#YOU GUYS I SAW THE PHANTOM BROADWAY PROSHOT

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I Saw the Phantom Proshot at the NYPL

Happy 36th birthday to Phantom's first preview on Broadway! I was going to save this post for the actual 36th, but I figure all of us need some more Phantom Broadway "original" content since the official Insta accounts are reminding us today that Phantom is no longer (though it should be) on Broadway. I'm going to post about what I saw, and I'll follow up on January 26 with all my answers!

Some time ago, @or-what-you-will and I went to the NYPL's Theater on Film and Tape Archive, and viewed the archival pro shot of the Original Broadway Cast of Phantom of the Opera, filmed live on May 25, 1988. There is only one copy, and its purpose is artistic preservation (not commercial distribution--the library owns it). It was kept under lock and key during the show's run. All information about how to access the archive is on the website. I can't really tell you anything more besides what's out there because it will become identifying. You get set up in a room with monitors and can pause and rewind, although you can't touch the media.

This was not my first TOFT proshot, but it was the best-filmed. Some, there's a single camera just parked, or there's some generation loss because of when the tape was transferred to digital. This had absolutely vivid colors, a multi-camera shot, and brilliant and clear soundboard audio. I heard lyrics I have never heard (especially during Notes when everyone is singing over one another), the sound balancing was so good. It was as transformative as seeing it live.

These are all the notes we took while there (apologize if they can seem disjointed) More below the cut.

ACT 1 NOTES: 

-Multicam shot

-amazing audio (soundboard), vivid colors

-Raoul/Barton is crying in his voice during the auction

-there’s a “voice” that sounds like a woman singing with the overture (maybe a theramin?) We jumped in shock at this. We've never heard this before, not even on soundboard.

-Sarah Brightman comes on stage during the Hannibal rehearsal, moving across the stage with Meg during “Rome not Roma”--so she dances in the front row during the Hannibal ballet

-Hannibal ballet then has 10 dancers and since Christine is in the whole thing, there is slightly different choreo

-there’s a synth under Meg’s “he’s there, the phantom of the opera” 

-Firmin lights a cigarette and Andre (Future Phantom Cris Groenendaal) stops him right before “Think of Me’ which makes the “Defense de Fumer” on the back of the curtain make even more sense

-Think of Me Gala skirt is not as full (but of note, Carlotta’s Elissa costume is much more ornate than we have now or even at the end of Broadway)

-Raoul sings slightly different notes in Think of Me. Steve Barton goes down a few notes on “young and innocent” (it’s not belted) and is clearly wistful. 

-The think of me cadenza is absolutely effortless

-The “Bravi, Bravi” is haunting and perfectly sound balanced!

-Meg can actually sing and the Angel of Music harmonies work

-Raoul (Steve Barton) is nervous before going into the dressing room. He taps his fingers on the banister and takes a deep breath before going in

-He’s also nervous inside the dressing room–you can see him going from seeing an old friend to suddenly having feelings, being attracted to her. When he’s standing behind her he has a slight moment when he nearly touches a lock of her hair. 

-Raoul is wearing a ring on his right hand (signet?)

-Steve Barton says MY Little Lotte

-Christine (Brightman) is excited about meeting the Angel of music and has a wanting and longing in “Enter at LAST master” (in a way that Lily Kerhoas does now and we haven’t had many Christines who do this) 

-The picture is VERY CLEAR and NO WASHOUT when we see Michael Crawford appear in the mirror for Phantom’s entrance. You see everything

-When the door opens for Raoul to the dressing room after they go through the mirror, it opens slowly (vs banging open). It’s the same tempo that Phantom moves to take Christine through the mirror

-1925 Phantom silhouette vibes at the first “sing for me” 

-Not a particularly aggressive cape twirl, but def a twirl. 

-They get VERY close on “turn your face away”, almost kiss (like, Russians, Panaro/Joseph close) 

- he has a nice portcullis sprawl but she does not press against him, there is visible space between them the entire time

-”Caress” and “hear it, feel it” are explicitly seductive, the former in how it’s sung, the latter because he self-caresses on “feel it”

-the “Touch me” in touch me/trust me is half sung/half spoken order, she strokes her hand over the mask and he does not pull away

-He does have a little panic when she faints and he covers her with the cloak. He’s holding her hair when he sings to her there

-At the unmasking, MC holds for a brief moment before covering his face with his hand so the audience gets a peek of the deformity (before “damn you”) 

-Vixen not viper

-Crawls on knees, not stomach. We get…lots of crying and whimpering 

-Christine sees his face a lot during this sequence. MC lowers his hand as soon as he’s on her side of the stage from “secretly dreams of beauty” to “Oh Christine”, when he turns away–but she is looking at him the entire time. MC is angled right by a mirror shard so we can see a bit of the deformity reflected back

-Right before “come we must return”, MC is about to cup her face with both his hands before changing his mind–she starts to reach for him as well. 

