#long asterrisks

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a fellow hadley raoul fan? hello!

OMGG HII YES!! Indeed I am!! Hello!!

I mean in my humble opinion, to me he is the DEFINITIVE Raoul, you know?? (I know some people disagree, but this is my opinion). I don't know how a man who never played the role before, who's suddenly thrown into 2 weeks of rehearsal, while still doing Les Mis, and only does the role for THREE DAYS can manage to give SUCH AN INCREDIBLE PERFORMANCE (clearly he's on a WHOLE OTHER LEVEL to be JUST as good as Ramin and Sierra who had played in this show for YEARS (talent-wise they're all equal! It's the fact that he has no experience in Phantom prior)), but he DID. It's because of him that Raoul is my favorite character in the whole show! Yeah, he's an idiot, but I love him anyway.

I mean, look at him!!!

I just love how he played Raoul so fully—he's not just the nice guy, not just a one dimensional character (I'm not saying other people played him as one dimensional character btw, I haven't seen enough of other portrayals to really judge), he has just as many layers as Christine and the Phantom do. He's not afraid to really lean into it for fear of Raoul not being seen as the "nice guy" anymore just because he gets confused, angry or impatient, or is often skeptical. Because Raoul is a character too. The "nice guys" have flaws too.

And let's not forget his chemistry with Sierra!! Even if this was the first show they'd done together, oh my GOSH the chemistry between them! I think I fell in love with the both of them during All I Ask Of You... 🥹 They're just so clearly in love and it's so clear that they make each other happier than anyone ever has, even if they have bumps along the way, it's because of them that I really believe in Raoulstine.

Plus, playing alongside Sierra and Ramin would normally be a challenge because these guys have played this role before, it'd be so easy for him to just blend into the background... if he weren't Hadley, that is. I saw someone describe all three of their portrayals as high-strung, and I absolutely agree and love that about it!! Wandering Child??? DOWN ONCE MORE?? ELECTRIC!! The chemistry!! ugh!! MAGIC

So yeah, he's forever my Raoul. It's so nice to find a fellow fan who thinks the same 🥹

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random question inspired by my general disdain for The Holidays™: what's Christmas like in the Philippines? I'm extremely fed up with how most Americans celebrate it so I'd be super interested to hear about how another culture does it. :D (if you don't mind, of course!) Feel free to infodump as much or as little as you like :)))

WAAAAA I'd love to!! Also that's totally understandable OOF, but yes I'd gladly talk about it!!!

So I hope this doesn't come as a disappointment but the Philippines is a pretty Americanized country, but of course there are still many key differences in our traditions! For one, which you might have heard LOL, we start preparing for Christmas all the way in September (as in, Christmas decorations start going up already, and Christmas music starts playing in the malls). Generally we don't celebrate Thanksgiving since it's an American holiday and we don't care as much about Halloween, so it's not like a WHOLE THING like it is in America (I was surprised to learn how big of a deal it is over there LOL!).

We have this celebrity who's also a beloved Filipino meme, Jose Mari Chan, who basically is like, the harbinger of Christmas here. Like months in advance we'll have memes pop up occasionally saying stuff like "Ready na ba kayo?" (are you ready yet??) and things like that LOL. Here's some of my favorite examples:

("I'm just warming up")

(explanation and translation: we have a famous Filipino Christmas song that starts with, "Whenever I see girls and boys selling lanterns on the street...", which is what Jose Mari Chan is starting to sing LOL, then the guard is saying, "Sir, seniors aren't allowed to go out." (this was made during pandemic times HAHAHA)

And a personal favorite:

LOLLL

Also since the majority of the Philippines is Catholic that plays a huge factor in it too. Another tradition that's mainly Catholic (so I haven't ever actually participated in it) is called simbang gabi, which is basically nine days of mass before Christmas. Then on Christmas Eve the final mass is called Misa da Gallo. It's basically a way for everyone to prepare for Christmas!

