#iida antola

[glassprism]

Hi! You’ve answered this question a couple of times but I wanted to see if you had any new favorites. I’ve sort of been on the hunt for actresses who have played as Christine that have darker/more deeper voices? I’ve noticed that some like Katie Hall, Sofia Escobar, Lauri Brons (to me) have lighter or more soft voices.

Any suggestions to listen to?

Hmm, for newer actresses:

Irina Baiant - especially in the recent revival

Celinde Schoenmaker - I know I keep listing her but she is one of the most powerful voices the West End has had for a while

Hanna Ulvan - maybe more operatic than dark but still

Iida Antola - fascinatingly dark and operatic

Astrid Giske - more of a "smoky" tone but still worth mentioning

Darua Goes - such a powerful voice for such a tiny girl

Mina Gligorić - not sure if her voice is dark or if her range is just a bit too low for the role because boy did she mess up on some of those high notes; no link because I couldn't find much of her

I hope those provide some interesting options!

[marleneoftheopera]

Short clip of Iida Antola in the Finnish production, which had their final show yesterday.

[phantomchristinesuk]

Christines around the World: 2021

Japan

山本紗衣 (Sae Yamamoto), 海沼千明 (Chiaki Kainuma), 久保佳那子 (Kanako Kubo) & 岩城あさみ (Asami Iwashiro)

West End

Lucy St. Louis, Holly-Anne Hull, Anouk van Laake & Beatrice Penny-Touré*

Broadway

Meghan Picerno, Emilie Kouatchou, Julia Udine & Elizabeth Welch*

Estonia

Maria Listra

Finland

Marjukka Tepponen

Sanna Iljin, Hanna-Liina Võsa & Iida Antola

Hungary

Mahó Andrea, Fonyó Barbara & Krassy Renáta

Czechia

Monika Sommerová, Michaela Štiková Gemrotová, Natálie Grossová* & Kristina Růžičková^

Србија (Serbia)

Мина Глигорић (Mina Gligorić), Мирјана Матић-Недељковић (Mirjana Matić-Nedeljković)* & Марта Хаџиманов (Marta Hadžimanov)*

България (Bulgaria)

Християна Лоизу (Christiana Loizu) & Теменужка Трифонова (Temenuzhka Trifonova)

*did not perform the role during this year

^possibly not in the cast

Pictures: Phantomopera, Ooppera Baletti, Madách Színház & fantom Opery social media. Teater Vanemuine (Gabriela Liivamägi). Musical.cz & Music Bulgaria Facebook. Shiki Theater Company (Akihito Abe). Performers instagrams (Manon Taris).

[ange-de-la-musique]

Current Christine Daaé’s around the world.

Row 1 - London: Lucy St Louis, Holly Anne Hull, Beatrice Penny-Tour, Anouk Van Laake

Row 2 - Broadway: Emilie Kouatchou, Julia Udine, Elizabeth Welch, Marni Raab

Row 3 - World Tour (on pause, still set to reopen despite cast members removing it from their social media): Kaley Ann Voorhees, Caitlin Finnie, Megan Ort

Row 4 - Helsinki: Hanna-Liina Võsa, Iida Antola, Sanna Iljin, Tanja Aidanjuuri-Niemi

Row 5 - Tokyo: Sae Yamamoto, Kanaka Kubo

Row 6 - Australia (cast, set to open): Amy Manford, Bridget Costello

Row 7 - Prague: Michaela Gemrotová, Monika Sommerová

Row 8 - Sydney Harbour (cast, set to open): Georgina Hopson

[andrewlloydwebber]

The new Finnish Christine and Phantom, Iida Antola and Kevin Greenlaw

x and x

[ballerinadellamusica]

Phantom of the Opera non-replica Performances-November

(Fantom Opery-Prague, Opperan Kummitus-Helsinki, Az Operaház Fantomja-Budapest, Phantom of the Opera-Oslo)

2. 19:00 Fantom Opery (Marian Vojtko, Michaela Gemrotová, Natálie Grossová)

3. 14:00 Fantom Opery (Marian Vojtko, Michaela Gemrotová, Andrea Gabrišová)

3. 14:00 Opperan Kummitus (Kevin Greenlaw, Iida Antola, Markus Nykänen, Elli Vallinoja)

3. 14:30 Phantom of the Opera

3. 19:00 Fantom Opery (Radim Schwab, Michaela Gemrotová, Andrea Gabrišová)

3. 19:30 Phantom of the Opera

4. 14:00 Fantom Opery (Marian Vojtko, Michaela Gemrotová, Andrea Gabrišová)

4. 15:00 Phantom of the Opera

5. 19:00 Az Operaház Fantomja (Csengeri Attila, Fonyó Barbara, Solti Ádám, Kuthy Patrícia)

