Review: Erik Turns 35 & He Never Looked Better! Celebrate with THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA AT THE ROYAL ALBERT HALL On BroadwayHD

Welcome to another installment of Little Bobby's thoughts on some streaming THEATRE coming to you from the fab children at BroadwayHD! So jump in the stream with us, and let's see if our rainbow lands on a pot of gold.

Someone just had a birthday, didn't he? It was yesterday, and it was celebrated all over The Broadway and the interwebs, as theater buffs, musical theater aficionados, and appreciative New Yorkers said Happy Anniversary to THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, which opened 35 short years ago. It's an important anniversary and one that's newsworthy, but it isn't the first time that Phantom has been in the press recently because just a few months ago it was announced that the longest-running play in Broadway history would be closing. But no! Say it isn't so! Well, my dear ones, it is (although the musical did get an extension, thanks to a rise in ticket sales) and more's the pity because a New York without Phantom will never be the same as it was before.

There's an interesting thing that happens when a play runs for an unprecedented period of time. The property opens, it is hailed as the greatest thing since the invention of the wheel, it sticks around long enough for people (especially industry people) to roll their eyes at it, it hangs around longer and people (especially industry people) call it names, it holds tight and ticket sales drop off, it refuses to depart and a new wave of audiences find it, it hits a milestone and, suddenly, it is so legendary that everyone loves and respects it, once more. London's longest-running play, The Mousetrap, has been through this process. The original production of The Fantasticks ran this course. Cats and Les Mis did their time, eventually closing and returning as revivals. This has been the same track for Phantom of the Opera - a New York status symbol that newbies flock to and fans return to again and again. PS - the show is still running healthily in London's West End.

Little Bobby was actually living in New York during the first runs of the previously mentioned shows Cats and Les Miserables and can remember the derision with which people spoke of the two musicals. Yet, today, they remain beloved (well, save for that last movie version of Cats, of which we dare not speak). Bobby remembers when people thought that Phantom at The Majestic was old news and said so, right out loud, but Bobby also remembers when, after 9/11, all the members of Actor's Equity could buy twenty-dollar tickets to see Broadway plays, and how most of our friends chose that opportunity to go back and see Phantom. And each and every one of those people (including Bobby) had the exact same response: "Damn, this is good theatre."

Phantom of the Opera is good, no, my dearlings, it is great theatre. It is good, nay, it is great storytelling. And everyone who loves or has loved or hasn't seen it at the Majestic Theatre on The Broadway should do so before it closes on April 16th because it will be the end of an era, one that won't come again. If Phantom is revived at some point, it will NOT be the original production at The Majestic. It will be different, count on it. See the original, dear friends, while you can.

If you can't see the play on The Broadway, then you are in luck because there is a film version of Phantom of the Opera. Oh, no. Not that thing. Not that one. This is a film version of THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA that was shot over three days at The Royal Albert Hall in the UK when Erik (did you know The Phantom actually has a name? Read the book) turned twenty-five. In 2011, Sirs Cameron and Andrew helmed a 25th Anniversary production at the famed concert venue, determined that it would not be a concert version of Phantom, but a fully-realized play production. That play production played for three days, screening the final night, and then movie-making wizards edited together scenes from all performances for a DVD release that is available on the streaming network BroadwayHD, and, kiddie-winkies, it is worth a watch. The truth is, it is more than worth a watch, it should be essential viewing for any person who loves musical theatre, who loves theatre, period because it is simply marvelous.

People love theatre, dear readers. And people who love theatre want the theatrical. That is why so many film versions of musicals have trouble translating to the screen. There are more people who want to watch the PBS versions of Sweeney Todd and Into the Woods than the film versions: why? Because it showcases theatre magic. One of the thrills of seeing the play Evita is knowing that that actress is singing that score live. The film version is beautiful and beautifully shot, but it is Madonna lip-syncing in a feature-length music video. Here, on the stage of The Royal Albert Hall, the crackerjack team behind this production put on a play - a play filled with theatricality and theatre craft. And then they brought in some flawlessly talented filmmaking craftspeople to work their magic to turn it into a movie. So, when watching THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA At The Royal Albert Hall, we get to see a movie AND a play. How divine, darlings, how divine. We get to see Maria Björnson's costumes up close and personal, we get to see the dance numbers, as filmed from above, through the glowing crystals of the chandelier. We get to see the on-stage orchestra playing those famous melodies, as the camera travels in and out of the musicians. We get to see the relationships between the actors, thanks to intricate camera work that sweeps up, down, around, and over the action. This is theatrical filmmaking at its highest level. And yet, the actors do not feel the need to pull back, as they would on film. The performers are playing proper theatre performances that manage to read on film. Nobody seems over-act-y, nobody seems hammy or schmacty. It all reads immaculately perfect, in all of its colorful, glossy, brilliance - as a movie and as a play. On film, the characters of Christine and The Phantom might be seen passing through darkened underground tunnels, but, here, they are seen climbing high above the stage on a lighting grid catwalk, escaping to his lair in front of the brilliance of a row of glowing lighting instruments. It's ok, it's fine: it's theatre. It's theatre magic. And it's exciting.

And the actors are exciting.

Ramin Karimloo is The Phantom and Sierra Boggess is Christine and they are spectacular. The singing is superb and it is as technically appealing as the acting is informative, and the relationship is visible, maybe even more than ever before. In spite of the inherent stalker-esque, kidnapper-ish nature of the story of Phantom of the Opera, this play has always been sold as a romance, as a love story, albeit a tragic one, and the love and attraction between the two characters are actually plainly visible, quite powerfully so, especially during their first and last scenes in The Phantom's Lair. The love between the characters is complicated, it is dedicated, and it is all out there, for the audience to see. It is easy to see why Lord Lloyd Webber selected the duo for this special occasion.

Boggess and Karimloo are not the only stand-outs in the cast - the whole company must have been very proud when they did the production and when they saw the video - but Wendy Ferguson's Carlotta and Liz Robertson's Madame Giry will also bring smiles and satisfaction those who make the wise choice to take this journey on BroadwayHD. Little Bobby certainly adored both women in their roles, one over the top, the other a mass of confinement, yet there is a vulnerability that transcends Ferguson's diva displays, and there is protectiveness that imbues Robertson's stern stances. It can be easy to fall into a trap of complacency with these roles that could stand in a single facet, but these ladies have avoided that tendency. Well done, Ladies!

Now, if there is anything that Little Bobby has learned from BroadwayWorld Cabaret editor The FAB Stephen Mosher, it is this: No Spoilers. So, dearlings, if you DO decide to call up this movie on BroadwayHD, don't Google it first. Don't read the trivia on IMDB, don't look at the Wikipedia page. As is always the case at an anniversary, there are speeches, there are surprises, there are special moments at the curtain call. When you pop your popcorn and pour your champagne in celebration of 35 years of PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, just press play, and let it open up before you. Get carried away on the Phantom's boat, feel the feels, enjoy the goosebumps (and you will get goosebumps), and really observe and respect and love the art of theatre, the art of filming live theatre, and all of the surprises, gay gasps, and true tears that come with this movie, the real movie of THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA which Bobby whole heartedly awards...

5 Out Of 5 Rainbows

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