Phantom of the Opera
Location: Her Majesty's Theatre
One of the many shows running in the West End is The Phantom of the Opera, which celebrated its 22nd Anniversary in the capital in 2008. Along with Les Miserables, Cats and The Mousetrap it is one of London’s longest running shows. With your theatre tickets armed and ready you could be visiting this spectacular phenomenon soon, sitting alongside hundreds of audience members waiting in anticipation for the wonderful show before them. Sine 1986 audiences have been thrilled by its visual signature, emotion and its dramatic performances. By adding to the equation you will also be ensuring the show’s ongoing popularity, perhaps allowing it to stay at its location at Her Majesty’s Theatre for many years to come. Then maybe in 22 years time it could be enjoying its 44th birthday…
The Phantom of the Opera is a story known to everyone; the title of course refers to the shadowy figure who lurks beneath the Paris Opera House. The musical tells the story in which Christine, a beautiful opera singer encounters the Phantom, who is a young composer, ashamed of his mysterious appearance, and embark on an epic and spellbinding romance together. The pair share some unique experiences with one another whilst the young man teaches her what he knows about music. Like many great West End musicals, this one is adapted by none other than Andrew Lloyd Webber, who adapted it from an earlier adaptation penned by Ken Hill. The original Phantom of the Opera was a novel written by Gaston Leroux.
Since its 1986 premiere, the show has managed to bring in an estimated 3 and a half billion pounds worldwide and can now be seen in more than 120 cities globally. Such is the show’s popularity it is referenced in popular culture (including in The Simpsons) and has been adapted for the silver screen (2004’s Phantom of the Opera, directed by Joel Schumacher and starring Gerard Butler and Emmy Rossum as the romantic couple). Recently Andrew Lloyd Webber even announced that he was penning a sequel Phantom: Love Never Dies, which is due to arrive later in 2009.
It shows that the Phantom phenomenon is showing no signs of stopping. So make sure you catch this historic show and then you will know what everyone has been talking about!