The London production 1

I miss Phantom so much, and especially the London production. Haven't seen it since the summer of 2006. Bleeeh. My promise to myself:

I WILL visit London by the end of 2009. I will. I shall. And according to "the Secret", if I think that long enough, and visualise it in my head, it'll happen...

The Phantom's 23rd birthday at HMs is coming up shortly... hope Lindsay is getting tickets for us today!!

I've seen the new cast just once, with Nigel on as Phantom, so look forward to seeing the newbies again on 9 October, when they should all be well into their characters.

Can I just say a big thank you for getting another Phantom Phan Phorum up and running so soon!

Well I had one of my favourite reviews typed up on the old forum and stupidly forgot to save it... so all I will say is this:

Ramin is Ramin, pretty much know what to expect to him. Gina has got better again lately. Simon is great. Nicky as Giry is awful Emma as Meg is great. Barry is growing on me as Firmin. Gareth is good. Rohan is great and Rebecca is fantastic.

Yes it's not a true reflection but i am not going into all the detail I did before... so sad it's lost but thanks for a forum that will actually get monitored

Saw it on my birthday in August and it was mediocre to be honest! Ramin was okay, Robyn North desperately needed to leave and is not a patch on Gina Beck and everyone else looked a bit bored! The Broadway production is way better!

HerMajesty wrote:Saw it on my birthday in August and it was mediocre to be honest! Ramin was okay, Robyn North desperately needed to leave and is not a patch on Gina Beck and everyone else looked a bit bored! The Broadway production is way better!

Haven't seen the London production in years (three, to be exact), so I can't really judge - but can't you post a Broadway review in the Review section? Would be cool to read.

HerMajesty wrote:Saw it on my birthday in August and it was mediocre to be honest! Ramin was okay, Robyn North desperately needed to leave and is not a patch on Gina Beck and everyone else looked a bit bored! The Broadway production is way better!

I try and avoid seeing the show in July/August if I can, it's usually disappointing. I don't know if it's the summer heat or the company decides that the Japanese tourists who make up 98% of the audience won't care if it's not 100% up to scratch.

Would generally agree though re: Ramin and Robyn. I really like Gina though and hope she stays for longer. Definitely looking forward to seeing a new Phantom lead the company. With Phantom in the spotlight again with the arrival of the sequel, everyone should be working hard to make it the top-notch show it deserves to be. Not sure I'd go as far to say as B'way is way better -- John Cudia seems good but there are some really worn out cast members there! I'm just glad McGillin has finally left the building. No offence but no-one can stay with the show for THAT long and keep things as fresh as their first night.

How is the new frontage of HMs looking? Anyone got any pics? I still haven't walked past yet to have a look. Hope it's not as chick-targeted as it sounds like it is... I'd rather take the timeless black over the new purple with the overairbrushed mask.

I have pictures but not sure how to post them here? I really don't like the purple at all... only a matter of time before they make the cast board inside purple!

ruthy wrote:I have pictures but not sure how to post them here? I really don't like the purple at all... only a matter of time before they make the cast board inside purple!

Uh-oh, is it really that bad? You're scaring me now... I've been deliberately avoiding going there in case I don't like what I see. I can cope with the current posters (they're not that bad) but you're scaring me now re: the theatre signs. WTF is going on? Can we please stop messing around with Phantom? (in an ideal world we could time travel back to 2004 and try and eradicate some of the bad ideas of the last few years...). Still, it can't be as bad as that awful new logo they're using for the US Tour, surely?

Next I'll be hearing teenage girls in the audience who adore the purple saying how great it was that they decided to make a stage version of the 2004 film, but what a shame a certain Scot couldn't star in it. Oh wait, I've already heard that said.

You could upload them onto something like Photobucket and then link to it?

Any way we can let the RUG know how ugly it apparently is? After all, they did change the programme back to black after everyone complained...

