Theatre/Movie Review - The Phantom of the Opera at the Royal Albert Hall

The Phantom of the Opera at the Royal Albert Hall

(original London production on stage since 1986)

Original London Direction by Hal Prince

Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Lyrics by Charles Hart

Film direction by Laurence Connor and Nick Morris

I'm one of the few people that simply doesn't get the fascination with The Phantom of the Opera.  On the Broadway stage since 1988 and the London stage since 1986, it's certainly charmed many an audience, but it didn't do a thing for me.  I was told that maybe I just saw the stage production on a bad day, so when I saw that a 25th anniversary production was being filmed for dvd release (after a one-night in-theater presentation earlier this year), I figured I'd give it another shot.  As it turns out, my initial thoughts were right.  This is just a play that I can't get into in the slightest despite rather lovely music courtesy of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Charles Hart.

Ultimately, I think there are two major problems that I'm unable to overcome when it comes to this musical.  Firstly, while the individual songs are great, the "sung-through" opera aspect of this musical just doesn't work for me.  It makes the whole affair feel old and stodgy...and, really, the whole thing is kind of old and stodgy in its costuming, staging, and story.  Which leads me right into my second issue with The Phantom of the Opera -- its story is incredibly weak when stacked up next to the music.  It's simply a love triangle involving an opera singer, her childhood friend, and a nasty, murderous, mask-wearing fiend.  None of the characters are all that well-developed and that combined with a ho-hum story just make the play almost interminable during the "book" scenes.

Still, if you're a fan of The Phantom of the Opera this blu-ray will certainly be something you'll want to see.  Taking place in the Royal Albert Hall, certain concessions had to be made in order to fit onto the stage -- for example, many of the scene changes occur via humongous video screens rather than actual sets -- but it's quite successful nonetheless.  Performances all around are good as well and there's a nice tribute to Andrew Lloyd Webber at the conclusion of the play.  Unfortunately, none of that makes me enjoy this musical spectacle any more the second time around.

The RyMickey Rating:  D+