Phantom of the Opera

[ChristineDaae]

Posted: 5/16/03 at 4:32pm

Does anyone like "Phantom of the Opera"??
Michael Crawford is my favorite Phantom and I got the chance to meet him after "Dance of the Vampires"... I love "Dance of the Vampires"! It's a shame that it closed, it was really funny!! I saw POTO 9 times and I never get tired of it!

~Andrea

[CJR]

Posted: 5/16/03 at 4:56pm

I wouldn't say I like POTO, as much as I would say I like Tracy Shayne as Christine :)

Then again, I am biased

CJR

[Count Von Krolock]

Posted: 5/17/03 at 1:35am

Yes, I loved Phantom and I have Dance of the Vampires on bootleg. I never met Michael wish I could. How was it meeting him? I am going to be a member soon of the MCIFA again. Michael has a wonderful voice and is a great performer I cannot beleive he is 61.

[ChristineDaae]

Posted: 5/17/03 at 11:26am

Meeting Michael Crawford was awsome! He was very nice and tried to sign everyones playbill. He wasn't siging CD's or anything from Phantom just DOTV stuff.

[Count Von Krolock]

Posted: 5/17/03 at 12:13pm

I have heard Michael is a very sweet man and kind, how did he look to you? someone sent me a picture from Dance of the Vampires Michael siging autographs outside the theatre he looked a mess and old. no makeup. hair was gray and a mess. Not like Michael.

[chasing_rainbows43]

Posted: 5/18/03 at 2:26am

He was....not the most personable man I've ever encountered. A good friend of mine who's been a lifelong fan of his asked for a picture, to which he dished out a condescending "Just take one!", as if she was supposed to know this already. You think it'd really hurt that much to stand still while someone turns around quickly? But I digress...

That said I adored DOTV, and I'm pretty into phantom as well. My favorite Christine is Adrienne McEwan - the girl's fabulous. Her acting in Think of Me was superb. Really adored her. And Rebecca Eichenberger as Carlotta was fantastic. Just the right amount of Divatude and a great voice. Now I want to go see Phantom again...hehe

[King Stevos]

Posted: 5/18/03 at 3:08am

Phantom is ok, I guess.

But I have to say MC was best as HERO in the Forum movie. lol

STEVOS

[John4763]

Posted: 5/18/03 at 7:06am

I've beat this one to death on the broadway.com message board.

But now maybe there's a whole new set of POTO fans to ask:

Do you have a problem with the final scene? In particular, the fact that we never resolve the Prologue? Why did the author put in that prologue scene if he never intended to get back to those elderly people at the auction? And if you didn't read the libretto, how the heck are you supposed to know who those people even are?

Other than that, I did enjoy the show. (Of course it's been 15 years since I've seen it!) It's got a lot of nostalgia for me, since it was the first show that I bought tickets to with my own money. It was March 1988 and I went with my girlfriend (now my wife!) and just couldn't believe how lucky we were to be sitting there (in row W) watching the hottest show on the planet in the coolest city on earth.

[chasing_rainbows43]

Posted: 5/18/03 at 11:07am

I don't think the prologue needs to be "resolved". The people *are* identified at the auction, and I believe the circumstances of the auction are revealed as well. I think that the prologue is done to sort of set up the hype which the opera house was eventually surrounded by due to the phantom. So it's not so much of a plot element that needs to be resolved, (Raoul wins the auctions....I don't know how they'd carry that further) more of something to set up the story (as with most prologues). That said, I don't much care for the ending. It sort of feels like there's some sort of sequel needed....Meg holds up the mask, she's found the phantom's lair...aaaaand scene! I think I've done an ok job of training myself not to think about that too much, and just enjoying the show itself for what it is.

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 5/18/03 at 12:23pm

The physical production is holding up, but the last few trips to see the show that I have made, he made less and less fond of the phantom. It seems like the whole company is just phoning it in.

[Count Von Krolock]

Posted: 5/18/03 at 1:22pm

Did you all know that Steve Barton was supposed to play Count Von Krolock in the Broadway production of Dance with the Vampires. He was in the worked shop for it rehearsing the role he made famous in Germany. But he suddenly died from heart failure at 47! What a shame I loved Steve in Phantom. The producers had to scrabble to find Michael Crawford to replace Steve in which he was in Phantom with. So Michael was a replacement. And the script was changed so many times during previews that the critics hated it. I saw pictures from the german production a lot spooker Steve looked great as the Count. I know don't think this role was meant for Michael. And it turn out crappy and comical not the way it was meant to be. And the production company ran out of money. Michael went home to London,I think he was ashamed of what happen. And him snapping at a fan for an autograph picture, well Michael is 61 and that is not like him, I have been a fan of his for years maybe he was having a bad day. But I spoke to someome who has the DVD bootleg of Dance of the Vampires and it show Michael signing autographs and than running to his limo with a bodyguard and a lady went to grab him and scratch his face in which he called her a female dog. I found that shocking. But when you been in the business as long as Michael has it wears you out.