-His Mandarin robe is much longer than we have now (ankle length vs calf length) 

-This Giry has witch vibes

-Steve Barton is playing eager puppy Raoul and it shows even though he looks older (Barton was 35 at the time)

-The sound balancing is so good that you can hear lines you don’t normally hear during Notes 1 and Prima Donna–including the Managers thinking that Christine has just been off with Raoul all night. 

-Sarah Brightman does a different pose on the bed as the pageboy during Il Muto. She crosses her legs vs putting her hands on her hips. 

-Firmin yells “the role of Christine Daae” to the proscenium, clearly directed at Phantom

-Barton Raoul’s “There is no Phantom of the Opera” comes off more as “Christine this is just some dude” vs “he doesn’t exist at all.” 

-Raoul loves Christine so much. He strokes her hair gently to comfort her right before “No more talk of darkness”--his eyes are soft and he’s genuinely caring and concerned (vs trying to be a hero) 

-”All I ask is for one love one lifetime”--different lyrics, she does it twice (This is on soundboards from the time)

-Raoul puts his face to Christine’s hands at the proposal. 

-Christine is clearly kissing his cheek right next to his mouth during the kiss (the final lair kiss is a real kiss) 

-Christine’s “I must go” is not as playful as we often see it later. She really is trying to go. 

-Raoul is nervous at “Christine, I love you”--he lowers his head for a moment worried that he said something wrong. He’s excited when she replies “order your fine horses”

-AIAOY Reprise: Michael Crawford is partially slumped over the angel, he’s holding hands with it to the audience’s right, and arm is slumped over on the left. We get a lot of anguished weeping, and little distressed moans as Christine and Raoul sing, there is rocking and head shaking and then covering his ears. It’s a HUGE difference then when he stands up fully for “You will curse” (he does this again during final lair between “unfeeling scrap of clothing” and “pity comes too late) 

-He also roars before standing

-The Phantom laugh/cackle continues well into the chandelier drop into intermission at the light cut out for about 15 seconds. 

Act II

-Carlotta masquerade costume has no mesh in the skirt–it’s much more of a see-through skeleton crinoline, so the feature is the purple tights

-Not surprising since Sarah Brightman is a dancer, but Christine does the proper choreography during Masquerade--she's the center of attention. Barton also does quite a bit of dancing.

-There’s an organ (almost like a circus organ) underlying the finale during masquerade

-Red Death double doesn’t run down the stairs, he stays at the top

-Giry/Raoul exchange after masquerade–both holding the lantern and super closeup

-Reyer is clearly gay–coded. Some voice and hand gestures during Sitzprobe

-Wishing–only one “help me say goodbye” (when did the second one get added?)

-”Far-reaching” gaze, Wandering Child is a duet

-Piangi says “conquest” is assured (at some point, this became “congress”)

-Michael Crawford imitates Piangi until “past the point…”

-Sarah as Christine is listening intently to Phantom’s voice and immediately noticed something is off–she doesn’t figure it out right away but she notices something. She is suspicious the entire time. It's not clear when she knows for certain.

-Christine never flees from him, during the first caresses, he hovers over her body, she turns to kiss him, he turns away, her hand lingers on her back, before she gets up to sing her solo part away from the table

-Michael Crawford’s hands are in in his crotch when Christine’s singing on the other side of the stage (“you have come here”)--he’s moving his palms in his lap the whole time, his hands are shaking, we only get glimpses of him, most of this part it’s focused on her

-There is none of the arm waving circling while their hands are held, she takes his hands, he switches his grip to hold one of hers, and they keep them on him

-She figures it out when she reaches down–she’s holding his hands above him and she pushes her left (our right) hand down and he pulls and she notices something–we can only see to his upper waist but her hand disappears and her expression changes, it’s implied he has an erection

-she doesn’t ever feel the mask, either accidentally or on purpose

-She doesn’t actually ever try to escape. It’s not the current West End or the past blocking–but more accurate in that she is aware of the situation and plays along. She keeps going with the blocking

-they both get up and keep singing, neither drags the other to the centre, they move together and keep singing 

-The last “return”--he sings it at the unhooding, she doesn’t

-”Say you’ll share with me”--he is really pleading and almost crying on “say you want me” 

-The managers don’t come out to try to usher her offstage, she doesn’t signal to them to stay

-When Phantom gives her the ring, she takes it, but doesn’t put it on–she just holds it

-He doesn’t scream at the unmasking, he just looks shocked and sad

-Ratcatcher order is different–it’s after Raoul and Giry’s first lines, that’s the indication that Giry needs to turn around, Giry screams

-Phantom is crying at “flesh” and through “unfeeling scrap of clothing”, he’s also hunched over through this sequence, and then stands to his full height at “Pity comes too late.”

