Phantom Of The Opera, Sydney

2022 - 8 - 26

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Image courtesy of "The Guardian"

Phantom of the Opera review – a grittier revamp of the timeless ... (The Guardian)

While a more sophisticated take on the classic set slightly dampens the spectacle of old theatre magic, it's the music truly brings the thrills.

In the title number, when the Phantom commands Christine to sing ever higher, she doesn’t waver: she rises to it, and her voice travels to us like a gift. With costume tweaks that elaborate on the late Maria Björnson’s original sketches, the new look as a whole feels partly like the world of the Phantom has grown up, and partly like it’s trying to be taken more seriously. Piterman, returning home to Australia after playing the Phantom in the West End, holds the centre with his steady, sure performance that ensures the Phantom is never quite a monster, and never fully redeemable, either. [Sign up for the fun stuff with our rundown of must-reads, pop culture and tips for the weekend, every Saturday morning](https://www.theguardian.com/newsletters/2019/oct/18/saved-for-later-sign-up-for-guardian-australias-culture-and-lifestyle-email?CMP=copyembed) That chandelier leads us back to the time of that “opera ghost” with a striking half-mask (Josh Piterman), the rising young singer under his possessive tutelage (Amy Manford), and the Vicomte who loved her. Perhaps we remember, the auctioneer asks, the story of the Phantom of the Opera?

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Image courtesy of "The Sydney Morning Herald"

A ravishing Phantom stalks Sydney Opera House (The Sydney Morning Herald)

The show that transformed our expectations of what music theatre can do remains as visually ravishing as ever.

The Phantom of the Opera has become one of the most long-running shows in theatre history. [Joyce Morgan](/by/joyce-morgan-h0g82l)is a theatre critic for The Sydney Morning Herald. She is a former arts editor and writer of the SMH and also an author. The Phantom premiered in London in 1986 in an era of excess. Then Opera Australia presented it on a vast floating outdoor stage on the Harbour. But this is the first time The Phantom has taken to the Sydney Opera House stage.

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Image courtesy of "Daily Mail"

Toni Pearen attends opening night of The Phantom of the Opera in ... (Daily Mail)

Toni Pearen was an absolute stunner as she attended Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera premiere at the Sydney Opera House.

At one point, the entertainer posed with her arm around her husband Will (right) who looked dapper in a black suit and tie So it feels like every single career decision I have made has led to this moment.' The velvet gown featured slits above the elbow for extra interest and she matched her look with thatched black heels At one point, the entertainer posed with her arm around her husband Will who looked dapper in a black suit and tie. The velvet gown featured slits above the elbow for extra interest and she matched her look with thatched black heels. Toni Pearen, 50, looks stunning in electric blue as she attends opening night of The Phantom of the Opera in Sydney with her husband Will Osmond

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Image courtesy of "The Australian Financial Review"

Phantom Of The Opera review: the masked man is mandatory viewing (The Australian Financial Review)

A new production of Phantom Of The Opera by original producer Cameron Mackintosh, now showing at Sydney Opera House, is lush but not over-the-top, ...

Another troubling aspect of the 1986 original that this version doesn’t really dispel is that the Phantom’s unloved outsider status is linked to his facial deformity. Those changes might not be apparent to the casual observer - the Phantom seemed as nefarious as ever in his treatment of her - but it is true she seemed less mesmerised by his magic than in earlier versions. The 27-piece orchestra veered impressively from traditional operatic fare to rippling synthesisers in staying true to Lloyd Webber’s original score. With a pre-pandemic stint donning the mask at Phantom’s original home in London’s West End under his belt, Piterman has the supple voice and the psychotic, yet ultimately sympathetic presence down pat. Isn’t it always the way? The stage at the Joan Sutherland Theatre is a fraction of the size of the platform that Opera Australia had to play on at Mrs Macquarie’s Steps, but director Seth Sklar-Heyn has not wasted a square inch of it.

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Image courtesy of "Limelight Magazine"

The Phantom of the Opera (Opera Australia and the Really Useful ... (Limelight Magazine)

It feels fitting The Phantom of the Opera should haunt the Sydney Opera House – and this new version of the iconic musical has plenty of thrills.

The production – directed in Australia by Seth Sklar-Heyn – emphasises the human aspect of the Phantom more than previously. Josh Piterman, who played the Phantom in the West End in 2019, rises to the challenge of the title role and gives an impressive performance. The Australian production uses the full 27-piece orchestra, featured when Phantom first opened in the West End. As for the famous chandelier, hanging over the front stalls, the opening night audience gasped with delight as its protective covering was whisked off, disappearing if by magic when it bursts into light at the start of the musical. Christine’s dressing room is now shared with the corps de ballet, while the theatre owners’ cluttered office feels warm and very much of the period. Directed by Laurence Connor, with set design by Paul Brown, the new version premiered in the UK in 2012, when Mackintosh was looking for a more flexible production to tour.

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