[Rob]

Posted: 5/18/03 at 1:32pm

But I don't believe was ever slated to play it on Broadway. The producers wanted a large name to go with the high budget...It was truely a shame that Steve died well before his time. A very talented man with a great voice I'd always wanted to see perform from the first time I heard him on the Phantom CDs. Life is a prescious thing.

On another note, I was there that night of the strange stage door incident at DOTV...The woman came out of nowhere and lunged at him as he was on his way to his car. Scary few moments - there's some odd people out there!

Rob Updated On: 5/18/03 at 01:32 PM

[Count Von Krolock]

Posted: 5/18/03 at 2:06pm

Rob I read this last night on Steve Barton's website, I am sure it said Steve was supposed to play Count Von Krolock and they had to scrabble to find Michael after Steve passed away.

[Count Von Krolock]

Posted: 5/18/03 at 2:16pm

Rob Steve did play the Count in the New York workshop production, but than he died two months later. Whether he was slated to play the role on broadway no one knows. But Michael did his best. It was ok. But comical.

[ISpeaktheTruth]

Posted: 5/18/03 at 2:22pm

He did the workshop, thought he had the job and then the producers did the worse thing possible--hired that overrated Crawford. And what did Steve do? Well, that's debatable, but from what his family says, he did some DRASTIC in response. Truly a sad story.

[Count Von Krolock]

Posted: 5/18/03 at 2:35pm

Are you telling me Steve committed sucide because that is what I heard first than they said heart failure and because of Michael No this can't be true.

[ChristineDaae]

Posted: 5/18/03 at 5:31pm

I like the way Phantom ends...
The mob doesn't kill him he disappears, I think thats so cool

Michael Crawford does an excellent Phantom but Howard McGillin is great to. Adrienne McEwan is really good to as Christine.

[ChristineDaae]

Posted: 5/18/03 at 5:33pm

No one knows how Steve Barton died... some said he commited suicide, some said he had a heart attack.... his family never told fans or anyone how we died.
He was a great Von Krolock on DOTV... if u haven't heard him, go to DanceoftheVampires.com and the clips are the german cast.

[ChristineDaae]

Posted: 5/18/03 at 5:38pm

wow I posted alot... this is the last one lol

When I met MC he was very nice to phans. everyone was in a circle waiting for him to come out the stage door and there was ALOT of people and he signed stuff for about half the crowd. He was nice, he smiled and talked to people.

[POTOMCfan]

Posted: 5/18/03 at 11:17pm

I have met Mr. Crawford. He is the sweetest man alive and one of the most talented men to hit since Laurence Olivier.
His Phantom is so far, unsurpassable, but its what he brings to the character that makes him the best. Its his talent in voice and acting ability. God Bless You Michael!! <3

[John4763]

Posted: 5/19/03 at 6:57pm

Yes, I have no problem with the way the story itself ends.

My problem with the show is that it starts with that Prologue scene, and then the rest of the show is a kind of "flashback". But then at the end of the flashback the show just ends, instead of going back to the initial scene.

I guess I'm the only person on the planet who, at the end of POTO, was expecting one more scene.

[Laetitia]

Posted: 5/20/03 at 2:58pm

Hiya all! Newbie here!

Anyway, you're not the only one expecting a whole other scene, John - I was expecting the entire sequel! Too bad it never got made, eh?

Laetitia

[Sally]

Posted: 5/20/03 at 6:59pm

I was a little puzzled by the last scene the first time I saw the show, but was moved by it, nonetheless. I like the open-ended conclusion. Does he die? Did he escape? Whichever happened, the"Music of the Night" is over. Anyone who lkes endings neatly tied up would not like this way of ending the show, but I found it most satisfactory.

By the way, ALW considered writing a sequal based on what was, n my opinion, a very bad novel (forget the author). Fortunately, the sequal idea was ditched when the book (deservedly) did not do well.

[John4763]

Posted: 5/22/03 at 6:01pm

Ah, but you're missing my point.

I'm not complaining about the way the story ends. If POTO began with the overture and ended exactly the way it does I would have no issue.

My problem is more with the way POTO begins. It begins with an auction, and then the remainder of the show is just one big long flashback. At the end of the flashback, I kind of expected to return to that auction.

[CourtneyM]

Posted: 5/22/03 at 6:08pm

i saw poto a couple of months ago for the first time and before i had ever seen it people were always saying about the chandelier crashing. but the chandelier never crashes it just comes down very slowly. was it always like this or did it actually used to come crashing down?