-Phantom makes a big show of raising the portcullis, hands fully raised

-Raoul swats at Erik with one hand (the other is still on the noose) when Phantom grabs Christine on “start a new life” 

-Phantom is probably the “minimum” amount of rough as we see Phantoms be with Christine in this sequence, as in, he’s definitely scary and menacing but he’s not harming her. He does grab her and spin her around on “start a new life with me.” There are a few wrist grabs (which is book accurate). He’s realizing more that his plan is absolutely crumbling. We get some shots of him on the organ looking panicked.

-Phantom makes a low growling noise before “you try my patience”, which is delivered quickly and almost casually. It is not menacing as some later Phantoms do. 

-”Pitiful creature”..MC’s hand is subtly shaking by his side

-The kiss: the 1st one MC stands with “claw hands” at his side, on the second one, the “claw hands” start shaking

-MC hunches over after he burns the noose

-He stands over the monkey, conducting it with one hand, he is mimicking the symbol clashes, he doesn’t touch it or cover its face

-When Christine returns the ring, his hand shakes as he takes it, he’s hunched over again. 

-She does seem conflicted about leaving, but she doesn’t press her hand back around his, she holds out the ring and his hand shakes as she takes it. She doesn’t linger very long. 

-He says a second “I love you” after she’s gone.

-He’s about to say it a third time, he says “I love…” and then see the veil, and grabs it and screams into it, and then turns and sees the boat leaving

-He sobs and keens a lot

-Raoul bends in the boat to caress Christine’s face on “say the word”)--this is halfway across the stage as opposed to during the stage right exit.

-Deliberately cracks voice on the "can" in “you alone can make” 

-MC Cradling the veil like a baby at the very end

SEND ME YOUR QUESTIONS! You can put it in comments, reblogs, AMA or DM's. I will answer all of them on January 26!

[kateeorg]

Favorite Tony Awards Moments 2020 Pt 3. - Performances

This is a tricky list to make. There are a lot of great shows that aren’t well-represented at the Tonys, and some performances that stand out from shows that aren’t my favorites. For a lot of people, this is the only footage of a show they may have seen. But here are some great performances that come to my mind from over the years, for one reason or another:

Pt 1 - Opening Numbers

Pt 2 - Misc Moments Great Shows with Great Performances

Hamilton - “Yorktown (The World Turned Upside-Down)” (2016)

Hadestown - “Wait for Me” (2019)

Waitress - “She Used to Be Mine” (2016)

Wicked - “Defying Gravity” (2004) 

Hairspray - “You Can’t Stop the Beat” (2003)

In the Heights - “In the Heights/96,000″ (2009)

42nd Street - “Lullaby of Broadway” (1981)

Les Miserables - “At the End of the Day / One Day More” (1987)

Phantom of the Opera - “Phantom of the Opera” (1988)

Annie - “Tomorrow”/“You're Never Full Dressed Without a Smile”/“Easy Street” (1974)

Sunday in the Park with George (revival) - “Move On” (2008)

Pippin - “Magic to Do” (1973) & “Corner of the Sky/Magic to Do” (2013)

Rent - “La Vie Boheme” (1996)

The Lion King - “Circle of Life” (1998)

Ragtime - “Prologue” (1998)

Matilda - Medley (2013)

Curtains - “Show People” (2007)

Beauty and the Beast - Medley (1994)

Spamalot - “Find Your Grail” (2005)

Thoroughly Modern Mille - “Forget About the Boy” (2002)

Urinetown - “Run Freedom Run” (2002)

She Loves Me - “Ilona/She Loves Me/ Vanilla Ice Cream” (2016)

Guys & Dolls - “Sit Down You’re Rocking The Boat” (1992)

Shows I Have No Feeling About with Memorable Performances 

The Scottsboro Boys - “Commencing in Chattanooga” (2011)

Oklahoma! - “Cain’t Say No” (2019)

Dear Evan Hansen - “Waving through a Window” (2017)

The Prom - “It’s Time to Dance” (2019)