6. 19:00 Az Operaház Fantomja (Sasvári Sándor, Krassy Renáta, Bot Gábor, Kuthy Patrícia)

6. 19:00 Opperan Kummitus (Ilkka Hämäläinen, Iida Antola, Olli Tuovinen, Elli Vallinoja)

7. 19:00 Az Operaház Fantomja (Posta Victor, Krassy Renáta, Solti Ádám, Kuthy Patrícia)

7. 19:00 Opperan Kummitus (Ville Rusanen, Hanna-Liina Võsa, Olli Tuovinen, Johanna Lehesvuori)

8. 19:00 Opperan Kummitus (Kevin Greenlaw, Iida Antola, Markus Nykänen, Elli Vallinoja)

8. 19:30 Phantom of the Opera

9. 19:00 Fantom Opery (Marian Vojtko, Monika Sommerová, Natálie Grossová)

9. 19:00 Opperan Kummitus (Ville Rusanen, Hanna-Liina Võsa, Olli Tuovinen, Johanna Lehesvuori)

9. 19:30 Phantom of the Opera

10. 14:00 Fantom Opery (Radim Schwab, Monika Sommerová, Natálie Grossová)

10. 14:30 Phantom of the Opera

10. 19:00 Fantom Opery (Marian Vojtko, Monika Sommerová, Natálie Grossová)

10. 19:30 Phantom of the Opera

11. 14:00 Fantom Opery (Marian Vojtko, Michaela Gemrotová, Natálie Grossová)

11. 15:00 Phantom of the Opera

12. 19:00 Az Operaház Fantomja (Csengeri Attila, Fonyó Barbara, Bot Gábor, ? )

13. 19:00 Az Operaház Fantomja (Posta Victor, Mahó Andrea, Solti Ádám, ? )

14. 19:00 Az Operaház Fantomja (Sasvári Sándor, Mahó Andrea, Solti Ádám, ? )

15. 19:00 Opperan Kummitus (Ville Rusanen, Hanna-Liina Võsa, Olli Tuovinen, Johanna Lehesvuori)

15. 19:30 Phantom of the Opera

16. 19:30 Phantom of the Opera

17. 14:30 Phantom of the Opera

17. 19:00 Opperan Kummitus (Kevin Greenlaw, Iida Antola, Markus Nykänen, Elli Vallinoja)

17. 19:30 Phantom of the Opera

18. 15:00 Phantom of the Opera

21. 19:00 Opperan Kummitus (Ville Rusanen, Hanna-Liina Võsa, Olli Tuovinen, Johanna Lehesvuori)

21. 19:30 Phantom of the Opera

22. 19:00 Opperan Kummitus (Ilkka Hämäläinen, Iida Antola, Markus Nykänen, Elli Vallinoja)

22. 19:30 Phantom of the Opera

23. 19:00 Fantom Opery (Radim Schwab, Monika Sommerová, Andrea Gabrišová)

23. 19:30 Phantom of the Opera

24. 14:00 Fantom Opery (Marian Vojtko, Monika Sommerová, Andrea Gabrišová)

24. 14:30 Phantom of the Opera

24. 19:00 Fantom Opery (Radim Schwab, Monika Sommerová,, Andrea Gabrišová)

24. 19:30 Phantom of the Opera

25. 14:00 Fantom Opery (Marian Vojtko, Monika Sommerová, Natálie Grossová)

25. 15:00 Phantom of the Opera

26. 19:00 Opperan Kummitus (Kevin Greenlaw, Hanna-Liina Võsa, Olli Tuovinen, Elli Vallinoja)

27. 19:00 Opperan Kummitus (Ilkka Hämäläinen, Iida Antola, Olli Tuovinen, Elli Vallinoja)

28. 19:30 Phantom of the Opera

29. 19:30 Phantom of the Opera

30. 19:00 Fantom Opery (Marian Vojtko, Monika Sommerová, Andrea Gabrišová)

30. 19:30 Phantom of the Opera

[operafantomet]

POTO Finland is also back, re-opening tonight. Depicted: Iida Antola, Tanja Aidanjuuri-Niemi and Sanna Iljin as Christine, Ville Rusanen as the Phantom, Johannes Vatjus as Piangi and Joonas Orrain as Raoul

[glassprism]

Who are the most operatic Christine's?

Answered here! Might also add Meghan Picerno, Iida Antola, Flora Szeles, Frida Engstrom, and Hanna Ulvan.

[marleneoftheopera]

I don’t think this has been shared here? Extended trailer of the Finnish non-replica, which returns October 22nd.

[marleneoftheopera]

The Finnish non-replica production will be returning for 32 shows between October and December of this year.

There will be 3 Christine's alternating the role: Iida Antola, Hanna-Liina Võsa, and Sanna Iljin. All other roles in the production will have two alternating people in them.

There will also be a 2 show Love Never Dies concert in November of this year.

