August 27, 2011 - Closing of Love Never Dies London

Yes, it's a date - August 27, 2011.

What's the significance? Well, if you're a fan of Love Never Dies in London, it's a sad day indeed, because it will have its last performance at the Adelphi Theatre on The Strand. It means that a group of wonderful, talented, and fantastic men and women are going to be out of a job; and that, in itself, saddens me to the core.

What do I think of those performers who put their heart into this production from the beginning? Well, let me tell you, because I too have a voice.

First off, I think they are servants at heart, especially Ramin Karimloo. I have great respect for this man, because he understands what it means to serve and do your best in spite of obstacles and opposition. He served his master well. Hats off to you, Ramin! I respect you greatly -- your talent, fortitude, and heart from God. I wish you the best in your future endeavors.

To Sierra Boggess, Joseph Millson, Summer Strallin, Liz Robertson, Niamh Perry, Adam Pearce, Jami Reid-Quarrell, and the many talented young boys who played Gustave -- my hat off to you as well! You should be commended for your wonderful performances, your tenacity to ignore the naysayers, and your unending every night, wholehearted performances given to the audience. You guys rocked!

To Tam Mutu! Bravo! Wonderful interpretation of Phantom as well. Thanks, Tam, for your fantastic spirit and love of the character. It was a pleasure to see you perform more often in that iconic role. We wish you the very best as you move on in your career.

To the new cast Celia Graham, David Thaxton, Haley Flaherty, Tracey Penn, Charles Brunton, and the new group of young men who came in after the changes to the show as Gustav -- bravo to you as well. You supported the creator of the production, as he tirelessly endeavored to refine his work. You gave it your all and stood by him in the process. You picked up where others left off, and continued to give the audiences great performances.

We appreciate every one of you and wish you the best for the future. You have blessed the hearts of those who received you with open arms, gave us a touching stage production and the opportunity to once again to see Phantom and Christine interact with each other on stage in a story we didn't find offensive.

Though mud has been slung your way, websites have gone up to discredit the show, pages created to complain, protestors have left anti-show fliers at the theatre, nailed them on telephone poles, flipped you the bird, and participated in a war of words on every social medium imaginable on the Internet, you held your heads up high through it all and did your very best in spite of opposition to the story and the characters you represented. We admire you for the professional way in which you handled the onslaught, and we appreciate your loyalty to Andrew Lloyd Webber's vision to continue the story he put on stage 25 years ago.

When you take your last bow in Love Never Dies on the evening of August 27th at the Adelphi Theatre, be assured there are people who love and respect you deeply as the individuals and wonderful performers you are. God bless every one of you in your careers. May you go on and become successful in all that you set your hand to, and may you take with you cherished memories of your time in the production.

As you do, remember that those feelings you elicited in the audience, who watched your wonderful performances, will never die. They will live on in our hearts as fond memories, because we were privileged to be blessed by your outstanding talent and fantastic voices.

From my heart, and I'm sure from many others,

The Phantom's Student aka Vicki Hopkins


Note: Picture of final bow on closing night reposted with permission.

The Amusement Park is Closing Down In London

Well rumors yesterday swelled on the Internet, and my Google alerts filled my inbox this morning. Andrew Lloyd Webber's production of Love Never Dies in London is closing August 27. There is no word of reworking it in London, though the Melbourne show continues in Australia.

Read here the morning news at:

Variety

Broadway World

No doubt a variety of reasons pushed the show to close in London. The Adelphi is co-owned by Webber and another group, who wished to bring in a new production hopefully more profitable. In addition, the bad reception in London and the opposition from a certain campaign tainted the show from the beginning. As far as critics, critics are critics, and mediocre reviews were published. However, some of the general public and the fans generally liked the show, in spite of the crap thrown its way. The voices that were the loudest, didn't necessary represent the entire Phantom community.

I'm so very thankful I had the chance to see it both in its original version and revised version and have been blessed to watch the performances of wonderful performers. Frankly, I never would have made it to London and enjoyed my first experience of English soil, if it hadn't been for the lure of seeing the show and reporting on it when I returned.

