#poto kristianstad

[operafantomet]

( from Perukmakare on IG )

[marleneoftheopera]

Easter, Phantom style.

[glassprism]

John Martin Bengtsson and Hanna Ulvan - ‘Final Lair’

Kristianstad production; February 2023

[phantomchristinesuk]

Christines around the World: 2020

West End

Kelly Mathieson, Bridget Costello & Corinne Cowling

UK Tour

Holly-Anne Hull, Anouk van Laake & Lydia Gerrard*

Broadway

Meghan Picerno, Eryn LeCroy & Elizabeth Welch

US Tour

Emma Grimsley, Kaitlyn Davis & Jenna Burns

World Tour

Claire Lyon, Kaley Ann Voorhees, Clara Verdier, Caitlin Finnie & Megan Ort*

Sweden

Sara Ollinen

Japan

山本紗衣 (Sae/Sai Yamamoto), 海沼千明 (Chiaki Kainuma) & 岩城あさみ (Asami Iwashiro)*

Canada

Anne-Marine Suire & Lucie St-Martin*

Estonia

Maria Listra

Greece

Amy Manford, Celinde Schoenmaker & Glain Rhys*

*did not perform the role during this year

Pictures : Performers social medias (Sinéad Smith, Laird Mackintosh, Jory Rivera, Annie Éthier photographe). Kelly Everitt Associates, Phantom Kristianstad & Phantom Greece/People Entertainment Group instagrams. Teater Vanemuine (Gabriela Liivamägi) Facebook. Shiki Theater Company (Akihito Abe). Operafantomet on tumblr.

[ange-de-la-musique]

Christine dressing gowns in non-replica productions.

(Oslo/Greece, Estonia, Czech, Bulgaria, Serbia, Romania, Poland, Finland/Sweden, Hungary)

Bonus! 2004 Movie, “real” dressing gown, “dream”’ dressing gown, and POTO Kristianstad:

[operafantomet]

Character photos of John Martin Bengtsson (Phantom), Hanna Ulvan (Christine) and Jonathan Böiers (Raoul) from Kristianstad, Sweden. Scans from the souvenir brochure.

[operafantomet]

Following up the post about the most original non-replica productions, here's a photoset on moments I thought rather original in the POTO Kristianstad production (2020-2023):

Apart from the tiny tweak of the auctioneer being a woman, the auction scene itself was rather traditional. But the moment the chandelier came to life and started rising, some columns started tipping over, drapes were removed, and the set was slowly transformed into Hannibal. The original moment was having Raoul stumble around in this set, as if he was reliving some painful memories from his youth. Surprisingly touching staging.

The title song was another original take on a familiar view. For the first half a gate separated the misty stage into two areas. The Phantom and Christine - and a set of doubles crossed the stage, mirroring eachother's moves, which created a sense of a fascinating fairytale world.

Come the actual boat scene, the boat was as simple as two gates rising from the floor. The actors stood more or less still while rocks crossed the stage at irregular intervals, making it look like the boat was moving. Another super simple and super effective trick.

The Phantom's lair had some surprises in store. Whereas the floating candles reminded of the Restaged Tour, more or less, the amount of "spare masks" the Phantom had stacked up on each side was downright impressive. Extra cred for the creepy doll at the floor, which at one point got up and danced a violent waltz with Christine, making her faint...!

As for the Phantom himself, creating a horizontal half-mask instead of the usual vertical one felt more original than say making the mask grey or golden. It felt like a proper reinterpretation of the look (moreso than the leather coat, which Estonia and Serbia had also proudly featured). Extra bonus for a flawless mask fit.

Fast forward to the Masquerade scene, having Red Death 1. Crash through a giant mirror wall, and 2. Disappear in a twirl, just leaving his cloak / costume behind was the definition of magic tricks. Alas I only ever found photos of the in-between action, but it gives a glimpse of the mirror wall and the skull head costume.

In the same vein, the Phantom disappeared in a similar manner, walking through the scattered back wall, lit up by bright yellow light as it happened. I'm not quite sure what to read into that. Flames of hell? Redemption? Anyhow...

(for more of my thoughts of the production, have a look at this sort-of-review from when I saw the production in 2023)

[operafantomet]

Almost two years later, and I still haven't gotten over how wildly different the wig-work was for Sara Ollinen (left) and Hanna Ulvan (right) in the Swedish Kristianstad production...!

[operafantomet]

Any productions where in masquerade everyone else's costume are really bad but the main trio's are okay?

As in, non-replica productions? I would probably say the Swedish production in Kristianstad. Whereas I liked the idea for Raoul (white Hussar) and the Phantom (Red Death), and to some degree Christine (blue butterfly)...

...and whereas I liked some of the ideas (bunny manager, clowns, woman in tailcoat), it mostly felt like a budget version with store-bought masks and generic skirts and jackets.

The good parts of this production didn't really lay in their costumes, rather in some really clever stagings and a stellar cast. Which means it doesn't always translate well into photos. Masquerade is a good example of that. Who'd think Red Death would come crashing through a mirrored wall, for example?

