#phantom of the opera broadway

[devil-takethe-hindmost]

today is for THEM!!!

[henry-the-queer-artist]

ok so we need to revive phantom of the opera and I'm not saying he's the best choice but I am saying that I would kill multiple people to see eddie redmayne as raoul.

[box5intern]

Oh, you know, just CRYING as I watched this while walking in to work

[behestofheaven]

PLEASE TELL ME NO ONES MADE THIS BEFORE

[anecdotal-acorn]

It's over now the music of the night etc etc…I'm listening to All I Ask of You right now and there's a deep sadness in my bones. An ache I don't think will ever go all the way away because even when it reopens or there's a tour it'll never be the same. Thank you Phantom for being there for me when I didn't want to get out of bed every day and not just because I was tired, thank you for all the nights spent listening to All I Ask of You (just like this but not like this at all) raving about Raoulstine. Thank you for making me laugh and my heart pound in my throat during TWO (TWO!!!!!!!!!!!) chandelier rises, thank you for giving me strength and brainrot and making me happy. I can't believe you’re gone. It feels like you faded into nothingness. But you didn't. You touched me and so many other people, and though the tagline for the closing has been help us say goodbye I’m not going to because it's not the end. With luck I'll see the London production one day, I'll watch the 25th anniversary over and over again until and after then, I’ll think of you every day because you're just a part of me now. Just. Thank you. Forever.

[angelofmusicals87614]

jeremystolle Thank you to @juliaudine​ for that unexpected adventure in my last show. It was one not soon to forget 🤣❤️.@phantomopera #phantom #understudy #understudylife #phantomclosing

(X)

[trickstersfolly]

Words cannot truly convey my emotions tonight. I had the great honor of being able to attend the penultimate performance of Phantom of the Opera on Broadway. It isn’t the last show but it was the last show where anybody could buy tickets. It was the last performance for the fans, the average joe, and it was an amazing experience.

Phantom means the world to me. It was the very first theatre show I ever saw when my parents took me to see it in Los Angeles when I was just a child. Michael Crawford was the Phantom and the moment the Overture started and the chandelier started to rise I was hooked (I was also frightened lol). I have fond memories of hearing my father blasting the Overture in the living room. I was a little kid who should be in bed but I would sneak out of my room to peek and he'd be sitting there conducting. He loved the show and my dad is gone now but when i hear the Overture i think of those special memories. Just another reason this show is so special to me. 

I've seen it many times. New York, LA, London...and this show is so special to me. The story. The music. The costumes. The sets. The characters. It gave me comfort, and it made my soul take wing. Some people might be tired of it. Some might be snobby and say that it's pop theater or whatever. You can say what you want. All I know is that because of Phantom I love musical theater. In fact I would say that because of Phantom I have such a deep love and soul deep connection to the music that touches me in general. When you're a small kid and you are impacted by something so strongly, it leaves a mark. Phantom left its mark.

 When I heard it was closing I felt a true sense of loss. I mourned, I cried, and I grieved. I'm still grieving but tonight was about celebration. The experience of seeing the last show open to the public was electric. The energy of the audience and of the company was almost nuclear in its energy. I was brought to tears multiple times tonight, not just from the performances but from the love we, the audience, gave to the company and crew. It was beautiful and I'm beyond grateful I got to see this special original show one last time. The music of the night will NEVER be over as long as it is in our hearts.Thank you to the company and crew that has put on 35 wonderful years. Thank you. You made a little girl fall in love with musical theater and I am forever grateful. Thank you. We love you. 

[withallthingslove]

The Phantom of the Opera Broadway Thoughts/Review - April 4, 2023

The main trio was Jeremy Stolle, Julia Udine, John Riddle and it was my first time seeing all three of them in these roles! Unless I win the lottery tomorrow for the final performance this was my last time seeing Phantom on Broadway before it closes and it proved to be the performance I needed to have closure.

Nehal Joshi continues to add something every performance as Andre. During Hannibal, he linked arms with Piangi during a choreography bit and then he went to stand by the elephant to sing like he was a member of the ensemble. 

Julia really comes alive during Think of Me it’s obvious that her Christine loves performing once she gets over her initial nervousness.

As the candles rose during the title song, Jeremy was feeling himself and he spun the boat pole in a circle like it was a lightsaber before starting to row again and it was ~ hot ~

When Julia got out of the boat, he grabbed her hips and kind of spun her to look at him and it was also hot. His cape twirl and the way he throws it down onto the bed boat while not breaking eye contact with Christine is also hot. His phantom definitely has some Leo somewhere in his chart he is a slutty showman

I had seen some reviews on here saying that in recent months Jeremy’s voice has sounded strained while playing the Phantom. Vocally he struggled with the “I have brought you” part of MOTN, the end of AIAOY reprise, and “deep as hell” in Down Once More but those were the only parts he had to adjust the notes.

The Phantom and Christine almost kissed while leaning up against the portcullis. Which made the phantom chasing her to that corner of the lair in STYDI feel like a cruel parallel

During I Remember... Julia starts singing while lying down which seemed more realistic.

John’s Raoul is so so so earnest. That’s the best word to describe him. Right before Primadonna when the managers said Christine would play the page boy his head jerked up like “say what?”