Spring Awakening - Medley (2007) & "Mama Who Bore Me/ B*ch of Living” (2016)

Gentlemen’s Guide to Love and Murder - “I’ve Decided to Marry You” (2014)

A Christmas Story - “Red Ryder Carbine Action BB Gun/ Ralphie to the Rescue” (2013)

Fun Home - “Ring of Keys” (2015)

Once on this Island - “Mama Will Provide” (2018)

Performances I Want to Highlight for Personal Reasons

Peter and the Starcatcher (2012) - This is such a strange one, because it’s not a musical, but it has music numbers and features a number of actors known for their musical theater work. It’s completely silly but captures the show so well, and you can see how Christian Borle won his first Tony from this.

Cinderella - Medley (2013) - You know when I saw this in theaters, I had mixed feelings. But this performance is beautiful. But mostly I just really love the costume changes <3

Evita - “A New Argentina” (1980) - I based so much of my own  performance of Evita on this performance, it’s so cool. Gotta love Patti and Mandy.

Xanadu - Medley (2008) - I was just happy this show got some recognition, but it’s really not the best performance? Eh.

Legally Blonde - “So Much Better” - Another one that I’m glad got it’s Tonys moment, despite no awards. (Though it did have the MTV proshot, more than so many could say.)

Falsettos - “A Day in Falsettoland” (2017) - It boggles my mind that this performance gets obsessed over on Tumblr for... very strange reasons, but it is a good performance and very catchy.

You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown - “My New Philosophy/Happiness” (1999) - Kristin Chenoweth’s debut at the Tonys, ladies and gentlemen. That is all.

[a-love-poet-at-heart]

Hi it's secret santa again. thanks for the language learning tips. I want to see all the musicals you mentioned. Am a huge fan of german musicals now (listen to them more than english musicals). They are really good and there's something about watching it in another language (like going to the opera!). When you listen to the audio, you focus on the music. I like Ivan, especially when he sings tdv in russian - he has a very strong voice. Who are you favorite musical actors (and in which roles)?

There’s a proshot of that Dracula with subtitles on youtube! Not sure about the Rudolf one. I know that’s there’s a proshot VOB of it with optional subtitles. I watched it on my birthday YEARS ago. And I know how you feel, besides my 3 crap musicals, it’s german musicals all the way. OH! I totally forgot, some other famous german musicals, Marie Antoinette, Rebecca, and Mozart. All by the guys behind Elisabeth. No subtitles for Marie Ann, I had to google translate the plot from the German wiki article and read it. I’m pretty sure that was same for Rebecca and Mozart.

You like opera? I love Faust! (that recording on TV from the met staring jonas kaufmann was amazing) The Chicago lyric opera house is gonna do a production of Faust next year and I’m SO excited to see it! I’ve actually seen quite a few operas there, lucia di lammermoor, Onegin, Carmen, and just saw The pearl fishers two days ago.

Aw, man this is gonna be LONG, prepare yourself, I looked through my whole itunes library. (my utmost favs are at the top, with one at the bottom)

Yeah, Ivan is so good in Tanz. He’s like my favorite musical singer, love him in all his roles. Especially Tanz, Phantom, Jekyll/Hyde, and Master and Marg.

Big fan of Chris Murrary. LOVE him in Chess and Dracula. Liked him in the Jekyll and Hyde from around 10 years ago. Kinda iffy on the one from a few years ago. He’s really physical in the older one and he tries to do it in the recent one, but it turns kinda comical in confrontation. Thou his acting is very kitschy comical a lot, like in all his roles. still love him.

Really like Rob Evan as Jekyll and Hyde, chess, and from his cover of Total eclipse of the heart, would’ve liked him as underestudy Krolock in bway

Really love Davis Gaines in poto. Muirin double 0 7 was talking about how norm lewis was amazing in the role and his voice was ‘like melted, buttered Nutella dripping with the urgency of rum-tinged molasses onto a swath of crimson velvet.” For me, THAT’S Davis Gaines. (honestly everything they said is how I feel about Gaines)

Like Drew Sarich in Dracula and in his three roles in Lestat. Haven’t really seen/listened to him in Tanz thou.

