Review: PHANTOM at Arizona Broadway Theatre

David Appleford, BroadwayWorld Guest Contributor, says you’ll get swept up in the swell of Arizona Broadway Theatre’s production of PHANTOM.

By now, the phrase Phantom of the Opera conjures one thing: Andrew Lloyd Webber’s juggernaut, a chandelier-crashing, organ-blasting spectacle that has been haunting Broadway since the Reagan administration. But Maury Yeston and Arthur Kopit’s PHANTOM, currently at Arizona Broadway Theatre in Peoria until April 10, is an entirely different beast—lusher, more romantic. It plays like a grand old movie, the kind that knew how to sweep you up in its spell.

Like the Webber production, PHANTOM is based on Gaston Leroux's 1910 novel. Although it has never appeared on Broadway and has been overshadowed by the success of the giant 1986 musical, Yeston and Kopit's PHANTOM continues to be a regional favorite throughout the country, both here and overseas. 

And with good reason. Yeston’s score is plush, and the love story in Kopit’s book is still tragic enough to tug at the heartstrings. The bones of Gaston Leroux’s tale remain: there’s the deformed genius (Jamie Parnell) lurking beneath the Paris Opera House, the gifted ingénue (Sophia Masterson) he falls for, and the inevitable heartbreak that follows. But unlike its Broadway counterpart, this PHANTOM trades bombast for intimacy, grandeur for grace.

Where Webber’s Phantom character is an enigmatic specter, more symbol than man, Kopit and Yeston's version insists on making him flesh-and-blood, giving him not just a romantic yearning but also a father. Who knew - there’s a father! And in a show that leans harder into emotional realism than operatic grandeur, the father-son relationship provides the most genuinely moving moments of the evening. It’s a novel idea, even a compelling one, but it also domesticates the Phantom in a way that some Leroux purists might resist. In Yeston and Kopit’s world, he’s not so much an avenging angel of music as he is an extremely gifted recluse with a tragic backstory and a flair for mentorship.

Where Webber goes for Gothic drama, Yeston, whose previous works include Grand Hotel and Titanic, leans into melody. The show’s opener, Melodies de Paris, where Christine sings in the streets of Paris while selling sheet music from a mock stand sets the tone with its lilting elegance. You Are Music gives us a soaring love duet between the Phantom and Christine that actually earns its swell of emotion. Though the real showstopper is Home, delivered with breathtaking force by Masterson and Parnell. Their chemistry is immediate and effortless.

Ivana Martinic gives a deliciously hammy turn as Carlotta, the opera house’s diva (if you’re familiar with the Marx Brothers, think Margaret Dumont as a narcissist with a corset and a really bad temper).  Carlotta is a scene-stealing delight, mugging and preening with enough comic flair to make you almost wish the show was about her instead. James A. Rio brings a surprising, touching depth to Gerard Carriere, the Phantom’s protector, whose connection to the masked recluse is more than meets the eye.

Director Kiel Klaphake keeps the production gliding along at a brisk clip, steering clear of operatic excess and keeping the performances rooted in real feeling. Mark Foreman’s musical direction – both he and Adam Berger conduct the orchestra and play keyboard - highlights every nuance of Yeston’s score.

Joshua Sainz and Collin Stake’s sound design creates a clear audio path throughout the house where every spoken word and every song lyric are plainly heard. When the Phantom’s threatening voice booms from all corners of the theatre, leaping from side to side, from left speaker to right speaker, it’s like a home stereo-system test that haunts and chills. Morgan Anderson’s period costumes, paired with Jaron Hermanson’s atmospheric, evocative lighting, and Nate Bertone’s scenic design – aided by the ever-changing, eye-pleasing display of a large, digital backscreen - complete the picture.

There is a chandelier, and it drops. But the moment, over within seconds with a literal flash, feels more like a storytelling obligation than part of a tension-filled buildup to a moment of high drama. Instead, the show must rely on its performers to supply the grandeur. The production at ABT understands this.  Where Webber’s show uses the opera house as a massive Gothic playground, this version scales things down, emphasizing character over spectacle.

The thing to remember most about PHANTOM is this: it has emotion and heart. A big, slightly naive heart, beating loudly beneath all the theatrical trappings. Whether that’s enough for audiences depends on what you want or expect from your Phantom of the Opera. If as a patron you crave opulence, Webber’s version still reigns supreme. But if you’d rather look behind the mask and find a man instead of a myth, this PHANTOM will seduce you.

Ultimately, the show may not have Broadway’s brand-name recognition, but who needs it when you have a show this elegantly wrought and with such satisfying high-production values? The music soars, the romance lands, plus, keep this in mind - ABT is also a fine dinner theatre; the salmon was superb.

PHANTOM runs through April 10th at Arizona Broadway Theatre in Peoria, AZ.

Arizona Broadway Theatre ~ https://azbroadway.org/ ~ 7701 W. Paradise Lane, Peoria, AZ ~ 623-776-8400

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