are out as she tries to keep up - she stops after hearing a bark* ....*she turns and feels around - the bells stop ringing as she goes off track - she’s only seven*

Erik: *looks back over his shoulder* Anna *he calls gently more to draw her attention back on him* Anna: *doesn’t respond as she tries to find the source of the noise- she cries out as she hits a wall *another bark is heard this time louder Erik: *gasps and rushes after her* Anna? ANNA! *he smacks into a narrow corridor as he rounds the corner Anna: ...father..what’s that noise??  *another bark comes from the dark corner Erik: *pulls her to him taking step in front* stay close *he pokes his head around the corner and sighs perturbed. He’s a cat person* it’s a pest is what it is *a small dog pops out of the shadows jumping on Annalise licking her in the face* Anna: *falls backwards screaming she had never met a dog before Erik: *jerks the little thing up tossing away* Away Rat!!! Get off her! *he kneels down picking his daughter up* it’s ok it’s ok Fathers got you. You’re safe angel *hugs her* are you hurt? Dog: *whimpers it’s tail wagging as it gets back to its feet sitting in front of Erik Erik: *looks to it and takes his mask off* BOO!!!!!! Anna: *shakes her head* j-just scared me...what is it? Erik: *reluctantly put his daughter down keeping an eye on the dog* Dog: *barks happily licking his face Anna: *reaches out looking for it Erik: Don’t touch it, it’s got no sense probably sick *takes her hand* Anna: *walks with her father* it didn’t sound sick.... *behind them the dog follows Erik: trust me dear, *puts his mask back on* It is what they are. Shoo Go away I said!  *flaps his cape at it Christine: *looks up as Erik and Anna enter the stage area* I’m over here dear! Anna: *lets go over her fathers hand and walks over arms out towards her mother* Christine: *hugs her tight* Erik, you have something tugging on your cloak. Dog: *growls playfully Anna: is it a monster? Father won’t tell me what it is Christine: *laughs* it’s a dog, darling. Erik: It’s a PEST!!!!! *yanks his coat out of its mouth pushing it away with his foot like it were dirty laundry* Call an exterminator Christine: you don’t call an exterminator on a dog, dearest. Besides it likes you. Erik: Yes well the feeling is less than mutual Gustave: *comes in a His face brightens up* A dog!  *he holds his arms out calling to it Horse: *pokes his head out from the curtains carrying on his back more drapery for the stage. He snorts eyeing the dog indignantly* Dog: *barks happily tail wagging as it jumps licking Gustave* Erik: Gah!! Gustave no! It’s probably got fleas and other things like...teeth! Get away from him! Gustave: But he’s harmless! I’ve seen him wandering around the pier! Erik: Gustave..... I hope YOU haven’t been feeding this thing Gustave: *grins sheepishly* Christine: *walks over with Anna, holding her hand* darling have you never had a pet before? Erik: Of course I have!!! *glances to Horse who gives that grating grunting sigh only horses can muster* I mean... I have monkey and I like cats! But.... Christine don’t touch it! Christine: it’s a dog, Erik not the bubonic plague. Anna, do you want to pet the dog? Annalise: *nods* Christine: *kneels down holding out her and Anna’s hand* alright dear, let him sniff you first - he may even lick your hand *she smiles as the dog pads over and sniffs the new hands licking them* Anna: *giggles* it tickles! Erik: *winces And continually catches himself from snatching his baby up Anna: father can we keep him?? Christine: *looks up petting Anna’s dark hair* Gustave: *smiles* *this time Horse snorts insulted* Erik: What? No! It’s filthy! And and mangy. It might eat the children or my curtains. Horse: *snorts shaking his head* Christine: oh dearest stop being so melodramatic - it won’t eat the children. It may try and eat your mask or shoes but that’s it. I think it would be wonderful for the children to have a pet...*looks to Gustave* however you will be taking him out and feeding him Gustave: Like What you do to Father? Sure! *hugs the little dog* Erik: Wait! Don’t I get a say in this?? And it better not eat my shoes!  *watches the children as they smile, he sighs* Christine: *stands and walks over to him* I promise, it won’t be bad Erik: *looks to her* considering you’ve put up Raoul all your life I guess it won’t be that different *he smiles to her* but it’s nice to hear them laugh *the horse nudges Christine bickering pitifully giving her puppy eyes* Christine: *turns around towards him and pets his head* oh don’t you pout as well. Just think the children won’t be tugging on your ears and tail anymore *it merely presses its head against her rubbing its neck happily on her hip* *then looks to Gustave and winks* and yes dear it’s just like taking care of your father - only it will need more sunshine to survive. Your father needs 3 hours tops or he melts. Erik: Ha ha Gustave: *laughs* Erik: So What should we name the rat thing Gustave: hmmm I don’t know, you should pick Anna *scratches its ears then he looks to his sister* Anna: *reaches out nervously to pet it - the dog moves towards her and her hand touches its head* ...Charles? Gustave: Charles it is then!! Erik: I knew a Charles once!... I think I dropped a sandbag on his head. Killed him instantly. Anna: *starts to sniffle* I named him Charles so father may like him....h-he sounds sophisticated Erik: *sighs ignoring Christine growing smirk* If you two like him... ill tolerate it. Charles does sound very... sophisticated. Christine: *leans over kissing his cheek* ..it’ll be fine, I promise Erik: *smiles and puts his arm around her* Maybe I can train it to pee on Raoul.