Review: The Phantom of the Opera, at Her Majesty's Theatre, London

If Carousel was the one I was most excited about, this is one that could come a very close second to that. The last and only other time I saw Phantom of the Opera was the UK Tour in 2012 in Manchester, with John Owen-Jones, Katie Hall (Les Mis) and Simon Bailey. And it was awesome, but it was the new production. And I was planning to see the new tour; but the Manchester dates were of course a couple of weeks after Covid broke out.... 

So this was high on my list of things to see. While I was in two minds over it, it was the performance at The Shows Must Go On Live!, that made me realise I wanted to support this cast and the musicians that had survived Mr Macintosh's orchestral cull.... And so I messaged a former colleague if she wanted to come along with me - and she gladly said yes!

For those who don't know the story of Phantom (have you been living under a rock), it follows the titular Phantom, a lonely and disfigured man who falls in love with Christine Daae, a chorus girl at the Opera Populaire in Paris. As Christine's star rises and her childhood friend Raoul enters the picture, off starts the most well-known love triangle in musical theatre history. 

This is as close to the brilliant original as you can get in London. It stays largely the same, including Maria Bjornson's legendary set and costume designs, despite a few tiny tweaks here and there that were part of the original ideas but didn't make the cut. And don't worry, despite the rumours, I can tell you there is still a chandelier drop. (Phew!) 

The main reason though why I wanted to see Phantom (as well as plainly why the hell not), is the cast. 

All of the principals from the UK tour return for the West End production, which is great after their run got cut short. Killian Donnelly played up the loneliness the Phantom has, his version of Music of the Night having all the softness and power you need for that song. 

There was also real mystery when his voice in numbers such as Notes was played out of different speakers so you really had no idea where his voice was coming from. 

The biggest draw though is absolutely Lucy St Louis' historic performance as Christine Daae. I say historic because she is somehow the first woman of colour to play Christine in the West End. HOW this is possible after nearly 35 years none of us will truly understand, but my word she takes the pressure and runs with it to pull a masterful performance. 

She was emotional, wide-eyed and innocent like you would expect, but she had a strength behind her eyes most Christines possibly lack. I adored her playful chemistry with Raoul (played by Rhys Whitfield), you can tell they were friends when they were kids, and not when they were older. 

Vocally she was stunning - her higher notes were coming out of her effortlessly as if her voice was like vibrato on a violin. I absolutely loved her.

Going back to women of colour though, this is historic for another reason, as the leading soprano Carlotta was also played by a woman of colour. Saori Oda turned up the stroppy diva for this one belting out those high Ds like it was nothing. Loved seeing two powerful women of colour play off each other as the competing sopranos. 

Now you may be asking me - how does it sound? Well, I don't know if it the score was filled out with backing bits and pieces, but for a smaller of orchestra of only 14 players, Andrew Lloyd Webber's best score still sounds amazing. Does make you wonder though if it sounded like that with only 14, how incredible it would have been with the full orchestra as before. Still don't think it was cool Cameron. Nope, definitely not. 

I know this one remains questionable to a lot of people following all the gossip. But I do want to say go and support this cast. 

Decisions such as casting a Christine or Carlotta as a woman of colour will only happen if people go and support them. Hopefully it will lead to a Phantom and Raoul of colour in this country too - Broadway has with the likes of Norm Lewis so we need to catch up. 

Ultimately too, it is still my favourite of Andrew Lloyd Webber's works; a fabulous and rich score and a good one to pick for someone trying out musical theatre, particularly if they like opera or classical music. If you're looking for a fix of ALW, pick this over Cinderella any day (from what I've heard.... not the best).