Phantom of the Opera
This West End spectacular more than deserves its classic status
Evening Standard
Why see Phantom of the Opera?
Help Me Make The Music Of The Night...
Way back in 1986, Andrew Lloyd Webber's masterpiece, a wild and major romantic fantasy based on the 1910 novel by Gaston Leroux, opened in the West End. Whilst Webber and his collaborators hid at a bar around the corner awaiting the reviews, audiences immediately took to the epic rock opera and the tale of the tortured Phantom, played by Michael Crawford, their ecstatic reaction cementing the musical in pop culture forever.
More than three decades since its debut, Phantom continues to captivate audiences at Her Majesty's Theatre. This iconic production, known for its distinct electric hair-metal synth sound, has firmly established itself as one of the West End'sand the world'smost successful shows. Thanks to its consistently high production values and stunning theatrical effects, it has sustained its allure, enchanting an estimated 140 million spectatorsnearly double the British population!
As well as picking up 11 Olivier Awards throughout the years, Phantom has also received international accolades including seven Tony Awards on Broadway, five Mo Awards in Australia, and even its own Hollywood adaptation.
Whether you're a returning Phan already aware of the thrilling events to come, or a Phantom innocent like Christine, there is always something for everyone in the opera-meets-fairy tale-spectacular.
What is the story?
Hidden in tunnels deep below the Paris Opera, there lies a mysterious deformed musical genius who stalks the halls and terrorizes the company. Grotesquely deformed, his face half-covered by his famous mask, his only happiness comes from his obsessive nighttime tutoring of the beautiful, orphaned chorus girl Christine Daae. Unseen, he teaches the young soprano to sing 'The Music of the Night.' Under the tutelage of her invisible 'Angel of Music', Christine blossoms, and steps out of the chorus and into the spotlight.
When Christine becomes engaged to another man, the Phantom is driven mad with jealousy and will stop at nothing to possess her, even murder. And so begins a tantalizing tale of forbidden love and supernatural adventure that will keep you in its clutches long after the last bar.
Did you know?
Could the Phantom be more than just a myth? Gaston Leroux's book is based on popular theories about the eerie Palais Garnier (The Paris Opera), some of which include a fatal but unexplained accident with a lavish chandelier in 1896, and the story of a grand and well-stocked lake said to lie deep in its foundations...
Key Information
Audience
Run Time
Dates
Upcoming Performances
Cast
- Dean Chisnall as the Phantom
- Joanna Ampil as Carlotta Giudicelli
- Martin Ball as Monsieur Firmin
- Helen Hobson as Madame Giry
- Millie Lyon as Meg Giry
- Lily Kerhoas as Christine Daaé (Eve Shanu-Wilson, understudy)
- Joe Griffiths-Brown as Raoul
- Adam Linstead as Monsieur André
- David Kristopher-Brown as Ubaldo Piang
Further cast
Anya Alindada, Lily Allen-Dodd, George Arvidson, Embla Bishop, David Burilin, Fergus Dale, Emily George, Molly Hall, Will Hawksworth, Nicholas Hepher, Mandy Kwan, Jess Michelmore, Johnny Randall, Leonard Cook, Colleen Rose Curran, Michael Colbourne, Hywel Dowsell, Connor Ewing, Serina Faull, Florence Fowler, James Gant, Melanie Gowie, Samuel Haughton, Eilish Harmon-Beglan, Janet Mooney, Tim Morgan, Zoë Soleil Vallée, Jasmine Wallis and Victoria Ward.
Creative
- Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber
- Lyrics by Charles Hart & Richard Stilgoe
- Book by Richard Stilgoe & Andrew Lloyd Webber
- Directed by Hal Prince
- Set design by Matt Kinley
- Costume design by Jill Parker
- Production Design by Maria Bjornson
- Lighting Design by Andrew Bridge
- Sound by Martin Levan
- Orchestrations by David Cullen
Reviews
Our review
Magical, Beautiful, Captivating
Her Majesty's Theatre London, is where it all began. October 1986 and the curtain went up on the biggest gamble of Lloyd Webber's life.
Scarlet Fleetwood
Customer reviews
Anna
The best musical I have ever seen
Michelle Southwick
Fantastic show
Nicola Elliott
Absolutely amazing!!