The Phantom and Me

[iflitifloat]

Posted: 7/24/05 at 1:28am

I was sitting with a cup of coffee this morning playing around on my computer and looking up what kind of discount seats were available for various shows, just for the hell of it. Suddenly, there was a power outage in my town, and as it became clear that it might last for a while, I decided, with less than 90 minutes to curtain, to hightail it into the city and see a show. Having access only to what was frozen on the computer screen, and not much time to be creative, I called for a discount ticket to........ta da....The Phantom of the Opera. I don't know why. I just did it on a whim. I haven't seen Phantom since the early '90s ...and then it was from a fairly unimpressive seat. Today found me sitting in the Center Orchestra, eleven rows from the stage.

When I got there and claimed my ticket from the Box Office, I soon realized that I was possibly the only non-tourist in the place. Four older ladies sitting behind me, under the impression that it mattered, spent quite a long time shuffling around until each was seated in the exact seat number on her specific ticket. Wow. The lady in front of me took a flash picture of the stage (well before the show started). There were foreign languages being spoken which I couldn't even identify. I started to shift into my "savvy, seasoned,theater-goer mode" when I made the conscious decision to be open-minded and see if things looked different. I started to think back to the days when I was one of those people who only got to see a Broadway show once every year or two. Hell, I remembered the first time I saw Phantom (with Crawford and Brightman)... and I remembered how SPECIAL it all seemed. I mean, I love theater more than ever now, but I don't think I ever experience that specialness anymore... And then I watched the show. I know it's not cool to admit that one likes an ALW show...but dammit, I had a wonderful afternoon. I liked the acting, I loved the singing, and I adored the spectacle of it all. Phantom is still a big, glitzy Broadway show. Unlike Les Miz, which I revisited during its final months, it hasn't lost its sparkle.

Now, I remembered liking it a long time ago, but when the movie came out, I couldn't remember why. I thought that I had felt something for some of the characters when I had seen it onstage. I felt nothing for ANYONE in the movie. And, as it turns out, that's because the movie and the musical are worlds apart in the level of passion that is portrayed. An understudy played Christine Daae today, and she was terrific. She managed to convey, effortlessly, the hold that the Phantom held over her. The chemistry between her and Hugh Panaro (as the Phantom) was electric. And by the end of the show, with (got help me, but it is true...) a glisten of tears in my eyes, I remembered why I had felt empathy for the poor hideous creature. Say what you want about ALW's shows, but the actors on stage are still pouring their hearts into their roles, and it is still effective. And I'm still humming some of the numbers hours later.

I dunno. I came away thinking that I might have been missing something by not playing the tourist once in a while. It was kind of invigorating watching people soak up a rare (for them) Broadway experience and be thrilled by it all. I'm not going to be so quick to smirk at those long lines heading into the "tourist shows" from now on. It might be a different experience that they are having, but who is to say that its a bad one?

[ElphieDefiesGravity]

Posted: 7/24/05 at 1:33am

Yay! I'm glad you had a good time.

[whatyouown223]

Posted: 7/24/05 at 9:14am

Yay! Who was the understudy? I'm seeing it tomorrow and I really want to see Susan Owen as Christine.

[iflitifloat]

Posted: 7/24/05 at 9:31am

Susan Owen. That was her name... and I thought she was wonderful.

Posted: 7/24/05 at 9:51am

Damn! Going back to see PHANTOM is something I have been wanting to do for months.

I am quite appreciative of the film and believe it to be wholely underappreciated, so I want to go back and see the stage version.

You have spurred me to take action on this. lol

[magruder]

Posted: 7/24/05 at 10:01am

I made a similar return to Phantom this past February, seeing it for the first time since 1988. The show is still wildly lavish and enjoyable, and Panaro is terrific. There's some muddled dramaturgy, some less felicitous lyrics and endless reprises, but ultimately that show delivers everything it sets out to do.

Posted: 7/24/05 at 10:27am

This is sounding like another BWW outing to me.

Like the Abbott and Costello films of the 40s....


BWW Meets The Phantom of the Opera

[Born2cthelightsofbway]

Posted: 7/24/05 at 4:16pm

I too have had the fortune of seeing Susan Owen, and I thought she was amazing as well!!!! So glad that you enjoyed yourself!

[whatyouown223]

Posted: 7/24/05 at 4:18pm

Does anyone know if Sandra's on vacation? I heard she might be taking one soon and if she is now, I may see Susan!

[idinarocksmysocks!510]

Posted: 7/24/05 at 4:45pm

Phantom rocks! I saw it onstage finally last summer in Baltimore because that was the closest place. (I live in VA). Glad you enjoyed it!

[pab]

Posted: 7/24/05 at 5:13pm

I'm happy that the stage production of "Phantom" has held up for most of you. I first saw it the year it opened and I last saw it in October and I'm afraid I can't share some of the enthusiasm for the show that has been posted in this thread.

I find it to be one of the weakest scripts on Broadway and the music to be so very repetitive.

Having seen the show a total of three times, due to various friends who wanted to go and see it, I was skeptical about seeing the movie but not wanting to judge the movie based on the show I purchased the DVD and I'm happy to say that, IMO, it's a much better film than it is a stage musical.

I would not discourage anyone from seeing the Broadway version as I believe it is worth seeing but if you can't get to Broadway I would recommend seeing the movie.

[neocomposer]

Posted: 7/24/05 at 5:16pm

thanks for that post, iflitifloat, i think everyone needs an afternoon like that. not only to be able to just enjoy a show, but also to look at things from different perspectives.

[Kelly]

Posted: 7/24/05 at 5:38pm

I’ll add one more ‘thank you’ because you’ve just changed my mind about seeing Phantom again. I used to be one of those semi-crazy Phans but things have changed quite a bit over the past few years! Anyway, I recently found out that my favorite Phantom, James Romick, will be covering for Hugh on August 3rd. I wasn’t planning to go but now, dammit, I will!