When they are scrambling to read the Phantoms note from Madame Giry Firmin dropped the note to the ground

Jeremy’s Phantom really shines while messing with Carlotta he soaks up taunting her and is having a ball stealing the attention away (again there is Leo somewhere in his chart)

During the ballet scene, all of the ballerinas were adding little extra things in their performance while the shadows and murder are happening like adding lines saying “Did you see that?” and playing up the humor and fear. 

John’s love language as Raoul is definitely physical touch but before kissing Christine for the first time he seemed so hesitant and nervous even though it was so apparent he wanted to.

During Wishing, it comes across like Julia’s Christine has been compartmentalizing or was in denial about her dad’s death. And her “her father promised her” is very pointed like she’s angry at her dad for dying

In Wandering Child, Jeremy isn’t really paternal he’s more of a patronizing “I know you have daddy issues” and he caressed his face during “far from my fathering gaze.” Julia was actively trying to resist it like physically trying to fight against the trance which I appreciated

John was ready to FIGHT in Wandering Child he charged up to the grave and it seemed like if Julia didn’t stop him he would have climbed up the wall to the Phantom. 

An overall note about John… he seems to really pay attention to what the Phantom does. He keeps glancing at the chandelier during Il Muto and he notices the Phantom almost as early as Christine does in Masquerade. And while he’s protective of Christine he seems to be analyzing the Phantom, possibly sizing him up or trying to figure out what he’s going to do next. And I think this works really well in the last half of act II where Raoul is leading the charge because of course he is. He’s like “I’ve been studying this guy I have an idea” which also plays into the earnestness of John’s portrayal.

Jeremy’s vocals I think were strongest during PONR and his character really leans into the horniness of the song. Once Julia realizes it’s him she performed the most over-the-top sexy I’ve seen Christine do but it seemed to be to taunt the phantom. Like fully flashed her entire leg when she put her foot up on the bench.

When the Phantom proposes, Julia gently shook her head with her eyes pleading “please don’t ask that of me” and god it was such a subtle acting moment but it stood out to me so much. And then she ripped off his mask to get him to stfu

Jeremy’s Phantom has a strong attachment to his mask. As soon as he gets it back in STYDI, you can see his whole demeanor change. In the Final Lair, when he sang “A mask my first unfeeling scrape of clothing” he started to cry as if he was truly remembering his first mask. And then he realizes he’s being vulnerable in front of Christine and he gets mad at her pitying him 

John is the only Raoul I’ve seen act like he’s being strangled the whole time during the final lair. Some eventually stop struggling but he kept it up the whole time. His energy was just really refreshing.

At one point Julia tried to put her arms around the Phantom’s shoulders to plead with him, and Jeremy ducked out from her (I don’t know how since he’s so much taller) 

Jeremy was scaryyyyyy when he leaned over Christine before “you try my patience” and even after he turned around Julia was still frozen terrified. I think that was the first time I’ve ever watched it live and actually felt really really scared for Christine. Her fear was just so palpable.

After the kiss, when the Phantom walks up to Raoul, John started breathing really hard like he thought the Phantom was going to kill him and Julia’s desperate “No!” showed that she thought the same.

Because of how much Julia’s Christine wanted to be free of the Phantom it surprised my how sad her Christine seemed during the ring return. It did seem to be the mostly out of pity though. 

There was no second “I love you.” When Jeremy was standing watching Christine and Raoul ride off on the boat together, something about his body language really captured the finality of his loneliness in that moment.

When I saw Phantom in December after so many years away all it did was reawaken my love of the show, and when I saw it in March the performance was so chaotic I was distraught (an understatement) when it ended because I knew I needed to go again. Something about this performance brought a lot of closure and as soon as it ended, I didn’t cry like I did in March. I just felt content. 

I think that’s partially because every cast member is just doing the most so there were so many small moments to savor, but I also think it’s because I got to see Jeremy’s Phantom. I met him twice back in 2013/2014 when I was deep in the Phandom and him being so involved with fans was a huge part of my formative love of Phantom in high school. And when I wasn’t following the show as much I still kept up with a lot of backstage stuff through his Instagram. So it felt very full circle to finally catch him as the Phantom.

[flyfishfly]

Taken 14 February 2023 at the Majestic Theatre. (x)

[a-kinda-nerdy-girl]

Tell Cameron mackintosh i just wanna talk

[devil-takethe-hindmost]

phantom friends! (phriends?)

i have a website i’m using to archive content from all the productions worldwide! if you’re interested in joining the team please feel free to fill out this interest form! happily taking content submissions as well!!

[trashpidgeon48]

Leitmotifs drive me insane, like I hear *repeated melody that has an association with a person, idea, or situation* and I go *tears up the fucking rug like a dog*

[royalavera]

Vampire drama fits them so well. Get the full res image here for free

[lu-does-things]

How funny would it be if one of the Phantom of the Opera cast members decided to stay... under the stage... and torment every other production ever performed there...?

[karynslee]

christine, christine. c h r i s t i n e . . . 

instagram / twitter

[angelofmusicals87614]

Photo by Greg Mills