Scorp wrote:
Next I'll be hearing teenage girls in the audience who adore the purple saying how great it was that they decided to make a stage version of the 2004 film, but what a shame a certain Scot couldn't star in it. Oh wait, I've already heard that said.

O.G's...

R.

I think it is that bad, all the hanging sings "Her Majesty's Theatre" and "Phantom of the Opera" are now purple with a sort of darker purple, I will try upload pictures in a minute. Also the "cast poster" is purple too!



Purple Cast Poster (Apologies for my reflection)



Bad Quality Picture of the Theatre at night, I personally don't like how much the purple stands out... it looks very "happy" to me.

ruthy wrote:I think it is that bad, all the hanging sings "Her Majesty's Theatre" and "Phantom of the Opera" are now purple with a sort of darker purple, I will try upload pictures in a minute. Also the "cast poster" is purple too!

WHYYYYYYYYYY purple???

Why not.... silver.... gold.... white... blue... even green (though hopefully not). But the purples and pinks really gets on my nerves. What are we, 12?

Excuse me but I like the new hanging signs! They really do catch the eye but it's not blatant or outrageous... it's just a nice colour as a background to the white wording... it looks as if the white words could be quite luminous at night.

Apologies for the huge pictures... and I don't know why it seems to have cut the right side of the picture...

And in my opinion I do not think the purple matches the rest of the outside of the theatre... I know people like it. And at night I think it looks worse but I guess some will look how obvious the purple is at night.

I can't decide whether I like it or not...but it certainly looks a bit different and really catch the eye

I actually like the purple, but i agree that it is a little overbearing. The black is classic, and thats what the show is!

I love purple in general and that's a rather lovely shade. But somehow, it doesn't do much for me there.

I do like the "silk" background. I almost did something like that in pale gray when I redesigned Hugh's site over the summer. Then I changed my mind and went with a plainer style.

I think I'd like a sort of rich, luminous black silk background on the Phantom signs...it would be more in keeping with the classic white mask/black background look...only updated and luxurious.

Something more like this...and this is just a rough copy-and-paste job.

Thanks for the pics!

I actually think the main poster itself looks fine and is eye-catching in a good way. Makes it a lot more noticeable from the other side of the street.

I'm less convinced about those hanging signs though -- somehow they look out of place and a little garish. They'd have been better left black, or at least with a darker purple. In the daylight it doesn't look too bad, though. Agreed that the silk background is a nice touch but should have been done in-keeping with the classic colour scheme. My main concern about the choice of purple is that it's targeting the theatre-equivalent-of-chickflick audience. OK, so I know that women make up a huge percentage of the Phan population, but this guy's interest at the age of 5 in Phantom was based around the gothic horror element, not lovey-dovey stuff.

Either way it's still a far sight better than that atrocious piece of rubbish used in the US Tour. Can't wait for them to stop using that.

Any pics of the Charles II St side?

Have they come out with new flyers yet or are they still circulating the 'London's Greatest Love Story' ones?

Scorp wrote:My main concern about the choice of purple is that it's targeting the theatre-equivalent-of-chickflick audience.

OK, now I know what the purple silk signs remind me of...they make me think of ads for Elizabeth Taylor's Passion perfume in the 1980s.

Still London's Greatest Love Story for the leaflets. I will have a look if I have pictures of Charles II side but the classic poster has been changed to "The Brilliant Original One" on that side.

I'm up in the air if I like the purple or not. Purple is a nice colour, but I could never really completely place it with Phantom simply because the classic black just worked. I didn't mind the redesign for the record breaking performance, but the newer broadway one they introduced back for the 20th anniversary made me want to help Paula in terms of getting a jumbo silver sharpie to draw all over the billboard they had. As for the purple... eh. I'm still wondering. It might grow on me, or I might just remain indifferent.

Not a fan of the purple.

Scorp wrote:

HerMajesty wrote:Saw it on my birthday in August and it was mediocre to be honest! Ramin was okay, Robyn North desperately needed to leave and is not a patch on Gina Beck and everyone else looked a bit bored! The Broadway production is way better!