Another big thing about Philippine Christmases (although I'm sure a bunch of other cultures do this too LOL including Americans), we a lot of the time celebrate Christmas with our extended families (both sides during different times if possible!), since, you know, family is very important to us!! Us younger ones will usually go around to the adults to "bless" them, or do "Mano po" (basically press the back of their hands to our foreheads which is like, a traditional sign of respect) to all the adults, and a lot of time we get angpao (money inside those little red Chinese folders) tee hee hee! And a lot of the time we get more specific gifts from our ninongs and ninangs (god fathers and god mothers) (yes sometimes we have multiple no I can't really explain why HAHA). And if we're blessed to have them, all the cousins hang out and do whatever we like while the adults mingle (sometimes we go to the bedroom of whichever cousin's family is hosting the gathering)—I have very fond memories of those times.

But I think one of the bigger differences is that we don't have our official celebration on Christmas morning—we actually celebrate the night before, on Christmas Eve! We like to prepare for our Noche Buena (also a Spanish tradition LOL, it's basically a special Holiday feast) for the whole day, then we wait for 12am to strike, then THAT'S when we start eating and playing games and of course opening presents. It's such a fun time and I've spent multiple Christmases up late until the sun rose reading my new books or something. From what I know most families here stay home during the rest of Christmas day resting and enjoying the time with their own families.

We also do Christmas caroling differently. Idk how it works in America but in the Philippines random groups of kids go around to houses to sing Christmas songs for money. Sometimes they have makeshift instruments, occasionally a guitar and tambourine. They aren't always that good HAHA but they do their best, and they have a lot of fun doing it (my siblings and I did it once!! It was a lot of fun).

We also have a traditional Christmas decoration, called the paról. It's basically these star-shaped paper lanterns, and they're beautiful!

We also may play games like Pinoy Henyo (similar to charades, basically a paper with a word is placed on yours or your teammates forehead and you/your teammate need to help them guess what the word is, answering questions like is it a person?? animal?? place?? etc., getting more specific until you figure out the word), Bring Me (basically you need to be the first to bring the item, for example: bring me a wallet! A lot of parents usually help the kids by giving their own things LOL), and Longest Line (basically you need to make the longest line only using things you're wearing) (yes some guys have taken off their shirts, sometimes people just lie down in the line LOL). It's a lot of fun.

So in conclusion, while, like with any country, we can also be prone to commercialism, Christmas is a lot of fun in the Philippines, at least for me!

Anddd that's mostly it I think!!! thank you so much for this ask!! I was really excited to answer when I got it lol!! I'm sorry it took a while tho, I wanted to let my friends check to see if what I said was accurate (because I am uncertain like that LOLL). I really enjoyed answering it too so thank you and I hope it was interesting!!!

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Assigning dæmons to characters in the Phantom of the Opera!

Quick explanation of what dæmons are: In summary, in the His Dark Materials world, they're basically physical manifestations of the soul, just in animal form! They are most commonly the opposite sex of their human. It's also taboo and just. wrong to touch another person's dæmon, and usually only happens between lovers or in battle. You also can't move too far away from your dæmon without dying/being severed intentionally (which is. very traumatic. unless you're a witch). The relationship between a person and their dæmon is sacred—they're your lifelong companions, which I love the idea of. And, until a certain age, dæmons can shift to different animals (the age you settle (when your dæmon choose their final form) varies depending on the person).

ANYWAY enough info dumping time for my HEADCANONS for what dæmons the characters from The Phantom of the Opera would have!!

Christine Daaé: a canary named Einar

I'm just gonna say it now—I don't have much reasons for picking these dæmons other than vibes. I just believe that Christine would definitely have a little bird dæmon, and the canary just seemed like the cutest choice! Plus, according to google, canaries are "somewhat timid and shy little birds. Unlike larger bird species, they don't usually do well with being handled, although there may be the occasional exception. Canaries are charming birds..." They are also, from what I know, very cheerful and playful! Which I think fits Christine very well!

Plus, imagine the dynamic between her dæmon and Raoul's and Erik's dæmon—with one being a dog and one a cat. I don't know, I think it just adds a really interesting dynamic to their relationships!

Raoul de Chagny: a golden retriever named Lili

I think the reason I picked the golden retriever for Raoul is fairly obvious LOLL. But aside from the obvious matching personality, I thought it would be really interesting if his dæmon was a dog, especially because he's nobility. Because, according to His Dark Materials, people with dog dæmons actually usually tend to be servants. Which is very classist LOL but like. I feel like it makes complete sense to me that Raoul's dæmon wouldn't match his status in society, plus it would definitely give something extra for Philippe to be worried about regarding him. The dynamic with his social status and his dæmon just sounds like something really interesting to explore!

