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The ultimate curtain got here down Sunday on New York’s manufacturing of “The Phantom of the Opera,” ending Broadway’s longest-running present with thunderous standing ovations, champagne toasts and gold and silver confetti bursting from its well-known chandelier.
It was present No. 13,981 on the Majestic Theatre and it ended with a reprise of “The Music of the Evening” carried out by the present forged, earlier actors within the present — together with authentic star Sarah Brightman — and crew members in avenue garments.
Andrew Lloyd Webber took to the stage final in a black swimsuit and black tie and devoted the ultimate present to his son, Nick, who died final month after a protracted battle with gastric most cancers and pneumonia. He was 43.
“When he was a little bit boy, he heard a few of this music,” Lloyd Webber stated. Brightman, holding his hand, agreed: “When Andrew was writing it, he was proper there. So his son is with us. Nick, we love you very a lot.”
Producer Cameron Waterproof coat gave some within the crowd hope they’d see the Phantom once more, and maybe earlier than they assume.
“The one query I preserve getting requested many times — will the Phantom return? Having been a producer for over 55 years, I’ve seen all the good musicals return, and ‘Phantom’ is among the biggest,” he stated. “So it is solely a matter of time.”
The musical — a fixture on Broadway since opening on Jan. 26, 1988 — has weathered recessions, battle, terrorism and cultural shifts. However the extended pandemic might have been the final straw: It is a pricey musical to maintain, with elaborate units and costumes in addition to a big forged and orchestra. The curtain name Sunday confirmed how out of step “Phantom” is with the remainder of Broadway but in addition how superb an enormous, splashy musical might be.
“If there ever was a bang, we’re going out with a bang. It will be an incredible night time,” stated John Riddle simply earlier than dashing inside to play Raoul for the ultimate time.
Primarily based on a novel by Gaston Leroux, “Phantom” tells the story of a deformed composer who haunts the Paris Opera Home and falls head over heels in love with an harmless younger soprano, Christine. Webber’s lavish songs embrace “Masquerade,” “Angel of Music” and “All I Ask of You.”
Along with Riddle, the New York manufacturing stated goodbye with Emilie Kouatchou as Christine and Laird Waterproof coat stepping in for Ben Crawford because the Phantom. Crawford was unable to sing due to a bacterial an infection however was cheered on the curtain name, stepping to the aspect of the stage. The Phantom waved him over to face beside him, Riddle and Kouatchou.
There was a video presentation of lots of the actors who had performed key roles within the present over time, and the orchestra seats had been crowded with Christines, Raouls and Phantoms. The late director Hal Prince, choreographer Gillian Lynne and set and costume designer Maria Björnson had been additionally honored.
Lin-Manuel Miranda attended, as did Glenn Shut, who carried out in two separate Broadway productions of Lloyd Webber’s “Sundown Boulevard.” Free champagne was provided at intermission and flutes of it had been handed out onstage on the curtain name.
Riddle first noticed “The Phantom of the Opera” in Toronto as a 4-year-old youngster. “It was the primary musical I ever noticed. I did not know what a musical was,” he stated. “Now, 30-some odd years later, I am closing the present on Broadway. So it is unimaginable.”
Kouatchou, who turned the primary Black girl within the position in New York, did not assume the present would ever cease. “I used to be like, ‘OK, I’ll do my run, “Phantom” goes to proceed on they usually’ll be extra Christines of colour,'” she stated. “However that is it.”
The primary manufacturing opened in London in 1986 and since then the present has been seen by greater than 145 million folks in 183 cities and carried out in 17 languages over 70,000 performances. On Broadway alone, it has grossed greater than $1.3 billion.
When “Phantom” opened in New York, “Die Arduous” was in film theaters, Adele was born, and floppy discs had been on the reducing fringe of know-how. A postage stamp price 25 cents, and the 12 months’s hottest songs had been “Roll With It” by Steve Winwood, “Religion” by George Michael and Rick Astley’s “By no means Gonna Give You Up.”
Critics had been optimistic, with the New York Put up calling it “a chunk of impeccably crafted musical theater,” the Each day Information describing it as “spectacular leisure,” and The New York Occasions saying it “needs nothing greater than to bathe the viewers with fantasy and enjoyable.”
Lloyd Webber’s different musicals embrace “Cats,” “Jesus Christ Celebrity,” “Evita,” “Sundown Boulevard” and “Faculty of Rock.” The closing of “Phantom” means the composer is left with one present on Broadway, the critically mauled “Unhealthy Cinderella.”
The closing of “Phantom,” initially scheduled for February, was pushed to mid-April after a flood of revived curiosity and ticket gross sales that pushed weekly grosses previous $3 million. The closing means the longest-running present crown now goes to “Chicago,” which began in 1996. “The Lion King” is subsequent, having begun performances in 1997.
Broadway took a pounding throughout the pandemic, with all theaters closed for greater than 18 months. Among the hottest exhibits — “Hamilton,” “The Lion King” and “Depraved” — rebounded effectively, however different exhibits have struggled.
Breaking even often requires a gradual stream of vacationers, particularly for “Phantom,” and guests to the town have not returned to pre-pandemic ranges. The pandemic additionally pushed up bills for all exhibits, together with routine COVID-19 testing and security officers on employees. The Phantom turned a poster boy for Broadway’s return — in any case, he’s partially masked.
Followers can all the time catch the Phantom elsewhere. The flagship London manufacturing celebrated its thirty sixth anniversary in October, and there are productions in Japan, Greece, Australia, Sweden, Italy, South Korea and the Czech Republic. One is about to open in Bucharest, and one other will open in Vienna in 2024.
Kouatchou, who walked the pink carpet earlier than the ultimate present in a sizzling pink clinging robe with a sweetheart neckline and a lower out, stated the bitterness was undercut by the massive send-off. Most Broadway exhibits that shut slink into the darkness uncelebrated.
“It sort of sweetens it, proper?” she stated. “We get to have a good time on the finish of this. We get to all come collectively and drink and giggle and speak concerning the present and all of the highs and lows. It is ending on an enormous notice.”
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