I try and avoid seeing the show in July/August if I can, it's usually disappointing. I don't know if it's the summer heat or the company decides that the Japanese tourists who make up 98% of the audience won't care if it's not 100% up to scratch.

Would generally agree though re: Ramin and Robyn. I really like Gina though and hope she stays for longer. Definitely looking forward to seeing a new Phantom lead the company. With Phantom in the spotlight again with the arrival of the sequel, everyone should be working hard to make it the top-notch show it deserves to be. Not sure I'd go as far to say as B'way is way better -- John Cudia seems good but there are some really worn out cast members there! I'm just glad McGillin has finally left the building. No offence but no-one can stay with the show for THAT long and keep things as fresh as their first night.How is the new frontage of HMs looking? Anyone got any pics? I still haven't walked past yet to have a look. Hope it's not as chick-targeted as it sounds like it is... I'd rather take the timeless black over the new purple with the overairbrushed mask.

I saw Phantom on Broadway in February with low expectations and Howard McGillin was the best Phantom I have ever seen by an absolute mile - he was better than anyone I've seen in London and I've seen a fair few. The whole production looks so much better over there and I cannot wait to see it again in December!! I'm sad Howard McGillin has gone through, although it will be nice to see another American Phantom.

As for July/August, I don't really agree with that, I've seen plenty of decent shows in those months in the past, and equally have seen other crappy ones at other times. I just think they were desperate for a cast change. It's not really the show it used to be anyway, although there was a glimmer of home last December with Nic Greenshields, Gina Beck and co.

To be honest I went in June and July and beginning of August and the show was full of tourists (who were extremely noisy, no offence but it was so distracting I actually complained which I never do.) And the show didn't seem as good. I went on August 25th though to a lovely half full theatre and the show was fantastic (which I thought was odd... casts usually are better performing to a full theatre...) And by September the show was back to its best. I do think (this year anyway) there seems to be a bit of a "summer effect."

Eugh just seen the purple, it's awful! Bring back the black! It's probably to bring it in live with LND, euck! Also, Nicky Adams as Mme Giry? Interesting!

Nicky Adams is in a word... awful. Wish I could have went today as 2nd cover Giry was on!

ruthy wrote:Nicky Adams is in a word... awful. Wish I could have went today as 2nd cover Giry was on!

lol, she was horrendous and Christine so no wonder. Mind you I'm not surprised with all ciggies!

Oh that explains a lot. Her voice is rather... odd. Very deep and husky.

How do you have a career as a singer in this day and age if you smoke?

HerMajesty wrote:

ruthy wrote:Nicky Adams is in a word... awful. Wish I could have went today as 2nd cover Giry was on!

lol, she was horrendous and Christine so no wonder. Mind you I'm not surprised with all ciggies!

Glad I'm not the only one thinking so... Saw her when Katie Knight-Adams was principal, and I just disliked her with a passion (which one? Actually both... ). She did a lot of belting, which I thought was a bad singing choice for the Christine role, and her acting was beyond wooden.

But, I remember many PFN/POL members liking her when she was in the UK tour, so... Maybe she was better in the past?

That said, I will give her a chance as Madame Giry. A husky-voiced Madame sounds kinda cool, he-he.

operafantomet wrote:

HerMajesty wrote:

ruthy wrote:Nicky Adams is in a word... awful. Wish I could have went today as 2nd cover Giry was on!

lol, she was horrendous and Christine so no wonder. Mind you I'm not surprised with all ciggies!

Glad I'm not the only one thinking so... Saw her when Katie Knight-Adams was principal, and I just disliked her with a passion (which one? Actually both... ). She did a lot of belting, which I thought was a bad singing choice for the Christine role, and her acting was beyond wooden.

But, I remember many PFN/POL members liking her when she was in the UK tour, so... Maybe she was better in the past?

That said, I will give her a chance as Madame Giry. A husky-voiced Madame sounds kinda cool, he-he.

She was probably better when she was younger - like 30 years ago