Phantom of the Opera discussion

Toronto tapped as likely 'tryout' city for Phantom sequel: report
Last Updated: Tuesday, March 17, 2009 | 9:59 AM ET Comments4Recommend9CBC News
Andrew Lloyd Webber has said he wants to premiere the sequel to his massive hit The Phantom of the Opera in multiple cities around the globe, but Toronto could be the musical's "tryout" city, according to a report by industry publication Playbill.

Citing leaked casting notices for the British theatre mogul's musical Love Never Dies, Playbill.com reported that Webber has nabbed Tony Award-winning choreographer Jerry Mitchell for the project and that rehearsals are tentatively set to begin this August, in preparation for an October opening.

"Due to the ambitious nature of this production, which will premiere in London and New York in the same season, exact opening dates and cities cannot be confirmed at this time. However, it's confirmed that rehearsals will take place in London prior to an out-of-town tryout, probably in Toronto, before opening on Broadway," read the leaked notice.

Leading Toronto theatre company Mirvish Productions, currently running Lloyd Webber's The Sound of Music revival, would likely be the local partner, but the company has declined comment.

Sequel set a decade later, across the Atlantic
Love Never Dies is set in Coney Island about a decade after the tumultuous events of the Paris-set The Phantom of the Opera.

In the sequel, a mysterious Maestro invites now-famous opera singer Christine Daaé to perform a special, one-off concert at the New York-area park. She travels there with her husband, Raoul, and her son, Gustave.

"[T:]heir subsequent meeting with the Maestro brings the cataclysmic events of 10 years earlier at the Paris Opera crashing back into all their lives," the casting notice said.

Ben Elton, who created the musical We Will Rock You and collaborated with Lloyd Webber on The Boys in the Photograph, is the librettist for Love Never Dies. Director Jack O'Brien and lyricist Glenn Slater have also signed on.

Iranian-born, Toronto-raised actor Ramin Karimloo, currently portraying the Phantom in London's West End revival, is rumoured to be a frontrunner being considered to star in the upcoming sequel.

Since its 1986 debut, Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera has been seen by millions of people in more than 100 countries around the globe.

The Phantom of the Opera's original Toronto run was a watershed moment in the city's theatrical evolution. It helped usher in an era of blockbuster musicals, played for a solid 10 years and toured across Canada.


http://www.cbc.ca/arts/theatre/story/...

My daughter's college music class discussed this. There seems to be quite the mixed feelings about how successful it will be.

UniquelyMoi *~*Dhestiny*~* wrote: "My daughter's college music class discussed this. There seems to be quite the mixed feelings about how successful it will be."

I loathed the source material and, am sorry to say, will not even bother to see the show as a result.

I don't know enough about it to even begin to have an opinion. But generally speaking, I find "sequels" to be lacking.

I do not like the basic plot of LND, but I would kill to see it just to watch Ramin as the Phantom. From what I have seen of him in videos and promos, he is a very powerful performer. I do love some of the music, but my opinion is that they have veered too far away from the original characters, which compromises the story's believability.

Does the sequel pick up where the original left off? Is it "Phantom's" story, so to speak?

It supposedly picks up where the original left off, but the events that follow really don't make sense. I will be happy to post spoilers if people want to know ;)

Also, last month the show went *dark* for 4 days to install significant changes in the plot, script, music, and staging. The show being seen now is very different from the show that opened last spring.

Oooho.... so they didn't get much positive feedback and decided to switch things up!

I wonder if it will be in movie format also. Not likely if it doesn't get better reviews!

I doubt that a movie version is in LND's future. The hope was that it would make the trip to Broadway, but that now seems to be a distant possibility, if at all. Meanwhile, Ramin just tweeted that his last show with the London production is March 5. A new cast will be taking over.

Hmmm..... that's a shame. But making a sequel to such a favorite requires a lot of things come together to make it work. The name alone won't carry it.

UniquelyMoi *~*Dhestiny*~* wrote: "Does the sequel pick up where the original left off? Is it "Phantom's" story, so to speak?"

I think that this will answer all of your questions (my 1-star review is there): The Phantom of Manhattan

Well TPOM is different though, because it uses characters that are not even in LND. There are some similar plot elements, but LND doesn't really follow POM. Vickie has actually seen the show, so perhaps she'll chime in on this discussion.

I do know that many long time fans of the original ALW POTO despise LND.

I agree with you Paisley about LND. I think it ruins all that was so wonderful about POTO. I loved the idea that Erik would not harm Christine when they were alone in the lair, even though he loved her so much. To me, that shows REAL love and a REAL man. Too much today has to infuse sex into everything. They took away the beautiful purity of the movie and play. I also hated what they did to Raoul. And to the Girys. To make them into totally different people than the original was to me, a sacriledge. And gentle little Meg a murderer???No way. However, some of the songs are lovely, I will admit.

*raises hand* And I'm a long time fan of the original who LOVES LND. *grins*

LND is quite different from TPOM. They're vaguely similar because TPOM was originally going to be the sequel, but ALW has said he just couldn't get the story to work- it didn't feel right. So he shelved the project and the guy he'd been working on it with turned it into the book most of this fandom seems to love to hate. Since returning to the project, ALW has scrapped a lot of what he felt didn't work with TPOM and found the story that feels right to him. Given that his original is ultimately his own version/adaptation of this wonderful multi-facted story, the fact that he's proud of the work he's done with LND is good enough for me.

That and the music rocks!

I will respectfully dissent from those who are excited about the sequel. The significant departures from Leroux's original characters (and the entire point of compassionate redemption in the original ALW version) are completely done away with in LND and TPOM. The wonderful thing about life is that we are by no means required to agree with one another. :-)

I totally agree with Vicki.I for one am very open minded.. would I see the sequel? sure..would I like it? who knows..Im like Vicki I would be absorbed in the characters,music, and it wouldnt change how I feel about the original version. Some of us can look beyond certain things and just enjoy whats in front of us..and your right Vicki we do need to respect each others opinions in the POTO group..what maybe good for one is not always good for other..but lets not spoil it for those who have yet to make their own decision.Lets offer our thoughts & opinions in a respectable manner.

I haven't seen the sequel, and I might consider it since everyone says the music is great, but I rarely find a sequel I like quite as much as the original. I'm planning on reading TPOM soon, and while everyone thinks it's a horrible followup to POTO, I'm willing to give it a shot. It's hard to stay loyal to an original while developing your own story line. I think no matter what, though, good or bad, no sequel will make me love the original any less.

I actually thought TPOM wasn't that bad. It wasn't all that good, but I didn't loathe it the way some people seem to. To each their own, I suppose.