Never have seen POTO and have a couple of qustions

[winston89]

Posted: 3/5/07 at 8:40pm

I have never seen Phantom before but am considering it. I just have a couple of qustions. The first one is is the show entierly sung through a la les miserables? And how scary/loud/startling is the crash at the end of act 1?


Also, if anyone can give me good reasons as to why to go that would help out.

[So what...I sing]

Posted: 3/5/07 at 8:50pm

Yes it is sung through with little dialogue. The Chandelier crash is hardly anything to be alarmed by..it just flies down a cable like a zip line with a strobe light and dark intense music.

Overall Phantom is a great show that encapsulates audiences nightly and you will most definately enjoy the night out with this show.

[caitlinette]

Posted: 3/5/07 at 8:51pm

*posted in wrong thread, ignore*
Updated On: 3/5/07 at 08:51 PM

[lesmisforever]

Posted: 3/5/07 at 8:53pm

The chandelier makes no noise, not that I remember. It just swings toward the audience I believe (I saw it about 2 weeks ago on Mardi Gras break). There is a little bit of dialogue, such as between Raul and Christine in the "Little Lotte" scene, but it's mostly sung.

[keen on kean]

Posted: 3/5/07 at 9:13pm

I am not sure about the "encapsulates" thing in a prior post, but given the place of POTO in Broadway history (deserved or not) it is probably worth seeing. I am not a fan of the music or the story, but I am still glad I saw it so I know whereof I speak. I did admire Hugh Panaro as the Phantom.

[Becoz_i_knew_you21]

Posted: 3/5/07 at 9:51pm

There is no sound crah at the end of Act 1. The beginning when they start the overture is a little startling.

[lesmisforever]

Posted: 3/5/07 at 9:56pm

Oh yeah, there are sparks, correct?

[Tag]

Posted: 3/5/07 at 11:43pm

There is pyro used during the crash as well as a couple other times in the show. It can startle you if you aren't prepared.

[blaxx]

Posted: 3/5/07 at 11:53pm

It might be more impressive your first time, but I remember that thing took like 10 minutes to reach the stage last time I saw it, it was silly.

[COOOOLkid]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 12:33am

I think you can literally run to New Jersey before that chandelier hits the stage!

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 12:37am

I'd rather it fall as fast as it can, but as slow as it needs to in order to avoid anyone getting hurt...

[Tag]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 12:45am

Why would anyone get hurt if it went faster? (providing all saftey measures were in place)

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 1:06am

I just feel that it is obviously going as fast as those in charge of safety are allowing it to fall. maybe if it fell faster there is more of a chance that something could go wrong and that it would hit with more force if it detached. or maybe they just don't want to risk damaging it for fear of not being able to fix it prior to the next performance. since it obviously does not fall at maximum velocity, and wouldn’t necessarily be able to hit maximum velocity if something happened mid fall, that could lead to a softer landing if something did go wrong...

[Tag]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 1:34am

I'd think a lot of it has to do with budget. In Las Vegas you have state-of-the-art multi-million dollar rigging to fly their chandelier. But in New York/on tour the equipment and techniques are somewhat dated and resemble what was technically possible when the show originally opened.

[JasonM12480]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 8:26am

Forget about the chandelier - just go see the show. It's a classic, and still one of the best shows playing in New York, on tour, and anywhere else it plays in the world. While the show may play for another 10 years in New York, you should still catch it while you can, as you never quite know when the Phantom will disappear!

[winston89]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 10:08am

So I assume that despite how I may feel about the fact that the show is the longest running show on broadway and despite how i feel about the music of Lloyd webber that I should just go and see the show because it's a broadway classic weather I like it or not?

[KQuill]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 10:20am

Are you kidding me? All the critisizing you do about Phantom on this board and you've never even seen it??

[TheatreDiva90016]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 10:47am

Stop thinking and just go see it, you big ol worry wart.

[Spacedog78]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 11:00am

I saw it 4 times, when it came to LA like 10 years ago and it was awesome, i fell in love with it, then i saw it again when it came to LA like 5 years ago, and still loved it, THEN i saw it in NY last year and almost threw up. It was so boring. It sure is the longest running show and it shows! The entire cast was terrible, I almost fell asleep. I say wait until it goes on tour, it needs a fresher cast. I also hear the Vegas show is pretty good.

[Dover]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 11:16am

An interesting tidbit about the lack of sound for the chandelier crash. Apparently there was originally a sound cue of crashing glass and that sort of thing, but, if I'm remembering what I was told correctly, ALW heard it in tech and hated it (can't remember if this was in London or NY). I think it works better without it anyway, it would just be too literal and would sound cheesy.

And there is pyro at the beginning of the show for the overture, but contrary to popular belief, none with the crash (due to actors and crew standing right there when it lands). The explosion effect is done with these lights that basically function like giant flashbulbs (can never remember the technical name for them -- they're not strobes in the usual sense, although there are plenty of those in the sequence as well). Anyway, these lights are inside of two traps that flip up just before the chandelier falls (if you've ever sat in the mezz, they're the two diagonal traps that form an inverted V centerstage.)

As for why you should see it, it's just one of those things. Whether it's good or bad, people will probably talk about it for centuries. If you live that long, at least you should be able to say you saw it.

[raphael06]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 11:20am

I personally love the show! I think the music is great, the plot's mysterious and captivating, etc.

If for no other reason, it is a piece of theatre history that "will probably be talked about for centuries" as someone else put it.

[winston89]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 11:34am

As true as that is I have been judging the show based on the misc and by people who saw the show who have similar tastes in me. They saw it and said that they wished they did. I have never been a huge an of Webber and my vies on his stuff may be changing.