Phantom of the Opera, Paramount Theatre

Dark romance. Yearning with a healthy dash of stalking. Extravagant sets. Beautiful music that stands on its own. Phantom of the Opera has been seducing fans for almost 40 years! While I love Phantom of the Opera and listen to the music regularly, this is only the thirdish time I’ve seen it. I last saw it 11 years ago.  (I very much regret that I never saw it in New York.) There are certainly some changes in staging from the last version, but after 11 years, my memory is a little hazy. This is a 40 year old show based on a classic book that has several movie versions. I’m going to assume you know the story. Spoilers ahead!

The current production is spectacular, so extravagant, everything  Phantom should be. Small, minimalist shows have their place, but extravagant, lavish productions are my favorite. It is obvious this production spent some serious money on the staging. The cast is huge! There’s a legit ballet corps. There were so many lush, detailed sets with period costumes, I lost count.  The three different and distinct opera sets!  The masquerade! I would love to attend that masquerade. But my favorite set was the roof of the opera house. I really felt like I was there. So romantic.

I was really impressed with the design and blocking of many scenes. I really felt the artistry and thought that went into creating how the scenes were performed. The dressing room scene, the rooftop scene, all the opera scenes, especially the last opera scene with Point of No Return.

There were a number of technical details to build the horror the Phantom was causing. There were speakers around the theater, so the audience could hear the Phantom’s threats in surround sound.

Finally, the chandelier. I was sitting in the third row and it “fell” down right above me. While it was a controlled fall, it did shake a little. Quite effective.

All of the performers were great. Phantom is my favorite character, and Isiah Bailey was outstanding. I found his acting quite strong, by turns menacing and romantic. And his shock, brief hope and ultimate acceptance at the very end was quite moving. But the success of Phantom of the Opera rests on a good Christine. Jordan Lee Gilbert delivered. She is a trained opera singer and her experience came through in the performance. From an acting perspective, she came off as truly torn between Phantom and Raoul, and even knowing the ending, I wondered what she was going to do right up into the end. Special call out to Carlotta. I loved her. My only small complaint is with Raoul. His voice was great and he was quite handsome. But he came off a little more predatory than in other versions and his romance with Christine felt rushed.

It’s probably too late to catch this run, the entire run was sold out. But I encourage you to catch this in a future run, if not this run in another city.