I like the Australian production of LND. I do, I really do. They made some great changes from the West End production, cut songs, changed lyrics and dialogue so it ended up a much better show.
The story is what it is, so there’s no use getting into it. It’s flawed, but the changes that have been made help and solve some of the problems that I have had with the show from the listening to the West End cast recording. If I can get the Australian soundtrack, I’d listen to that rather than the West End soundtrack.
The Danish production is modeled after the Australian production but is different when it comes to costumes, set and staging. And I was really impressed with the show. It really looks great, and when they use the entire stage and really turn on the whole machinery, it’s a joy to watch.
The cast was also great. Bo Kristian Jensen played the Phantom the night my sister and I saw it, and he was really great, as was the rest of the cast with Christian Berg as Raoul, Marianne Mortensen as Madam Giry and Camille-Cathrine Rommedahl as Meg. But the real star of the show was Louise Fribo as Christine. She was a magnificent and really got to show off her operatic training during the song Love Never Dies. Towards the end she really sang it like it was a real opera aria. It came rather unexpectedly, but it was great to hear. And it fits the character, who of course is an opera singer.
I think I’ll list some things that stood out during the performance and some little details I noticed.
Firstly, the flying acrobat. After Till I Hear You Sing, the three freaks bid the audience welcome and the show begins. All of a sudden, a man comes flying above our heads! It really startled me. The introduction to Coney Island was well done. It was more interesting to look at then the Australian version. Here, all the freaks are all over the stage. There are things going on all over the place, so you really have to look out to catch everything.
Later, when the Phantom appears in the hotel room to talk to Christine, she does not faint. And that pleased me, because it didn’t really feel right to me. And the Phantom does not appear right away when the music starts. Christine goes outside when the bombastic intro of Beneath A Moonless Sky begins, and she is there for a little while. There is a flash of lightning and the Phantom appears. I like this, because we see the Phantom enter the room as he would in the old days. Unexpected and unseen.
Beauty Underneath is the coolest song ever! Or at least one of them. When that song began, I instinctively began to smile like a maniac. And I am not ashamed to admit it
Bathing Beauty also had an interesting connection to a famous piece of art. It starts with Meg standing in front of a sea shell so it kind of looks like The Birth of Venus by Botticelli.
In the scene when Christine is getting ready for her performance, the Phantom is actually hiding behind her dressing gown. At first you don’t notice it, but then you realize that it had to be. When Raoul has left, Christine goes to get her dressing gown and reveals the Phantom hiding behind it. She is quite startled by it. Heck, I would be too. It’s a nice touch, but perhaps not very Phantom-like.
We get to the ending of the show, and there is one little moment that really stands out to me and has bugged me ever since. Gustave has come back with Raoul, who then has a final moment with Christine. Then Raoul gets up, and for a moment it looks like he and the Phantom are looking at each other. And for a moment it looks like they might shake hands or at least acknowledge each other’s grief and sorrow over the loss of woman who has meant a lot to them both. And for a moment it really does look like it could happen. They walk towards each other. They are getting closer and closer. But then they just walk pass each other and nothing happens. Oh well, you can’t get everything. But it would have been interesting if it happened.
All in all, it was a great show. I really enjoyed it, and I would actually like to see it again to really get every little detail. I have to say, again, how the changes have made a lot of difference. The show is so much better now. Both as a show in general, because it has cut some of the parts that are not centered around the main characters, so it’s more focused now. And there are also changes in the characters’ favour. The Phantom is not lectured by Giry in the beginning of the show, there is no dumb ”forgive me, I beg you, if you can, I gave you nothing but woe” from Christine, the Phantom is once again his old menacing self. These are just some of the changes that I like. I can really enjoy the show a lot more now.
This is just scratching the surface, so let me know if there’s something you’d like to hear about or want me to elaborate on
