by Meglin Bodner
That’s right! BHS proudly presents “The Phantom of The Opera” as the spring musical. It was first performed at Her Majesty’s Theatre, London in 1986 and is the longest running show in Broadway history, having had its 9,000th performance in September 2009. “The Phantom of the Opera” was taken from the book “Le Fantome de L’Opera by Gaston Leroux. The music was written by Andrew Lloyd Webber, the lyrics by Charles Hart, and the story by Richard Stilgoe and Andrew LLoyd Webber.
Most of the story is in the form of a flashback between the present day and twenty-five years earlier. At the time, the opera’s owner, Lefevre, is leaving and his co-owners, Andre, Firmin, and their patron, Raoul, take over the opera. The co-owners are clueless about the Phantom who hides and lives in the catacombs underneath the opera building, but everyone else knows that when the Phantom’s demands are not met, there will be consequences. The Phantom is a physically disfigured bitter man, but also a musical genius who hides his blemish behind a mask. Christine Daae takes over when Carlotta, the opera’s leading soprano, walks out because of a backdrop almost hitting her. The replacement, Christine is a very successful singer and the Phantom falls in love with her. So when Christine accepts a marriage proposal from her childhood sweetheart Raoul, the Phantom becomes furious. The Phantom decides to kidnap Christine while Raoul attempts to save her. The young soprano has to choose between her love for Raoul and her mysterious attraction to the Phantom. Ms. Cartisano commented, “The music is absolutely GLORIOUS and both the lyrics and the play itself are incredibly well written. At the same time it is tremendously difficult music – especially for young teenage voices. We are so fortunate to have the talented singers, dancers, actors, and adult and student volunteers necessary for us to do this production. This is the most challenging play to stage that Cathy Ann Roding and I have done in our 26 years directing together. But we are sure it will also be tremendously rewarding for everyone involved and well as everyone who comes to see it.” For those of you planning to see this spectacular musical, call 203-315-7798 Ext. 2500 to buy your tickets now. The shows will be on March 22-27 with a matinee only on Sunday. Lots of people are going to see it and I suggest you do, too. It will be yet another fantastic musical performed by talented BHS students!