David Arnsperger to Replace Brent Barrett Due to Injury in PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, Beginning Tonight in Germany

Broadway and Vegas star Brent Barrett will not perform the title role in Andrew Lloyd Webber's PHANTOM OF THE OPERA at Germany's Stage Metronom Theater in Oberhausen due to an injury. David Arnsperger will step in for the role.

On Barrett's Facebook page, he says (translated in English):

"I'm crushed by this accident. I can hardly wait for my recovery to return part of this great ensembles to be involved and wish you all the best for the exciting weeks, which is in front of them." For the premiere on 12. November, David Arns Perger for the title role. The singer who already in Hamburg the role of the phantoms alternating has played at the moment, is located on a tour of the Welsh National Opera by the United Kingdom. There, he plays the title role in Stephen Special Home Musical Sweeney Todd. David Arns Perger, the role of the scheduled in March 2016, on his premieres obligation: " I am very sorry for Brent Barrett. But since I this incredible role will take over from March, is the premiere for me an early Christmas present."

Joining David Arnsperger will be Elizabeth Welch, who appeared in the Broadway production, as Christine Daaé, and Max Niemeyer (who was last seen in the Hamburg production of PHANTOM) as 'Raoul'.

Elizabeth Welch comes directly from Broadway to Oberhausen. There, she played the role of Christine Daaé, a role she reprised on tour in the U.S. She has also played 'Cosette' in LES MISERABLES, 'Belle' in Disney's BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, 'Maria' in WEST SIDE STORY, and 'Anna' in THE KING AND I. Welch began her career in opera and spent a lot of time in Germany and Austria, where she appeared as 'Susanna' in THE MARRIAGE OF FIGARO, as 'Feodora' in DER OPERNBALL, and as 'Adina' in L'ELISIR D'AMORE. Two more of Elizabeth's favorite roles were 'Despina' in COSI FAN TUTTE and 'Olympia' in THE TALES OF HOFFMANN.

Baritone David Arnsperger was born in 1982 in Freiburg, Germany. He studied Musical Theatre at the Berlin University of the Arts (UdK) where he graduated with honors in 2007. In 2005 he won the first prize at Germany's national singing competition „Bundeswettbewerb Gesang". Awarded a scholarship by the WestLB (West German State Bank), he continued his studies in 2007 at the Musical Theatre Department of the Royal Academy of Music London. Later the same year he applied for studies in Gesang/Musiktheater (classical singing) also at the UdK Berlin, where he received his Bachelor of Arts in the summer of 2010 after winning the second prize at the Lotte Lenya Competition in Rochester, New York, USA.

His engagements include Phantom in The Phantom of the Opera (Neue Flora, Hamburg), Rocky in ROCKY - The Musical (Operettenhaus, Hamburg), Jekyll/Hyde in Jekyll & Hyde (Theatre Kassel), Joe Gillis in Sunset Boulevard(Theatre Klagenfurt), Munkustrap in CATS (German language European tour), Don Alfonso in Così fan tutte (E-Werk Berlin), Bottom in A Midsummer Night's Dream (UniT Berlin) and Ché in Evita (Theatre Hagen).

In theatre school in Hamburg, Max Niemeyer participated in numerous theater and musical productions. He later appeared as a swing with MOZART! - THE MUSICAL in Hamburg and in DANCE OF THE VAMPIRES in Stuttgart and in Hamburg, where he took over the role of 'Alfred' in alternation. He then toured Germany as a soloist with Musical Fieber. Niemeyer has starred onstage in REBECCA, RUDOLF - AFFAIRE MAYERLING, ICH WAR NOCH NIEMALS IN NEW YORK, MUSICAL CHRISTMAS, MUSICAL FOREVER 2 and ELISABETH. As part of the Vienna Festival, he took over the role of Product Manager for the world premiere of the opera JOIN! He also participated in a run of Purcell's THE FAIRY QUEEN (N. Harnoncourt) at the Styriarte Festival and played the role of 'Old Shatterhand' in THE TREASURE OF SILVER LAKE at the Austrian Karl May Festival in Winzendorf. He returned to PHANTOM OF THE OPERA as a swing last summer in Hamburg.

THE CAST:

The Phantom - David Arnsperger
Christine Daaé - Elizabeth Welch
The Phantom alternately - Nicky Wuchinger
Christine Daaé alternately - Daniela Braun
Raoul de Chagny Vicomte - Max Niemeyer
Carlotta Giudicelli - Susan Gouthro
Monsieur André - Guido Gottenbos
Monsieur Firmin - Anton Rattinger
Ubaldo Piangi - Raymond Sepe
Madame Giry - Michaela Christl
Meg Giry - Ilenia Azzato

The ensemble (in alphabetical order): Kerstin Bauer, Eva Maria Bender, Gabriele Ceriotti, Enrique Corona, Giulia Cresci, Joana Estebanell-Milian, Marco Fahrland-Jadue, Juliette Fehrenbach, Joelle Gates, Christina Gibbs, Yukina Hasebe, Tobias yoke, Eline de Jong, Marcel Jonker, Elena Lucas Mark Luykx, Annemarijn Maandag, Vasilios Manis, Katharina Meissner, Miki Nakamura, Lemuel Pitts, Esther Puzak, Una Reynolds, Joan Ribalta, Marc floppy, Joseph Stewart, Anastasia Stojko, Christian Theodoridis, Milan van Weelden, Elpiniki Zervou, Dietmar Ziegler, and Andrew Zubchevskyi.