Phantom of the Opera is a musical with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber
and produced by Cameron Mackintosh. Based on the French novel Le Fantôme de
l'Opéra by Gaston Leroux, its central plot revolves around a beautiful
soprano, Christine Daaé, who becomes the obsession of a mysterious, disfigured
musical genius living in the subterranean labyrinth beneath the Opera Populaire.
The musical
opened on Broadway in 1988. It won the Tony Award for Best Musical, and Michael
Crawford (in the title role) won the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical. It
is the longest running show in Broadway history by a wide margin, and
celebrated its 10,000th Broadway performance on 11 February 2012, the first
production ever to do so. By 2011, it had been seen by over 130 million people
in 145 cities across 27 countries, and continues to play in London and New York.
By November 2016, Phantom had been staged over 12,000 times over 28
years
Maria Bjornson
designed the sets and over 200 costumes, including the elaborate gowns in the
"Masquerade" sequence. Her set designs, including the chandelier,
subterranean gondola, and sweeping staircase, earned her multiple awards.
Synopsis
In 1905 Paris,
the Opéra Populaire hosts an auction of old theatrical props. Among the
attendees is the Vicomte Raoul de Chagny, who purchases a papier-mâché music
box and eyes it sadly, remarking how the details are "exactly as she said.”
The auctioneer presents "a chandelier in pieces" as the next item up
for bid, alluding to a connection with "the Phantom of the Opera". As
the porters remove the drop cloth covering the fixture, it flickers to life and
ascends to the ceiling as the auditorium's former grandeur is restored
("Overture").
Act I
It is now 1881,
and the cast of a new production, Hannibal,
are rehearsing onstage when they learn that new owners, Firmin and André, are
taking over the Opéra Populaire. Carlotta, the Opéra's resident soprano prima
donna, begins to perform an aria for the new managers when a backdrop
inexplicably falls from the flies, barely missing her and prompting anxious
chorus girls to whisper, "He's here! The Phantom of the Opera!". The
managers try to downplay the incident, but Carlotta angrily insists that such
things happen all the time and she storms out. Madame Giry, the Opéra's
ballet mistress, informs Firmin and André that Christine Daaé, a chorus girl
and orphaned daughter of a prominent violinist, has been "well
taught" and can sing Carlotta's role. With cancellation of the sold out
show being their only other alternative, the managers reluctantly audition
Christine and are surprised to discover that she is indeed up to the challenge.
As Christine sings the aria during the evening performance, the Opéra's new
patron, Raoul, the Vicomte de Chagny, recognizes her as his childhood friend
and playmate ("Think of Me").
Backstage after
her triumphant début, Christine confesses to her best friend Meg (Madame Giry's
daughter) that she knows her mysterious teacher only as an invisible
"Angel of Music" ("Angel of Music"). Raoul pays a visit to
Christine's dressing room. The two reminisce about the "Angel of
Music" stories that her late father used to tell them and Christine
confides that the Angel has visited her and taught her to sing ("Little
Lotte"). Raoul indulges what he assumes are fantasies and insists on
taking Christine to dinner. When Raoul leaves to fetch his hat, Christine hears
the jealous Phantom's voice and she entreats him to reveal himself. The Phantom
obliges by appearing as a ghostly, partially masked face in her mirror
("The Mirror/Angel of Music (Reprise)"). Believing him to be the
Angel of Music sent by her deceased father, Christine is irresistibly drawn
through the mirror to the Phantom, who leads her down into the cellars of the
Opéra house. The two then board a small boat and cross a subterranean lake to
his secret lair ("The Phantom of the Opera"). The Phantom explains
that he has chosen Christine to sing his music and serenades her. When he
reveals a mirror that reflects an image of her in a wedding dress, the figure
in the mirror gestures to Christine and she faints. The Phantom then covers her
tenderly with his cloak ("The Music of the Night").
As the Phantom is
composing music at his organ, Christine awakens to the sound of the monkey
music box ("I Remember"). Overcome with curiosity, she slips behind
the Phantom, lifts his mask, and beholds his grotesquely disfigured face. The
Phantom rails at her prying gesture, as Christine hides in fear. He then
ruefully expresses his longing to look normal, and to be loved by her
("Stranger Than You Dreamt It"). Moved by pity, Christine returns the
Phantom's mask to him and the Phantom shepherds her back above ground.
Meanwhile, Joseph
Buquet, the Opéra's chief stagehand, regales the chorus girls with tales of the
"Opéra Ghost" and his terrible Punjab lasso ("Magical
Lasso"). Madame Giry arrives and warns Buquet to exercise restraint or
face the Phantom's wrath. In the managers' office, André and Firman read notes
from the Phantom aloud and are interrupted by Raoul, who accuses them of
sending him a note saying that he should make no attempt to see Christine
again. Carlotta and Piangi then burst into the office, demanding to know who
sent Carlotta a note saying that her days at the Opera Populaire are numbered.
As André and Firmin try to calm the distressed Carlotta, Madame Giry delivers
another note from the Phantom: he demands that Christine replace Carlotta in
the new opera, Il Muto, lest they face a "disaster beyond
imagination" ("Notes..."). Firmin and André dismiss the threat
and assure an enraged Carlotta that she will remain their star ("Prima
Donna").