Really like Rob Fowler’s voice as Death. Really want to hear him in the new Bat out of Hell musical (yes Jim Steinman made that. It’s a jukebox musical of Meatloaf songs. plots pretty crazy)

Love Hugh Panaro in Lestat and phantom. Actually saw him in PotO like 6 years ago. Saw it the same time I saw Rent off broadway, so had to be oct/nov 2011 

like Chuck Wagner in Jeykll and Hyde and the 2000 demo of Dracula where he sang the role of Helsing. The song Nosferatu is so good

Tommy Korberg is so good as Anatoly in Chess (never heard him in anything else thou)

I love the whole Russian cast of Tanz and Phantom:Andrey Schkoldychenko, Mercedesz Csampai  Tamara Kotova, Elena Bahtiyarova, Sergey Denisov, Vera Sveshnikova, Alexander Sukhanov, Rostislav Kolpakov, Igor Krol, Georgy Novitzky, Elena Gazaeva

I also really love the Hungarian casts of Phantom, Elisabeth, and Tanz. Fav hungarian singer is probably Szabó P. Szilveszter, LOVE him as Death/Halal. Really also like Egyházi Géza, Dolhai Attila

Shout out to the whole Broadway Tanz cast (except Crawford) you deserved better (except Crawford). You were pretty good (except Crawford) for what it was

Rapid round:

Phantom: Michael Ball, Jonathan Roxmouth, Max Niemeyer

Elisabeth: Andre Bauer, Roberta Valentini, Oliver Arno, Martin Market,Marle Martens

Tanz: Florian Soyka, Aris Sas, Kevin Tarte, Max Niemeyer, Mercedesz Csampai

Also really love this really unknown singer who was understudy Maris in the Les Mis tour back in 2012 and was understudy Quasi in the Hunchback musical, Ian P Gibb he currently sings at Disney World in this a Capella group called voice of Liberty. i’m putting this at the end since he’s so unknown 

Yep, thinks that it!

[oimatchstickman]

Would you tell me your top 5 favorite musicals? I'm curious and also love musicals and like to hear about new ones. :)

Oooh sure! I’m not sure if these are in any specific order, just the ones that pop to mind first (and honestly I’m probably not as much of a musical fanatic as I claim to be) but:

1- A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder! If you’re in the US/North America, there’s a touring production of this going on right now so there’s a chance to see it! It’s basically Downton Abbey meets Monty Python. A guy named Monty Navarro finds out that his mom was an heiress to the local earldom but she’d been disinherited because she married for love rather than position. So in part to get revenge for his mother and in part to climb socially himself, he starts killing all of the family members ahead of him for the inheritance/title. All of whom are played by the same actor. It’s great. See it if it’s coming near you. Favorite song would probably be either I’ve Decided to Marry You or I Don’t Understand the Poor.

2- Into the Woods. Not a new one by any means (it came out the same year Phantom of the Opera opened on Broadway), but one I absolutely adore. You’ve got Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk, Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel and a bunch of other classic fairytales all in one and intertwined around the central plot of a Baker and his Wife trying to break a curse that was put on their house by the witch next door that means they can’t have children. Favorite silly song: Agony. Favorite serious song: No More. The Disney movie is ok (they stuck to it more than I thought they would), but there is a proshot of the original cast (feat. Bernadette Peters as the Witch!) that was broadcast on TV so find that if you can.

3- Once. I will 110% admit that I saw this one because Arthur Darvill was in it when I had a chance to go to NYC, but it is really good too. It is more of a jukebox musical (I think the songs are all from a band) but if you can see it live it’s really special as all the actors and actresses play their own instruments instead of having a pit orchestra. It’s a pretty basic Guy meets Girl (legit the character names are Guy and Girl) story with a few twists and some great humor but it’s quite good! Favorite Song (and probably the most recognizable): Falling Slowly. Also Gold.

4- Hello Dolly! I mainly know this one from the movie version with Barbara Streisand (so again, older but still a favorite). A woman named Dolly is self-employed as a do-anything as she sings about in the opening number, but we join her as she’s on her way to play matchmaker for a wealthy store owner (this is set at the turn of the previous century so). Her being Dolly, she actually intends to marry him herself, but has to find ways to frustrate his plans. It’s a really fun musical that I recommend the movie version of and I’m hoping to see the revival on Broadway! Probably most people would recognize it from Wall*E. Favorite songs: It Only Takes a Moment and Put On Your Sunday Clothes.

5- Phantom of the Opera. Yes, well known and sort of a starter musical but hey. It’s the first one I saw on Broadway. Do not, I repeat, DO NOT watch the 2004 movie if you want to experience it for the first time. See it live (I think the tour’s still going?) or watch the 25th Anniversary production that they put on and filmed. Also stay away from Love Never Dies because that is a hot mess. Favorite Song: Music of the Night. But I’m gonna link to this (though I’d rather link to the 25th anniversary 4 Phantoms thing but I can’t find that on Youtube bah).