Gardar Thor Cortes will be reprising his role as the Phantom! Marjukka Tepponen will be Christine and Kevin Greenlaw (who will be alternating the Phantom in the above production) will be Raoul.

Both shows will be performed in English with Finnish and Swedish subtitles.

[marleneoftheopera]

Iida Antola in POTO Helsinki.

[marleneoftheopera]

The Graveyard scene featuring the only audio I have ever seen of this cast! I have the full audio if you’d like to trade.

Kevin Greenlaw, Iida Antola, Markus Nykaneen, Juha Riihimaki, Jussi Millunpalo, Kaisa Ranta, Mika Nisula, Emilia Besalainen Pellas, Johanna Lehesvuori, Jarmo Ojala, Matti Kuronen, Petri Psussila, Roland Liiv December 14, 2018; Helsinki

[phantomchristinesuk]

World Ballet Day 2021

Featuring a few of the Christines of this year.

Pictures: Lucy St Louis, Julia Udine (Murphymade), Shiki Theater Company, Super.cz, Iida Antola & musictheatre.bg

[glassprism]

Do you think that the standards for Christine has changed since the 90s, early 2000s I recently listened to a lot of actresses from that time and I just feel like none of them would be cast today.

Certainly, and especially from how it began in the late 1980s, with the caveat that I think it reflects not just changes in the production, but also in musical theater over the last twenty years. Though I might reverse your statement: I think a lot of the actresses today would not be cast back in that time.

Interestingly, this was something I was thinking about yesterday, during a stream where we were watching some videos of Rebecca Luker singing, with the comment that there seems to be less and less places for legit soprano roles. And I kind of agree; if you look at many of the new musicals coming out, female roles all tend to be, I dunno, belt roles. The roles that are looking for more classical or even operatic voices are becoming rarer and rarer.

And I kind of want to say that this is being reflected in the way they are being trained, with a focus on learning to belt and to sing soprano, but which results in many Christines having this generic or pop musical theatre voice that does not have the uniqueness of the Christines of the 80s and early 90s. Rebecca Caine herself actually talked a bit about this, in an interview which has unfortunately gone down, but the relevant quotes are still available:

“It’s partly due to something called the Estill technique, which has its uses, but it’s making everybody sound a bit the same. Everybody is now taught to belt and to use a legitimate soprano voice, so consequently you don’t get what has always been featured in musical theatre (…). You don’t get the two different colours. It’s important to keep that soprano sound because it says something, whether it’s a certain refinement, or a different kind of purity, or a virginity. Whatever you read into that sound, it’s important that we don’t lose it and that it all doesn’t become a little bit too chesty, a little bit too belty, a little bit too twangy, and sound like everybody else.” 

Which I agree with; there is no way I would mistake Sarah Brightman for Claire Moore, Claire Moore for Rebecca Luker, Rebecca Luker for Rebecca Caine, and on and on and on. Whereas by the 2000s, I’m sometimes hard-pressed to tell Robyn North from Lisa-Anne Wood from Celia Graham, or Rachel Zatcoff from Sara Jean Ford from Mary Michael Patterson. I mean, I can, but I’ll have to work pretty hard at it. That “color”, as Caine puts it, is being lost in favor of a generic sound.

With that being said, exceptions are always being cast, particularly in international productions; see Amy Manford in London and Greece, Elizabeth Welch on Broadway and Oberhausen, Sibylle Glosted in Copenhagen, Frida Engstrom in Gothenburg and Iida Antola in Helsinki, and so on.

Finally, I will say that the way Christines act has changed, though whether that’s a consequence of changes in direction, in attitudes, in the actresses themselves, or all of the above, is up for debate. I think the Christines of the 80s and 90s tended to be more doe-eyed and head in the clouds, while Christines now have more of a fighting spirit. Not saying either is better or worse, just different, and I won’t go into too much detail, partially because this post is long enough already and partially because my sister is reading this over my shoulder and it’s embarrassing me, ha.

[operafantomet]

The Finnish/Swedish non-replica production is back in Helsinki after the Gothenburg run, and is scheduled to run from November 2 to Januar 12. They will feature a slightly different cast than last time:

PHANTOM: Ville Rusanen, Kevin Greenlaw and Ilkka Hämäläinen

CHRISTINE: Hanna-Liina Vōsa and Iida Antola

RAOUL: Olli Tuovinen and Markus Nykänen

CARLOTTA: Hanna-Leena Haapamäki and Kaisa Ranta

FIRMIN: Sauli Tiilikainen and Juha Eskelinen

ANDRÉ: Juha Riihimäki and Jussi Miilunpalo

MME. GIRY: Sari Nordqvist and Emilia Vesalainen-Pellas

MEG GIRY: Elli Vallinoja and Johanna Lehesvuori

PIANGI: Mika Pohjonen and Mika Nisula

( photos ) and ( cast )