Based on Gaston Leroux’s horror novel, The Phantom of the Opera tells the enticing story of a disfigured Phantom who haunts the depths of The Paris Opera House. Mesmerized by the talents and beauty of the young soprano Christine, The Phantom lures her as his protégé and falls fiercely in love with her. The Phantom's obsession sets the scene for a dramatic turn of events where jealousy, madness and passions collide. Audiences are in for a thrilling night of spectacle and romance, accompanied by Broadway’s most unforgettable score by Andrew Lloyd Webber, including "Music of the Night," "All I Ask of You," and "Masquerade." Directed by the late Harold Prince and produced by Cameron Mackintosh and The Really Useful Group, the musical opened on Broadway on January 26, 1988. It won seven Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and became the longest-running show in Broadway history on January 9, 2006.
The London audiences aren't wrong. 'The Phantom Of The Opera' is romantic musical theater hokum in the grand manner - hokum cordon blue - and it justifies the feverish buildup that has given it a $16,500,000 advance. It's good for a Broadway run of several years. Andrew Lloyd Webber has taken the Gaston Leroux potboiler about the love-crazed disfigured genius who lives in the catacombs of the Paris Opera and fashioned it into a thrilling and musically rich mass legit entertainment. The 19th century period spectacle, scenic legerdemain, soaring melodies and exceptional singing are at the service of an involving and piquantly offbeat love story, all of it staged with brilliantly organized flair by Harold Prince, back in top form.
It may be possible to have a terrible time at 'The Phantom of the Opera,' but you'll have to work at it. Only a terminal prig would let the avalanche of pre-opening publicity poison his enjoyment of this show, which usually wants nothing more than to shower the audience with fantasy and fun, and which often succeeds, at any price. It would be equally ludicrous, however - and an invitation to severe disappointment - to let the hype kindle the hope that 'Phantom' is a credible heir to the Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals that haunt both Andrew Lloyd Webber's creative aspirations and the Majestic Theater as persistently as the evening's title character does. What one finds instead is a characteristic Lloyd Webber project - long on pop professionalism and melody, impoverished of artistic personality and passion - that the director Harold Prince, the designer Maria Bjornson and the mesmerizing actor Michael Crawford have elevated quite literally to the roof. 'The Phantom of the Opera' is as much a victory of dynamic stagecraft over musical kitsch as it is a triumph of merchandising uber alles.
1988 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
1990 | US Tour |
1st National Tour US Tour |
1990 | Los Angeles |
Los Angeles Production Los Angeles |
1992 | US Tour |
2nd National Tour US Tour |
2006 | Las Vegas |
Las Vegas Production Las Vegas |
2021 | West End |
Original London Production West End |
Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
---|---|---|---|
1988 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Actor - Musical | Michael Crawford |
1988 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Actress - Musical | Sarah Brightman |
1988 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Choreography | Gillian Lynne |
1988 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Costume Design | Maria Bjornson |
1988 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Director - Musical | Harold Prince |
1988 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Featured Actress - Musical | Judy Kaye |
1988 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Lighting Design | Andrew Bridge |
1988 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Music | Andrew Lloyd Webber |
1988 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Musical | Phantom of the Opera |
1988 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Orchestration | Andrew Lloyd Webber |
1988 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Orchestration | David Cullen |
1988 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Set Design | Maria Bjornson |
1988 | New York Drama Critics Circle Awards | Best Musical | Charles Hart |
1988 | New York Drama Critics Circle Awards | Best Musical | Andrew Lloyd Webber |
1988 | New York Drama Critics Circle Awards | Best Musical | Richard Stilgoe |
1988 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Best Actor - Musical | Michael Crawford |
1988 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Best Broadway Musical | 0 |
1988 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Best Costume Design | Maria Bjornson |
1988 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Best Set Design | Maria Bjornson |
1988 | Tony Awards | Best Book of a Musical | Andrew Lloyd Webber |
1988 | Tony Awards | Best Book of a Musical | Richard Stilgoe |
1988 | Tony Awards | Best Choreography | Gillian Lynne |
1988 | Tony Awards | Best Costume Design | Maria Bjornson |
1988 | Tony Awards | Best Direction of a Musical | Harold Prince |
1988 | Tony Awards | Best Lighting Design | Andrew Bridge |
1988 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Cameron Mackintosh |
1988 | Tony Awards | Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre | Andrew Lloyd Webber |
1988 | Tony Awards | Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre | Richard Stilgoe |
1988 | Tony Awards | Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre | Charles Hart |
1988 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical | Michael Crawford |
1988 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical | Judy Kaye |
1988 | Tony Awards | Best Scenic Design | Maria Bjornson |
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