Plus, I love the image of Lili cuddling with Raoul whenever he's upset and/or starts crying.

Erik: a Siamese cat named Ayesha

I feel like the reason for this is really obvious LOL. Why don't I make Ayesha his dæmon?? I think it's extra sweet if she were! Plus OF COURSE Erik's dæmon would be a cat LOL. Honestly, what else would it be?? Plus, there's this analysis I found of Siamese Cat dæmons, and I think it fits him pretty well!

Plus I love the image of Ayesha getting really annoyed with Erik's shenanigans and advising against them, but still helping him with them anyway LOL.

Meg Giry: a nova scotia duck tolling retriever named Maxime

So I was thinking that, personality wise, Meg definitely would have a dog dæmon too. I was actually considering a golden retriever but I felt like it didn't really fit vibes-wise? So I looked for dogs that are similar and thought that the nova scotia duck tolling retriever looked perfect!! Plus, after I googled their personalities, I think they definitely fit Meg. I also just think it's adorable that Christine's two best friends both have retriever dæmons ehehehe

Philippe de Chagny: a red-tailed hawk named Désirée

So going with the nobility thing, I thought that Philippe would definitely have a really grand dæmon. Like the red-tailed hawk!

The dæmon forum on tumblr have actually already analyzed this dæmon, and I think the traits fit Philippe really well! Although I guess it can be argued he's an extrovert and not an introvert, but there's also such thing as introverts that are very social, so.

But yeah I just love the image of Philippe, with his hawk dæmon, and Raoul standing beside him with his golden retriever dæmon 😭

The Persian/The Daroga/Nadir: a Persian leopard named Fariba

No because I truly believe that Nadir would have the COOLEST dæmon ever. Which is yes, a Persian leopard. Like, the vibes just make sense!! Plus considering he was the chief of police, it just makes sense.

I also love the image of Nadir, with his epic leopard dæmon, and Erik beside him with his house cat dæmon LOLL

OTHER HEADCANONS FOR THIS AU:

I bet Raoul, when he was younger and before Lili settled, would often like it when Lili would shift into a red-tailed hawk, completely because he wanted to impress his brother and have a dæmon like his.

I also think that Christine and Raoul played all sorts of pretend games together, with their dæmons shifting into animals to match whoever they were pretending to be. I can also imagine them taking naps together under the tree, with their dæmons curled closely together.

I feel like when Erik was in the circus, his dæmon was handled so much to the point that he became desensitized to it. I also think he probably learned how to separate from Ayesha even if it hurt a lot to do so, but like out of necessity 😭

I feel like Einar would sit in Christine's hair a lot. I also feel like he and Ayesha would have a very interesting relationship with each other. I also feel like Einar would like to sit on the head or nose of Lili whenever Raoul and Christine are hanging out together.

I also feel like Erik would often be VERY tempted to touch Einar, and his hand might hover so close to him—but he would pull away before he ever did. But I also think that a part of Einar really wanted him to actually do it while at the same time being terrified that he does.

I also feel like, in this universe, to get Raoul, Erik actually grabs Lili so that Raoul is immediately weakened and pretty much incapacitated, and THEN he wraps the noose around his neck. I don't think he'd bother holding onto Lili the entire time—I don't think he'd like doing that either lol, considering his trauma regarding it. I also do feel like Erik would have Ayesha attack other people's dæmons, kind of like how Mrs. Coulter does it? But Lili and Ayesha have definitely had at least one fight, maybe during Wandering Child.

Everyone finds Nadir extra intimidating because of Fariba, even if Fariba is the most chill dæmon ever.

I love the idea that, after all the events of POTO, Christine and Raoul are sitting together and comforting each other, and that's when they touch each others' dæmons for the first time. And that's when their relationship with each other truly solidifies, because there's nothing more intimate than touching another person's soul.

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no because I love the idea that Tyler calls Wednesday "Wen" as a nickname but it is my firm belief and personal headcanon that he only calls her that when he's tired.

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👂