New musical version opening in NYC

Any New Yorkers here fancy checking this out?


A NEW PHANTOM SERENADES THE PLAYERS THEATRE

An intimate production based on the original novel by Gaston Leroux
opens April 30th in the West Village

The first English translation of Gaston Leroux’s astounding novel The Phantom of the Opera was published in 1911, and since then it has provoked writers around the world to retell the story and to probe the mysterious man behind the mask. The latest creative team intrigued by the Phantom is Michael Sgouros (composer) and Brenda Bell (book and lyrics), whose new musical opens at the Players Theatre in the West Village on April 30th.

When asked how a petite production in the Village would compare to the Broadway version of Phantom, Ms. Bell replied that “Both versions are based on the novel by Gaston Leroux and feature many of the same characters, but the Players Theatre production focuses on the authentic story as Leroux relayed it in his novel and explores the passionate and personal relationships between those characters in greater detail. Most people have only a vague idea of the true story and that’s what audiences will see at our production, so expect a few surprises.”

The Players Theatre, revamped to under 200 seats to accommodate the viewable pit, offers audience members an intimate experience not possible in a large Broadway house. “On Broadway you are one of two thousand people, at the Players you’re one of two hundred,” commented Mr. Sgouros. The size of the house also contributes to the authenticity of the sound. No amplification -- a subject that has raised much controversy in the theater world -- is used in the production. The music is played live, in full view of the audience, allowing the acoustic sounds to be heard as they were meant to be without interference or adjustment.

The Players Theatre production, set in 1911, features Gaston Leroux as the narrator. As the curtain opens, Leroux has just completed his novel The Phantom of the Opera and invites the audience to join him as the story unfolds in his mind and on the stage. A cast of fourteen actors supports the storytelling as the play seamlessly revolves through artistic scenic impressions designed by Lex Liang. Each week a guest choir is featured, lending a full-bodied punctuation to the musical’s climatic first and second acts. The production is directed by the playwright, Brenda Bell, working alongside choreographer, Stefanie Smith,

“Phantom of the Opera” by Sgouros and Bell begins previews on April 9th and opens at the Players Theatre located at 115 MacDougal Street (between Bleecker and West 3rd) on April 30th for an open-ended run. Performances are Thursday – Saturday evenings at 7:30p and Thursday and Sunday matinees at 3p. Tickets range from $45-65 and can be purchased through Theatremania: https://www.ovationtix.com/trs/pr/680235or by calling 212-352-3101 or 1-866-811-4111. Tickets may also be purchased at the box office which opens at 11a daily.

SHOW WEBSITE: http://www.phantommusical.com
BLOG: http://www.chasingphantoms.com

Sounds really cool! I look forward to seeing production shots (and hopefully getting sound clips).

~LCD

Sounds really interesting, I wish I could see it. Interesting that they let Gaston Leroux be involved in the show by actually having someone to play him. And they've got "the Persian" and "Mama Valerius" as well, I like that.

Jean-Luc Godard said the only way to criticize a movie was to make another one...maybe the best way to criticize a, ahem, bad Phantom-related musical is with something like this.

ETA: There's a Facebook page with photos and YouTube links, but I'm having trouble linking...

Thoughts: I'm a little disappointed that, despite purporting to being drawn mainly from Leroux, they've gone with a brunette Christine and a younger, half-masked Phantom (with facial hair, something that I've never liked on the character). That said, I do actually kind of like the steampunk-y look to the mask. The rehearsal footage has a lot of dialogue lifted directly from the novel (and some nice crazy!Erik acting from the leading man), and what little they have of the music so far is nice enough. All in all, it doesn't look too bad.

~LCD

Leroux-based projects always tend to sound better than they are... I'm still waiting for that grand Leroux revelations in either film or stage work. But yeah, it does sound good so far (despite brunette Christine and halfmask Phantom).

Sounds pretty cool. I'm looking forward to reviews/footage.

R.

Trailer of sorts now up on YouTube: Clickety click! My thoughts?

