Phantom News - April 2014 Edition

Greetings, all!

As I mentioned in my last post, there's been quite a bit of exciting news related to POTO in recent months. One big one is that there's a Kickstarter page by a small studio working on an animated POTO film based mainly on Gaston Leroux's novel. I'm really interested in seeing how this turns out. They're trying to raise funds and make some changes and adjustments to make it even more faithful – they've even taken some advice from Phans to make their depictions of certain characters and settings more accurate. If you'd like to see what this project's all about, check out the website and view the trailer! I highly encourage you to try to contribute if you're able, as well.

There's also been some very exciting news from the Broadway production of the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical. Last month, it was announced that Norm Lewis, who recently starred in Porgy and Bess and played Inspector Javert in the 25th anniversary concert of Les Misérables, will be taking over as the principal Phantom on Broadway starting on May 12th. Norm will be the first African-American actor to play the Phantom on Broadway. There had been two other black Phantoms previously -- Robert Guillaume played the role in Los Angeles in 1990 (immediately following Michael Crawford), and Nicholas Nkuna understudied the part in the World Tour when it played in South Africa in 2012. In any case, though, Norm will be making history in New York, and I couldn't be happier; I know he's been wanting to play the Phantom for quite a while now, and I think he's a fantastic performer. Also on May 12th, Sierra Boggess will be returning as principal Christine; she famously played Christine in the filmed 25th anniversary concert in London, and also played the role in Las Vegas in 2006 and on Broadway for the 25th anniversary performance there last year. Amusingly, Norm and Sierra had starred in The Little Mermaid (as King Triton and Ariel, respectively). Check out a video interview with Norm done on ABC's World News, as well as a clip where he practices "Music of the Night" with the composer at the piano, and an article with the Daily Beast where he talks about issues of race in musical theatre. I'll be posting my own thoughts on those kinds of issues in the near future.

Finally, the new US Tour is going around the country now and has gotten a wide range of reactions. As I mentioned this tour is quite different from the older tours that some of you may have seen; the sets and costumes were changed, as was the stage direction. After reading reviews from several professional critics and Phans, I'm personally not as keen on the tour as I had been previously, but I'd still be interested in seeing at least a full video to see how the production works as a whole.

In any case, those are some of the big things going on in the world of Phantom right now. Hopefully, good news will keep coming!


I remain your obedient servant,
I.A.E.

Phantom From the East

Greetings once again, Phans!

Alas, a new year is upon us, and with it comes another anniversary or several -- this time, my 4th anniversary of seeing the ALW musical live for the first time (on January 3rd) and the 25th anniversary of the Broadway production (which will be celebrated with a special performance starring Hugh Panaro as the Phantom and Sierra Boggess as Christine). In my case, it's also been a time for me to play catch-up with some POTO versions that I hadn't seen before.

Ode to a Film Phantom

Robert Englund is one of my favorite horror film actors of all time. His movies, regardless of their quality compared to each other and to others in the genre, have always entertained me. Of course, he's most famous for playing Freddy Krueger in the Nightmare on Elm Street series (the most recent remake notwithstanding). It's his 1989 version of The Phantom of the Opera, however, that holds a special place in my heart.

This version of Phantom was directed by Dwight H. Little and starred Englund as Erik Destler, Jill Schoelen as Christine Day, Stephanie Lawrence as Carlotta, Alex Hyde-White as Richard, and Bill Nighy as Carlotta's lover. As the names suggest, this is not a straight-up adaptation of Leroux's novel. Rather than the Paris Opera House, this story takes place in Victorian-era London. Well, the bulk of it, anyway -- there's also a bit set in modern times with a sort of reincarnation/time-travel plot device to connect the two eras. In some ways, that aspect is similar to Bram Stoker's Francis Ford Coppola's Dracula, but in my view, the film overall seems to have more in common with John Badham's criminally underrated version of the classic vampire's story (which starred Frank Langella as the Count). Both are very different from the original novel in terms of plot, yet they evoke the mood and atmosphere of their respective books in a way that's perhaps more faithful than the vast majority of other adaptations.