~*~The Phantom of the Opera and other musicals thread~*~

Hey everyone! Discuss your favorite characters of POTO and other Broadway musicals (Cats, Les Miserables, Jesus Christ Superstar, etc...), your favorite version of the production, your experiences (or non-experiences, in my case) of seeing them, whatever you like that relates to any musical you might have seen or are dying to see!

Cheers,
Lady Alisas Silverleaf




This isn't a forum for fanclubs, so I'm taking out the "appreciation" part of the title.

 

I was going to go to a midnight showing of Rocky Horror Picture Show last night, but my friends didn't have enough room in the car, so i was booted out. I haven't gotten a chance to go to Broadway, but oneday i will.

As for experiences: I do plays in my High School and I just finished the amazing one called "Con Amore" that was written here in Rhode Island. It's so funny and i loved doing it. Now, I'm doing the play version of the Rodgers and Hammerstein's "Carousel".

I used to hate singing in front of people, but now, I love it. We constantly fool around at rehursals. Faking accents, faking fights and even breaking into song in public. No one else understands why we give up so much free time to do this, but it's worth it to sit back and watch the tape and think "Wow, i did that." There's really nothing else like being part of a play or a musical.

Edit: Here's something to discuss: if you could be in one musical, what would it be?
For me, either Singing in the Rain(my friends and i did the Moses Toses thingy before in front of the cast) or Moulin Rouge

 

I lucked out and had a chance to see both POTO and Cats on Broadway.
While Cats was awsome... I was also like 12...lol. Love the music though.

As far as POTO... well... I got to see it with Crawford and Brightman in the lead roles. ( huge gloat) ( wink)... It was mind blowing!!!! BY far my fav to see live, but after Crawford Left and the Lead from Les Miz( also amazing) came in, I kinda lost interest in seeing it live again. Granted... The guy from Les Miz is wonderful, but having first heard him as Jean... Can't really see him any other way. I have to admit that if I could have gotten tickets to see the role done by Paul Stanley... I would have taken them.

I am hoping to see Jesus Christ Superstar with Bach when it comes to town. (have to talk hubby into it... he doesn't like musicals) Hubby did however say he would think about seeing POTO... have to find out who will be singing this time.

 

ive seen Cats 28 times, the people at the theater know me by name

 

Les Miserables is my personal favorite. Unfortunately, I'm out of the NY area and won't be back until after its run ends. I also liked Miss Saigon.

Would love to see Dance of the Vampires.

 

I personally like the works of Stephen Sondheim, but I doubt anyone else here has heard of him or his music. He's a brilliant and witty lyricist, and he has a knack for composing catchy melodies.

His subject matters do tend to be a bit mature, though, so i'm thinking that not many of you have probably heard of him.

Incidentally, my favorite play of his is "A Little Night Music.

 

I love Sondheim! You can't be into musicals with at least knowing who Sondheim is! If you like his stuff, grab a copy of "Putting it Together". It's a really well done Sondheim Revue. "A Little Night Music" is fun because all of the songs are done in 3/4.

I tend to hate the musicals everyone likes and fall in love with others. IMHO, Cats, Les Mis, and Phantom need to die a horrible broadway death. And The Producers needs to go with them. I loved Sunset Blvd., Jekyll and Hyde, Blast, the new Music Man. I can't wait to see Aida and Movin' Out is on my list too.

 

Good to see I've got so much positive (and then some) feedback for this thread. When I first started it I just hoped I had started it in the right place. But Java, when you mentioned the guy from Les Miz, were you talking about Colm Wilkinson, the Canadian Phantom? He was absolutely amazing with Rebecca Caine in the OCC, but I can't say I've heard much of Micheal Crawford's stuff as the Phantom. However, I've heard nothing but good things about him, like him having a WICKED laugh and so on and so on.

Ooooh, and if I were to be in a musical, I can think of many I'd love to be in, (Les Miz, POTO, Cats, all of those) but I'd also love to be in Moulin Rouge. I agree, there is nothing like being in a musical, even working backstage. All that energy!

Lady Alisas Silverleaf

 

At POTO I met my wife to be. We really hadn't talked before then, but that magical night the music and majesty of it all started out love afair. " All I Ask of You" is still our song.

 

Oh, I love musicals. I really love all of Disney's Broadway shows. I saw Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King in New York and saw Aida when it was in town last week.

BTW, I sarted a Phantom of the Opera thread a while back. It's somewhere in the Amphitheatre.

 

Speaking of musicals, nobody has mentioned the quintesental modern american musical...RENT!

Rent is by far my favorite musical because of its themes of living each day to the fullest and the power of friendship and love. It's a heartbreaking tale woven behind the gritty Alphabet district in NYC.

Viva La Vie Boheme!

 

USA Today article about musicals being turned into movies

An interesting article. It mentions POTO ans Cats along with many others.

 

Interesting! Is there any talk about who they might be considering for each role? I heard Ewan McGregor might play Raoul!

Lady Alisas Silverleaf

 

One of my friends LOVES "Rent" i've been wanting to see it for a while. Did anyone here about the "Star Wars: The Musical"? I might be going to see it this weekend.

 

That's so cool! I heard that that was a great musical, although I never saw it myself. What's it about?

 

My thread is dying!!! Isn't there anyone out there who likes POTO or any other musicals? CHICAGO was good, I thought...

 

I love all musicals. My favorite is definitely Rent. I memorised all the words to it. My next favorite would be 42nd Street, I'm a bit impartial due to the tap dancer in me. Chicago was great too, I was lucky enough to see the Original Broadway Cast with Marilou Henner (sp?).

If I could be in any musical I would choose whatever came at me first, my preferences would be the three I listed above and Moulin Rouge! I love, love, love that movie!

 

JediBeowulf.. that was a bit.. umm... elitist; thinking that because people tended to post about more commercially appealing musicals doesn't mean we have no class. Sondheim is very well known, more critically acclaimed than commercial to be sure though

I happen to adore a lot of Sondheim's works, and have sung a few pieces myself. They tend to be also much more difficult, I wish I Could Forget You is a wonderfully georgeous and sophisticated song with wonderful key and time changes

Mystery of Edwin Drood is a fun musical with some haunting songs (Moonfall has to be one of the best soprano songs written) and a lot of Music hall numbers throuwn in.

NINE is amazing in that it was written for a cast made up of only women besides the lead, Guido Contini, his younger self and a small chorus of boys, who get to do very little

 

In the play Aida, I really liked the egyptian princess

 

I am a huge follower of musicals (probably because I was a theatre major...well wait, I went to my first one long before I was in college so maybe I became a theatre major b/c of it!)

POTO was the first "mainstream" musical that I saw and it remains as one of my top 5 favorite "mainstream" shows along with Jekyll and Hyde, Miss Saigon, Les Miserables, and Rent.

My two favorite musicals (The Secret Garden, and Romance Romance) are lesser known ones but IMHO are two of the best I have ever seen (or worked on for that matter!)

I really enjoyed the movie version of Chicago and hope that it helps to continue opening the door for more movie musicals!

 

Upping this a bit.

 

Lovely thread!
Check my prfile and you'll see why

Funny that Sondheim was mntioned. I'm listening to "copany" right now. I love it.

My fav, I don't know, but RENT is extrordinary. And I love the LION KING.

I actually stared in A Chorus Line during the past year so I have developed a love for that show

What's this about a "star wars: The musical"? I've heard nothing of it.

 

I absolutely love "The Phantom of the Opera." Probably the only Broadway show Edith can take me to.