TheaterMania: As The Phantom of the Opera's time on Broadway comes to a close, it has once again become one of the hottest tickets in town, with patrons flocking to the Majestic Theatre to see Hal Prince's iconic original production one last time. For Phantom megafans – or "Phans," – the next couple of months may consist of crossing off any show-related bucket list items they have left.
3 comments:
It is so strange to me that Phantom of the Opera is finally coming to a close on broadway. I grew up with two shows being a staple of New York city theater which were Wicked and Phantom and now that one of those shoes is closing it cements at least in my mind how broadway is changing post pandemic. The thing I like about this article is it highlights how different your theater viewing experience can be from different places in the audience, with different casts or just on a different night which for me is at least some of the magic of live theater. I have only seen Phantom of the Opera once on tour where I saw it from the mezzanine but I would love to see it in the original theater if I had the chance which unfortunately I do Not. This article is a testament to how much the cast you see or place you sit changes your theatrical experience.
Theo
5. This list makes me wonder how long Phantom of the Opera would have lasted without some of its incredible special effects and automation, particularly the chandelier. It is still stunning in many other ways, but the chandelier-related activities take up a quarter of what is on this list. I would love to learn more about how Phantom managed to be a good investment. It seems like it would be a very expensive show to run, but it was clearly cheap enough to run until it became a household name. After that, the tickets really sell themselves. It gives me hope that there is room for shows with stunning special effects. I have been pretty disillusioned with that notion after seeing shows like Beetlejuice close because they are just too expensive, even when they seem like really wonderful productions. There is a really fragile balance you have to find in order to make it long-term on Broadway.
I love The Phantom of the Opera! The music, the costumes, the vocals, the scenery; it's all always so beautiful. I was heartbroken to hear that it will be closing soon. Phantom has been *PHANTOM* for mine and my generation's entire lives. With all of the negativity in the news the past three years, it's hard to add one more punch to the list. I love that a bucket list was made for Phantom, and I wonder how many people are going to/have already completed everything on the list. The first time I ever saw Phantom was when it came to Orlando several years ago. My family's seats were split where three were Center Orchestra and two were House Right. The chandelier coming down was one of the coolest things EVER. I remember my younger brother looked up during intermission and, not having noticed the chandelier come down during the act, screamed. I was annoyed at the time, but it's now one of my greatest memories. I know that my story didn't exactly take place on Broadway, but I'd like to think it still counts for the bucket list. Unfortunately, that's the only one I've checked off, but who knows, maybe I'll get a chance to see Phantom again before it closes.
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