Another that comes to mind is the Mediterranean version (Italy, Monaco, Spain). There too I liked a lot of the principal costumes - the Victorian ballgown Christine wore, Raoul's classic tailcoat:

Red Death's ambiguous hooded red velvet coat:

And also Meg's "Monkey Girl" attire (echoing that of the monkey musical box), as well as Firmin's epic frilly dress:

But I didn't care too much for the ensemble costumes here, nor the general set-up. I do appreciate the Venetian carnival flair with the robes, masks and hats, but I would either love to see a lot more gold and glitter, or more personality. And... it was so glaringly obvious each cast member danced with a dummy on wheels. A good idea on paper, but it felt quite odd after a minute or so. Bonus point for trying something brand new, though.

It also leaves the question of why Christine and Raoul missed out on the invitation's specifications for attire. Here everyone is robed, even the managers in the beginning, heck even Red Death. And yet Christine and Raoul is in their Victorian finery. Christine and Raoul always miss out, don't they?

But in large I think Masquerade is one of those scenes non-replica production is "all in" on and does well. Give or take the budget, this scene really allows creativity to flow.

[operafantomet]

Here it is, the most secretive and stubborn Phantom production I know of: That of Kristianstad, Sweden.

It premiered in early 2020, was closed down, set its repremiere for 2021, was closed down, set its repremiere in 2022, was closed down, and finally got its full run in 2023. Produced by Emil Sigfridsson, and directed by David Rix, it had scenography by the producer and director as well as Filip Hällefors, and costumes by Fia Persson. Conductor was veteran Julian Biggs, and Nils-Petter Ankarblom. Revamped deformity and mask was by Thomas Foldberg.

The original cast featured Joel Zerpe as the Phantom and Sara Ollinen (redhead) as Christine. The final run had John Martin Bengtsson as the Phantom, and Hanna Ulvan (blonde) as Christine. Jonathan Böiers was principal Raoul for all cast combos.

Due to the topsy-turvy run I don't think a full photoset was ever shared anywhere. Bits and bobs was used in promo work, some was shared by cast members, some by newspapers, some in the souvenir brochures, but finding good photos of all scenes has been near impossible. Here's a best of, with the majority taken by Amanda Sigfridsson (first auction set one is mine).

[operafantomet]

Do you prefer larger or smaller stages, Like the Swedish production?

"The Swedish production" might be a bit wide term, as there has been four different Swedish production:

The original Stockholm production 1989-1995

The non replica Finnish / Swedish one in Gothenburg 2017-2018

The Stockholm revival 2016-2017

The non replica Kristianstad production 2020-2023

Of these, the latter was definitely the smallest, playing in a theatre with a seating capacity of 362. Which of course meant all seats were fairly close to the stage. It was a lovely Art Nouveau theatre, grand in style but small in size, I liked it a lot. Photo I took there:

The Stockholm revival played in Cirkus Teater, with a seating capacity of 1,644. It's a circular auditorium, where many will be placed far at the side or quite long away from stage. I have seen both POTO and Chess there, and whereas the building itself is stunning in its turn-of-the-century-circus vibe, it is not my favourite venue for theatre. It's so many levels and stair and fences and whatnot, and a sound more suited for concerts. But it's a cool allround experience to go there, including its location at an idyllic peninsula. Photo from TripAdvisor:

The original production played in Oscarsteatern, which has a seating capacity of around 950, but again with an intimate layout where most seats are close to stage. I did not see this production, alas, but friend Josefine loved it there, and sometimes compared it to Det Ny Teater in Copenhagen (which I adore). From their website:

The Finnish / Swedish version played at the Gothenburg Opera's main stage, with a seating capacity of around 1,300. I also didn't see this production, but I have seen Sunset Boulevard there. It's a brand new building, a fairly tall auditorium, but with a smart horseshoe layout and a feeling of sitting close to the stage still. From their website:

As a general note, I do tend to enjoy smaller theatres more, due to the proximity to stage. More facial expressions, more details, more concentrated sound, more acoustic sound. Ob the other hand, I think a production like POTO needs a bit of stage and space. So I probably prefer the mid/large size theatres, like Det Ny Teater in Copenhagen and His Majesty's Theatre in West End. But it also depends on the production.

[glassprism]

John Martin Bengtsson and Hanna Ulvan - ‘Music of the Night’

Kristianstad production, February 2023

[marleneoftheopera]

Production shots from POTO Kristianstad ‘s first run in February 2020 featuring Joel Zerpe and Sara Ollinen.

[glassprism]

John Martin Bengtsson and Hanna Ulvan - ‘Point of No Return’

Kristianstad production; February 2023

[marleneoftheopera]

Clip of the chandelier from the Kristianstad production during their final dress rehearsal today. The production begins shows again tonight!

[marleneoftheopera]

Production shots from POTO Kristianstad ‘s first run in February 2020.