DVD Review: Phantom 25th Anniversary

Musical: The Phantom of the Opera: The 25th Anniversary Celebration

Venue: Royal Albert Hall, London, UK

Cast: Ramin Karimloo (The Phantom), Sierra Boggess (Christine), Hadley Fraser (Raoul), Wendy Ferguson (u/s Carlotta), Barry James (Firmin), Gareth Snook (Andre), Liz Robertson (Madame Giry), Wynne Evans (Piangi) and Earl Carpenter (Auctioneer)

with Special Appearances by Sarah Brightman, Colm Wilkinson, Anthony Warlow, Peter Joback, John Owen-Jones, Original London company and Andrew Lloyd Webber

Rating: *****

Review:

I have written another review on the matinee performance of the 25th anniversary celebration of The Phantom of the Opera that I attended. Though there were some obvious flaws, I still enjoyed the production a lot and made me decide to pre-order the DVD from Amazon. I got some of my friends together to watch the DVD together. The DVD was recorded from the Sunday evening performance and all I can say is that this DVD is the next best thing to actually being there in the Royal Albert Hall, or even better!

What I can say about the production of this DVD is that editing helps! The multi-camera angle, the close-ups, the sound mixing and the choice of what to be seen that was decided for this DVD was top-notch. Even the part that I found lacking on the stage when I saw it live looks a lot better now and the chandelier even looks grander than ever (during the Overture) though I wish they would edit the "crash" to be a little bit more exciting.

Inside the Royal Albert Hall
(seen here at the end of "Think of Me" with audience projection on the wall)

The performances captured here were excellent. Though not my favourite Phantom, I found that I like Ramin Karimloo's Phantom in the DVD a lot better than when I saw him live that afternoon. I also enjoyed his performance in the Final Lair a lot and I loved how he say "You try my patience, make your choice" because he said it as if it was also difficult for him which I found heart-wrenching. (Note: I'm not sure if there was any sound mixing to help make his voice on the right pitch or not because he usually tends to have some flats and sharps here and there but if there wasn't then, great job, Ramin!) However, I found myself not liking the new mask that they custom-made for this production though but that was just a small quibble.

I loved Sierra Boggess's Christine when I saw her live and the close-ups even made her performance more memorable and impressive. I still stand by my opinion that her "Think of Me" and "Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again" were definitely one of the best I've heard. I also loved her little "Thank you very much" to Madame Giry and M. Reyer during the transition scene in "Think of Me". I'm not sure if that was added here or it was usually played like this but I just found it nice. 

Sierra Boggess and Ramin Karimloo

 The chemistry between the two was great in almost every scene they were together. Had Love Never Dies in London been more successful, we could have seen the Love Never Dies DVD with these two in the lead roles which would be quite interesting.

Many people enjoyed Hadley Fraser's performance as Raoul. Personally, I didn't like him when I saw him live and I still didn't like him on DVD. (Don't boo me for this, it's just my opinion!). Though on DVD his voice comes across a lot better, I found his performance to be too harsh for the role. Again, I know that Andrew Lloyd Webber was probably setting the scene up for his "Love Never Dies" sequel DVD (that is due to come out in March 2012) but at this age, Raoul should be falling in love with Christine head over heels and not be bored of her obsessions with the Phantom. If he were, I think he would have dumped her right away. All this made his scene on the rooftop of the Opera House a lot less meaningful and less romantic, just look at his facial expression, the guy must be thinking "Oh, what now?" and it just made "All I Ask of You" to be like a fake comforting just to shut Christine up. Though, I do enjoy his second act a lot more.

Hadley Fraser at curtain call

Wendy Ferguson proves to me again that she was the perfect Carlotta. Stepping in for American soprano Kiera Duffy who suffered a throat infection a week before the show, Wendy, a current London Carlotta, totally stole the show and with camera close-ups, she was hilarious than ever. Her "Hannibal" and "Think of Me" scenes were definitive and so were her "Prima Donna", "Il Muto" and "Notes" scenes. I have loved her for a long time and I'm glad that she finally gets the spotlights she deserves this time and moreover, it got captured on DVD!!

Wendy Ferguson as Carlotta

On the contrary, Wynne Evans as Piangi was still bland as ever, period! Liz Robertson, Gareth Snook, and Barry James gave fantastic performances as Madame Giry, M. Andre and M. Firmin respectively. I also enjoyed Earl Carpenter's take on the Auctioneer at the beginning of the show a lot. The ensemble, which comprises of past and present Phantom cast members, all looks and sounds amazing here!

Masquerade

The projection of the scenery works really well on DVD. I was a bit skeptical when I first saw it and found it so unrealistic but here it looks really good and seems to be the best idea for a contemporary production like this one. If you had read my review, you will know that there were many technical mishaps at my performance, those mishaps didn't happen in the DVD so I got to see how the show really looks had the technical faults not happened. And in my previous review I didn't understand why there was no mirror in Christine's dressing room and now I understand! 

"Look at your face in the mirror, I am there inside!"

"Why so silent, good messieurs?"

Andrew Lloyd Webber was also not the best presenter and probably not the best person to introduce the creative teams and the original London company. The grand finale now includes the special appearance by the original Phantom, Michael Crawford who, disappointedly, didn't sing anything except for the last line of "The Music of the Night" with the rest of the company. I still feel that the finale performance of "The Phantom of the Opera" and "The Music of the Night" could have been rehearsed a bit better. Though greatly impressive, it was not as good as the "Les Miserables 25th Anniversary" surprise. Still, the opportunity to see the original Christine, Sarah Brightman performing on stage with 3 of the best Phantoms from around the world (Colm Wilkinson from Canada, Anthony Warlow from Australia and John Owen-Jones from the current London company) and another soon-to-be-but-not-as-impressive Phantom Peter Joback was rare and made it a special event in its own right.

Michael Crawford and Sarah Brightman

Sarah Brightman performing "The Phantom of the Opera"
seen here with John Owen-Jones in the back

Overall, this DVD is a must for any Phantom fans and also for any musical lovers. Though not as good as its original production, it is still the next best thing to actually being there at Her Majesty's Theatre in London or the Majestic Theatre on Broadway.