The most successful stage musical of all time, the Cameron
Mackintosh/Really Useful Group, Inc. production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera, directed by
Harold Prince, will be featured this week with television segments on both
NBC's Weekend Today and FOX-5's Good Day, New York.
The appearances are in connection with the musical becoming
the first show in Broadway history to reach its 20th Anniversary, an
unprecedented milestone that it will celebrate this Saturday, January
26th. On that date, the musical will
play its 8,318th and 8,319th performances at The Majestic Theatre (247 West 44th Street),
and become the first Broadway production ever to have played 20 years. The musical is already the longest-running
show in Broadway history.
This Friday, January 25 – the day before the milestone
anniversary – the musical will be featured with two segments on the popular
morning show Good Day, New York,
which airs weekday mornings on the New York/tri-state affiliate FOX-5. Two segments, at approximately 7:30 AM and
8:30 AM, will feature an exclusive look at how the on-stage boat is operated,
the hour-long make-up process for 'The Phantom' and interviews with stars
Howard McGillin ('The Phantom') and Jennifer Hope Wills ('Christine'). Having donned the mask in over 2,000
performances, Mr. McGillin has performed the title role more than any other
actor in the Broadway production.
On Sunday, January 27 – the day after the milestone
anniversary – the musical will be featured with a segment on the national
edition of NBC's Weekend Today. During
the 9 o'clock hour, the segment will profile five The Phantom of the Opera company members who have been with the
show all 20 years: cast member George Lee Andrews ('Monsieur André'; the only
cast member to have been with the Broadway production for its entire run),
usher Sylvia Bailey (an 82 year-old former dancer at The Roxy Theatre in New
York in the 1940s), flyman Jack Farmer, make-up supervisor Thelma Pollard and
stage doorman Wally Carroll.
The longest-running show in Broadway history (a feat it
achieved in January 2006 when it surpassed the then-record run of Cats), the musical is the winner of 7
1988 Tony Awards including Best Musical.
Since its Broadway debut on January 26, 1988, The Phantom of the Opera has grossed over $675 million, making it
the highest-grossing show in Broadway history.
Total New York
attendance is at 12.5 million. It has
since gone on to play over 8,000 performances – the only show in Broadway
history to do so – and all with no end in sight.
"Based on the classic novel 'Le Fantôme de L'Opéra' by
Gaston Leroux, The Phantom of the Opera
tells the story of a masked figure who lurks beneath the catacombs of the Paris
Opera House, exercising a reign of terror over all who inhabit it. He falls madly in love with an innocent young
soprano, Christine, and devotes himself to creating a new star by nurturing her
extraordinary talents and by employing all of the devious methods at his
command," explain press notes.
The Phantom of the
Opera stars Howard McGillin in the title role with Jennifer Hope Wills as
'Christine' and Tim Martin Gleason as 'Raoul.'
The musical also co-stars George Lee Andrews ('Monsieur
André'), David Cryer ('Monsieur Firmin'), Patricia Phillips ('Carlotta'),
Marilyn Caskey ('Madame Giry'), Wayne Hobbs ('Piangi') and
Heather McFadden ('Meg Giry'). At
certain performances, Elizabeth Loyacano plays 'Christine.'