My heartfelt good wishes go out to all the cast as they move onto other opportunities. And to Webber, I say, thanks for letting me observe in London the choreographed reunion of my favorite two characters, Christine and the Phantom.

While some are no doubt having parties and others are already standing by the grave ready to throw the first clod of good-riddens dirt on the London production's coffin, it's still alive elsewhere on stage in the world. If Webber stays true to his plans, it will tour Australia, and perhaps one day visit Toronto and Broadway.

Usually we say it ain't over yet until the fat lady sings. In this instance it ain't over yet until the last one is thrown over the pier and drowned. My support of Webber and his endeavors continue, as I admire the man greatly and enjoy his creations.

To the London cast who leaves - GOD BLESS EVERY ONE OF YOU!

To the naysayers I say, don't rejoice over the failure of another.

To the lovers and supporters of Love Never Dies, rejoice in what you had the opportunity to enjoy in London.

To Webber I say, take heart, there are those that still support you and your creative right to take Love Never Dies elsewhere.

I'm itching to say so much more! I hate it when I have to bite my tongue. I really hurts.

Sigh...

The Phantom's Student

NOTE:  I've closed the comments on this post for a variety of reasons.  Mostly, I just don't want this blog to turn into a forum debate about Love Never Dies.  There are so many other places on the Internet to talk about the likes, dislikes, and its recent demise from the West End, that I just don't feel it appropriate to rehash the matter here.  Thanks for your understanding. 

Twisted Every Way...What Answer Do I Give?

As most of you know, I'm off in London. I did see the revised version of Love Never Dies at the Wednesday matinee and oddly find myself in an difficult place. Since most of you wish to know what I thought, I will give you a quick overview.

It's been suggested on a Phantom forum, from deep in the cellars, that my change in attitude toward the show might be because I'm searching for more readers for my blog. Yes, it's a diabolical plot on my part to reel in more subscribers. (I can't believe some of the crap that comes my way.) Nevertheless, here are my thoughts.

Has my attitude changed? All I can say is that much has changed in the show in the way of lyrics, stage direction, choreography, portrayals, and cast. I have been trying to analyze my shock to it all and can only come to the conclusion I wasn't prepared to see the demise of some of my favorite portions of the show that I enjoyed in the original version. There is indeed new direction, new flavor, and new presentation. Will all that matter to you in the United States and elsewhere who are waiting to see the show the first time for yourself? My answer to that is no. You will have no former reference to go by, so your take will be fresh and untainted.

Unable to clear my brain from the shock of rewrites, staging, and new the cast, I think it's going to take me a while to warm up to the new Love Never Dies. This is really difficult for me to confess for many reasons. As most of you know, I've been supportive of Andrew Lloyd Webber's right to do a sequel, and I still am. I've been supportive, as well, of the cast, crew, and all the wonderful work put into the show. None of that has changed. I will see it one more time before leaving London on Monday night, and see how I react the second time around. I may warm up to it a little bit more, now that the initial shock is fading. Then again, I may retain my loyalties to the first version.

Below is a very short synopsis of changes that include some, but not all:

• The beginning is much clear and better. It's not the painful start I once thought where I wanted the show to get on with it. Now, there is a clear cohesion from past to present taking it from the burning opera house to the Phantom's flee to Coney Island, etc.

• The motivations for Christine's arrival in New York have changed. Hammerstein brings her rather than the Phantom luring her to hear her sing one more time. I'm not quite sure why they thought that change was necessary, but I have my suspicions it was to set up the Phantom's plot. Makes his motives look darker.

• Other scenes at the beginning are deleted. One scene I really thought should not have been changed, was Meg's early on attempt to gain the Phantom's attention. I really did not like how they rewrote this part of the show. It dismissed a crucial motivational element regarding Meg's desperate need for approval.

• Raoul's character is softened. Totally rewritten to what I think does credit to the show to make you feel much more empathetic toward his plight rather than judgmental of his failure. Thaxon and Millson are very different in presentation.