Good:

~The music. Nothing like a good Kyrie to set an ominous, sinister mood.
~I've said it before and I know not everyone will agree with me, but I really like the look for the Phantom. It's unique--even though they went with the half-mask it's obviously not an off-the-rack ALW copy, and the shading on the left eye enhances the skull like effect. (He also appears to have shaved, which is nice.) Still rather young, though.
~The overall moody, dreamlike quality I'm getting so far. A lot of the individual shots (the ballet dancers circling Leroux, young Christine dancing with the scarf, Christine and the Phantom at the masquerade) are really evocative and make me want to see them in context.

Not So Good:

~The costumes are REALLY hit-and-miss, and betray the low-budget nature of the production. As I've said the Phantom looks pretty good, and the masquerade and ballet costumes aren't bad--but could we please get our leading lady a dress that doesn't look like it came off the nightgown rack at Goodwill? (Since it appears to be a dressing room scene, this might be intended to be the prison shift Christine wears as Marguerite, which makes it a little better but not much.) Also, why does Christine have short dark hair (which apparently was blonde when she was a kid)?
~The ballet dancers turning out and gasping in unison. No, don't...don't do that. [/Tenth Doctor]

~LCD

Eeeh... Looks a bit too low budged/high school for my liking. Though, I will of course not dismiss it based on a short video! But so far I'm not head over heels in love with it.

Hmmm... Isn't that the production where there are random clockwork gears glued to the Phantom's mask? I could live with the built-in monacle, but those pointless metal bits have got to go. That and the studded fingerless biker gloves. I'm all for steampunk, but only when done tastefully.

While I can make accomodations for lower budget productions, good grief, that black Victoria's Secret chemise thing looks completely out of place and cheap.

Meh, not in a hurry to go see it, but it's always interesting to see new productions.

ETA: The Phantom also needs a shave. I'm still scarred from Colm Wilkinson's performance in Hey, Mr. Producer!

~Madame~

Hmm, maybe I'll check this out. I was sent an email offer for $20 tickets. If I do, I'll let you all know what I think!

Whoa - looks interesting! Wish I could fly on over to NY and check it out, though with two trips to Michigan in the next month and a half I reeeally shouldn't. Not so sure about the mask. I love seeing different designs and interpretations of the Phantom, but I really think I would've liked to have seen a design closer to what Leroux described (i.e., a fuller black mask). But it might grow on me? Maybe? Hmmm, jury is out....

With little tweaking with the costumes, and maybe better lightning it would look great.
But the half-mask + Leroux!Erik =

I'm not sure about how successful this will be; I think there is too many Phantoms in the market.

Think I might check this out. My curiosity is peaked.

InkedAlchemist wrote:Think I might check this out. My curiosity is peaked.

You just nominated yourself a Desterted Phans reviewer for this show

R.

Raphael wrote:

InkedAlchemist wrote:Think I might check this out. My curiosity is peaked.

You just nominated yourself a Desterted Phans reviewer for this show

R.

No worries. Checked out the availability.. sold out mostly through to September. Will be ordering tickets soon.

InkedAlchemist wrote:Checked out the availability.. sold out mostly through to September. Will be ordering tickets soon.

Blech, that's disappointing (for me, anyway). I'm going out there in a couple of weeks and was hoping to see this. I probably won't get to see Broadway-POTO due to expenses (planning for grad school, a wedding/honeymoon, another state bar exam for the fiance.. :s ), but thought we might be able to check this out instead. Oh well, I'll check tickets periodically to see if that changes, but sadly it looks like I won't be able to go.

Becky wrote:

InkedAlchemist wrote:Checked out the availability.. sold out mostly through to September. Will be ordering tickets soon.

Blech, that's disappointing (for me, anyway). I'm going out there in a couple of weeks and was hoping to see this. I probably won't get to see Broadway-POTO due to expenses (planning for grad school, a wedding/honeymoon, another state bar exam for the fiance.. :s ), but thought we might be able to check this out instead. Oh well, I'll check tickets periodically to see if that changes, but sadly it looks like I won't be able to go.

I gave a quick look mostly on the days I would be able to go. One or two available days may have skipped by me. Definitely check any way... I may have missed something.

I always wondered what a scaled down version would look like. I just checked out the video and it looks...kind of sloppy. Unfair of me to judge so quickly, I know. But the whole thing looks kind of jacked.

ETA: Ok. Phantom Reviewer saved me some money and trouble. This thing looks like a total piece.