The Phantom Documentary on Ovation

[castlestreet]

Posted: 11/3/10 at 6:54pm

So I ditched Time Warner last month and picked up Dish Network, and I was thrilled to find the Ovation Network- it reminds me of Bravo back in the 90's before they became a crappy reality TV network.

I was flipping through last night and found that a Making of the Phantom of the Opera Documentary- I figured it was probably the one from the double disc Movie DVD, but it was something I have never seen before, with a TON of vintage footage- much of which I have never seen or heard before (and I have more stuff on Phantom than I care to admit too)

The 2 hour show went from two years before the London Premier all the way to opening night and the craziness that went along the way.

Things that I did not know about:

Hal Prince was fired from the show: This was something I never knew- and what was truly interesting is that when he was asked about it on camera he said "how do you know about that, I didn't think anyone knew about that" to which the voice off camera said "Cameron Mackintosh told me all about it" cut to Cameron. He was fired in favor of Trevor Nunn and for two months Nunn was at the helm of the production but was fired himself when the tepid London reviews came out for Les Miz! Hal then got the job back!

Great rehearsal footage with the OLC, and even better was hearing the unreleased demos of Steve Harley (the original Phantom on record) singing The Music of the Night.

They also talked about some of Crawfords temper tantrums when things were not going well, and I couldn't believe how many problems they actually had getting the show going.

Also of note: At one point they had motorized rats with glowing red eyes in the lair scenes, REAL flying doves for the rooftop scene, and a mechanical white horse that would take Christine down to the lair during the title song.

I know I'm probably forgetting more, but I have to go back and watch again, because of every Phantom documentary I've ever seen, this was by far the best, and MOST honest. If you have access to Ovation, check your listings, because I guess it will be on throughout November.

[ThankstoPhantom]

Posted: 11/3/10 at 7:18pm

This is the documentary that aired in the UK a couple of years ago. It's fantastic...

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 11/3/10 at 7:43pm

Is the fellow who originated the role of Buquet still alive?

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 11/3/10 at 7:51pm

I saw this on DirectTv. It is a GREAT documentary.

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 11/3/10 at 8:38pm

I got it from Ovation & edited out the commercials before putting it on a DVD - Great special. Ditto for Mr Prince.

[AwesomeDanny]

Posted: 11/3/10 at 10:10pm

I know that I saw Phantom documentary on Ovation a couple of months ago, but I'm not sure if we're talking about the same one. Did they talk about how Sarah Brightman's understudy went on for the first preview and then Sarah made a "miraculous recovery" when her understudy was received so well?

[jdtp12]

Posted: 11/3/10 at 10:30pm

Does anyone know if this has been released elsewhere? As in a DVD or even in parts on youtube?

[wonderwaiter]

Posted: 11/3/10 at 10:57pm

If this is the same one, it's on youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EmPwlfJxSjw

[ErikInTheCity]

Posted: 11/4/10 at 1:27am

Yes, this is the doc they are showing on Ovation.

[ClapYo'Hands]

Posted: 11/4/10 at 11:16am

So, is this the same one that's on the Phantom movie DVD?

"They also talked about some of Crawfords temper tantrums when things were not going well, and I couldn't believe how many problems they actually had getting the show going."

Sounds like Love Never Dies! ^^

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 11/4/10 at 12:06pm

So, is this the same one that's on the Phantom movie DVD?

This was answered in the very first post.

[nealb1]

Posted: 11/4/10 at 11:19pm

Sounds like a great documentary. I have the double disc dvd of "Phantom," and haven't watched any of the extras yet. I'll check it out over the weekend.

[Sally]

Posted: 11/5/10 at 2:40am

"They also talked about some of Crawfords temper tantrums when things were not going well, and I couldn't believe how many problems they actually had getting the show going."

Sounds like Love Never Dies! ^^
------------------------------------------------------------

The difference is that Phantom of the Opera worked out their problems BEFORE the show opened, and LND is still working on theirs.

[zepka102]

Posted: 11/5/10 at 4:49pm

Argh! I used to have it saved on my DVR but it got deleted when we had issues and needed a new box. I've been watching for it and it hasn't been on... now I missed it again! I hope it's repeated again...

[ClapYo'Hands]

Posted: 11/5/10 at 5:31pm

I'm confused because I thought the documentary on the movie DVD documented the show in London including the 'current' Phantom, John Owen Jones.

[ThankstoPhantom]

Posted: 11/5/10 at 6:28pm

This is another, more in depth, one.

[ClapYo'Hands]

Posted: 11/5/10 at 6:45pm

So, both of them are on the DVD special features?

[Director =)]

Posted: 11/5/10 at 7:50pm

No, at least not the American DVD.

[ClapYo'Hands]

Posted: 11/5/10 at 8:08pm

Umm, LizzieCurry, no it wasn't...

[ThankstoPhantom]

Posted: 11/6/10 at 10:55am

Actually, it was:

I was flipping through last night and found that a Making of the Phantom of the Opera Documentary- I figured it was probably the one from the double disc Movie DVD, but it was something I have never seen before, with a TON of vintage footage- much of which I have never seen or heard before (and I have more stuff on Phantom than I care to admit too)

[castlestreet]

Posted: 11/6/10 at 11:59am

For those of you who have seen this, or followed the YouTube link and watched it- did anyone notice that in the footage used from the Canadian Production, that one of the ballet girls is Neve Campbell?

I grew up in Upstate NY and that Toronto Production is still my favorite- Phantom took over that entire city- and that theater was amazing!

[ClapYo'Hands]

Posted: 11/6/10 at 3:12pm

ThankstoPhantom, "I figured", to me, doesn't necessarily mean it definitely was.

Hence, I asked.

[zepka102]

Posted: 11/6/10 at 3:15pm

Castlestreet, I grew up in WNY, so I know what you mean! I couldn't wait for 5th grade... it was the year my school would go on a field trip to Toronto to go see it. It's what REALLY opened me up to Broadway shows. That production will always hold a special place for me!

And yea, she was in the original Canadian cast. She was pretty young at the time.

[ThankstoPhantom]

Posted: 11/14/10 at 10:09pm

Updated On: 11/14/10 at 10:09 PM

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 11/15/10 at 12:46am

Just out of curiosity does anybody know when they changed Christine's costume for "Masquerade"? I caught a glimpse of Sara wearing the all white dress (and with a different wig in an up do?) that I remember also being used in the production shots that were in the piano/vocal selections that I used to have.