The première of Il
Muto initially goes well, until the voice of the Phantom suddenly cuts
through the performance, enraged that Box 5 was not kept empty for him. As
Christine whispers that she knows the Phantom is near, Carlotta reminds her
that her role is silent, calling her a "little toad". The Phantom
states that it is Carlotta who is the toad and reduces Carlotta's voice to a
frog-like croak. Firmin quickly tries to calm the situation by telling the
audience that Christine will take over the starring role, moving forward the
ballet to keep the audience entertained. Suddenly, the corpse of Joseph Buquet
drops from the rafters, hanging from the Punjab lasso. Firmin and André plead
for calm as mayhem erupts and the Phantom's diabolical laughter is heard
throughout the auditorium ("Poor Fool, He Makes Me Laugh").
In the ensuing
chaos, Christine escapes with Raoul to the roof and tells him about her
subterranean encounter with the Phantom ("Why Have You Brought Me
Here?/Raoul, I've Been There"). Raoul is skeptical but promises to love
and protect her, and Christine reciprocates his vow ("All I Ask of
You"). The heartbroken Phantom, having overheard their entire
conversation, angrily vows revenge before returning to the auditorium and
brings down the chandelier, nearly killing Christine. ("All I Ask of You
(Reprise)").
Act II
Six months later,
in the midst of a masquerade ball, the Phantom makes his first appearance since
the chandelier disaster, in costume as the Red Death. He announces that he has
written an opera entitled Don Juan Triumphant and demands that it be
produced immediately, with Christine (who is now secretly engaged to Raoul) in
the lead role, and he warns of dire consequences if his demands are not met
("Masquerade/Why So Silent?"). Noticing an engagement ring on a chain
around Christine's neck, the Phantom angrily pulls it from her and vanishes in
a blinding flash of light. As the masquerade attendees scatter in fear, Raoul
accosts Madame Giry and demands that she reveal what she knows about the
Phantom. Giry reluctantly explains that the Phantom is actually a brilliant
scholar, magician, architect, inventor, and composer who was born with a
terrifyingly deformed face. Feared and reviled by society, he was cruelly
exhibited in a cage as part of a travelling fair until he eventually escaped
and disappeared. He has since taken refuge beneath the opera house, which has
now become his home.
During
rehearsals, Raoul – tired of the tyranny with which the Phantom rules the Opera
– thinks to use the première of Don Juan Triumphant as a trap to capture
the Phantom and put an end to his reign of terror once and for all. Carlotta
falsely accuses Christine of being the mastermind and that it is her plan so
she can be the star. Christine angrily defends herself, saying she is not the
Phantom's accomplice, but his victim. Raoul, knowing of the Phantom's obsession
with his fiancée, asserts that the Phantom will be sure to attend the opera's
première, and begs Christine to help him lure the Phantom into the trap
("Notes/Twisted Every Way"). Torn between her love for Raoul and her
fear of the Phantom, Christine visits her father's grave, longing for his
guidance but understanding that she must move on ("Wishing You Were Somehow
Here Again"). The Phantom appears atop the mausoleum, again under the
guise of the Angel of Music ("Wandering Child"), and sings to
Christine. Christine, tired and heartbroken, once again accepts her
"Angel" as a friend, nearly succumbing to the Phantom's influence,
but Raoul arrives to both rescue her and confront The Phantom. The Phantom
taunts Raoul, hurling fire balls at him until Christine begs Raoul to leave
with her ("Bravo Monsieur"). Furious, the Phantom declares war upon
them both and causes flames to spring up around the mausoleum.
With armed
policemen having secured the auditorium and watching for the Phantom, Don
Juan Triumphant premieres with Christine and Piangi singing the lead roles.
During Don Juan's and Aminta's duet, Christine comes to the sudden realization
that she is singing not with Piangi, but with the Phantom himself ("The
Point of No Return"). Mimicking Raoul's vow of devotion on the rooftop,
the Phantom once again expresses love for Christine and forces his ring onto
her finger; Christine rips off his mask, exposing his horrifically deformed
face to the shocked audience. The opera house is plunged into chaos. Piangi's
garroted body is revealed backstage, the cast and audience fly into a state of
panic, and the Phantom seizes Christine and flees the theatre. An angry mob,
vowing vengeance for the murders of Buquet and Piangi, searches the theatre for
the Phantom, while Madame Giry tells Raoul how to find the Phantom's
subterranean lair, and warns him to beware his magical lasso. ("Down Once
More/Track Down This Murderer").
In the lair,
Christine is forced to don a wedding dress. Raoul finds the lair and attempts
to persuade the Phantom to spare Christine, begging him to show compassion. The
Phantom refuses, and captures Raoul with the Punjab lasso. The Phantom tells
Christine that he will free Raoul if she agrees to stay with him forever, but
if she refuses, Raoul will die. Christine, heartbroken, tells the Phantom that
it is his soul that is deformed, not his face. As the Phantom and Raoul both
plead to her, Christine mournfully wonders what kind of life the Phantom has
known. She tells the Phantom that he is not alone and kisses him, showing him
compassion for the first time in his life. The Phantom, having experienced
kindness at last, understands that he cannot compel Christine to love him, and
sets them both free. Raoul hurries Christine out of the lair, but she returns
alone to give the Phantom back his ring. The Phantom tells Christine he loves
her, before she tearfully exits with Raoul. The weeping Phantom huddles on his
throne and covers himself with his cloak. The mob, led by Meg, enters the lair.
Meg pulls the Phantom's cloak from the throne, finding only his mask on the
seat. She lifts the mask up into the light and gazes at in wonder as the
curtain falls.