• The first meeting of Christine and the Phantom has changed, and I'm trying to sort out what happened to the choreography that I so loved in the first version in Beneath the Moonless Sky. It's no longer there, which takes the scene to a different level. The passionate longing for each other and heated desire is changed to a more hands-on approach that borders from affectionate to threatening. Hard to explain. Will elaborate later.

• The Phantom is more dark, menacing, etc. overall.

• Devil take the hindmost is much more physical. Probably one of my favorite scenes still.

• Bathing beauty is toned down. I found it interesting that the audience actually seemed to love that scene, at least when I was there. No more umbrellas over breasts to bring fright of wardrobe malfunctions.

• Ending is different, though Christine still dies. The gun going off looks much more like an accident. The Phantom's response to her death is much more grieving. Raoul returns to Christine's body to mourn her death. Better ending, except they took away another touching part that saddened me.

All in all the show is basically the same, however, the flavor is different. Motivations are re-routed, staging direction altered, lyrics/lines added/deleted, etc. Ramin was on holiday, and Tam Mutu the alternate played Phantom when I saw the show. I thought he did quite well actually. His mannerisms are much like Ramin's, as well as his voice.

Thaxton plays an excellent Raoul. He's presence and demeanor on stage is different than Millson's, and part of what I'm trying to sort out is if that is due to rewrites or actor interpretation of the role. Nevertheless, you won't be disappointed in his performance.

When I first reviewed LND, I said on BlogTalkRadio that for this show to work, it needed to be casted correctly. Celia Graham, who plays Christine now, is very different from Sierra Boggess in many ways. I'm at a loss again over her performance as well, because I did not see in it the emotional chemistry or agonizing I saw in Sierra's performance. Whether that is from personal interpretation or stage direction, I cannot tell. I can only honestly say that I much preferred Sierra's original take on Christine when I first saw the show. The woman tore my heart out. I didn't feel the same way with Celia. I mean no disrespect to her as a performer, believe me. Her vocals were wonderful. It was a matter of perception on my part regarding interpretation of Christine's reactions. Again, I don't know if those are her choices or staging directions. Unfortunately, I will not be able to see how she reacts with Ramin.

I plan to do a show on BlogTalkRadio to talk more in depth about the changes and will let you know when we broadcast. During the show, I'll do a more one on one comparison between the old and the new and tell you why I liked or didn't like what they cut or revised.

Do I still like it? I'm sitting on a fence right now walking a thin line. I'm more inclined to embrace the original as a whole, than the revised at this point. Yet there parts of the revised, I wish they would have done in the original. I'm just not in total agreement with all the changes. I think some of the revisions, had they been in the original, would have made it much stronger to begin with.

However, I'll let you all make up your own thoughts if it ever comes westward. I've heard the Australian production may make even more changes. If that's true, than whatever I feel about the current state of affairs you can throw out the window.

It's been difficult to be so public with my thoughts on Love Never Dies from the inception. There are many people I hold dear on both sides of the camps, and being truthful can sometimes offend others. It's certainly not my intention to do so, because as most of you know too, I've been an avid preacher with my kumbaya messages of peace in the lair. I am, however, holding my same attitude that I will take from Love Never Dies what I like and enjoy, and continue to enjoy the memory of those scenes that touched me. Whether we embrace it or reject it, as I said before, our personal opinions should be respected and our love for Phantom the glue that holds us together.

Check back for broadcast dates for my updated report on the revised LND on BlogTalkRadio.

An honest post painfully penned,

Vicki aka The Phantom's Student

Ramin Karimloo And Sierra Boggess Talk LOVE NEVER DIES

I'm happy to post this link and share it with my readers. It's a wonderful interview with Ramin and Sierra talking about the story and the character changes in Love Never Dies.

I thought it fit well with this blog since I've been dissecting the characters one by one to see what makes them tick in the sequel. It is, as they state too, a psychological in-depth story that continues their lives from the original version examining the repercussions and consequences of their former choices.

Kudos to both of them for their wonderful portrayals, as well as for Joseph Millson and the other stars of the show.

Ramin Karimloo And Sierra Boggess Talk LOVE NEVER DIES 2010/04/19

Sincerely,
The Phantom's Student