Andrew Lloyd Webber

I absolutely love everything about the musical production The Phantom of the Opera: the gothic setting; the music; the operas within an opera and of course the cleverly constructed and often overlapping lyrics are just sublime. Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera Companion contains the original screenplay and reading it enhanced my already existing appreciation of the musical.

“Some of you may recall the strange affair of the Phantom of the Opera: a mystery never fully show more explained.” Page 62

I recently attended Opera Australia’s production of The Phantom of the Opera at the State Theatre in Melbourne four times and it continues to raise the hair on the back of my neck and give me goosebumps every, single, time.

I've always struggled to describe the sheer majesty of the title song and the "duuuuuun, dun dun dun dun dunnnnnn!" that reverberates into your chest. In this companion edition I'm pleased to have finally found a description from the screenplay that sums it up in just three words:

"The porters whip off the canvas. The auctioneer switches on the chandelier by igniting a huge battery. There is an enormous flash and the thunderous organ overture begins." Page 62

It's the thunderous organ overture which never fails to move me or ignite my senses. Reading the screenplay in full for the first time provided a new angle from which to appreciate Andrew Lloyd Webber's brilliance. The clever word play and poetic rhythm of the lyrics deliver tongue twisters one moment while other times the lines seem to trip off your tongue in sheer delight. Take the following example from Christine. Even if you don't know the circumstances or accompanying tune, the words are lyrical and seem to dance together in a way that makes my brain feel like warm, sticky caramel:

"Twisted every way, what answer can I give? Am I to risk my life, to win the chance to live? Can I betray the man who once inspired my voice? Do I become his prey? Do I have any choice? He kills without a thought, he murders all that's good... I know I can't refuse, and yet, I wish I could. Oh God - if I agree, what horrors wait for me in this - the Phantom's Opera...?" Page 125

I'm well aware that my enjoyment of this book is inexplicably connected to my love of the opera itself, but it's as though my mind enjoys picking over the lyrics and melodies and revisiting their uniqueness over and over. It then seeks to deliver snippets to me throughout the day in 100 little ear worms and sudden and tuneful outbursts without provocation. Perhaps the Angel of Music haunts me just as it does Christine...

Often the characters' lines will overlap and I was able to read all of the lyrics in the screenplay for the first time here. Sung and read together, they create a swirling sphere of linguistic pleasure that seems to envelope my brain in a sweet fog of words and music that ignites my soul and won't let go.

The musical is multi layered (like the movie Inception) with plays within the play and even makes fun of industry cliches and stereotypes in the caricature of Carlotta and the swooning lovesick and overly protective leading man Raol. There's also a clear sense of humour throughout, one of my favourites being "and what is it that I've meant to have wrote, written?" The stage production in Melbourne was exquisite and the scenery was mesmerisingly clever with performers and the set continuously transforming and defying any attempt to understand how it all works. The interactions between Andre and Firmin are absolute highlights for me, and I loved reading their 'notes sequence'.

Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera Companion is a book I'll never part with and I'm so glad I now have my own ready reference to all of the lyrics. The lyric I'm trying to learn by heart at the moment is the following from Masquerade:

"Flash of mauve ... Splash of puce... Fool and king ... Ghoul and goose ... Green and black ... Queen and priest ... Trace of rouge ... Face of beast ... Faces ........ Eye of gold ... Thigh of blue ... True is false ... Who is who? ... Curl of lip ... Swirl of gown ... Ace of hearts ... Face of Clown." Page 111

Were you able to read it through without stumbling? Are you also a Phantom tragic? I'd love to know. It could be another decade before I have the chance to “close my eyes and let my spirit start to soar” once again, but now that I have the screenplay - in addition to the Original London Cast recording from 1987 - I'll be able to re-visit the Music of the Night any time.

Highly recommended! show less

I still remember accidentally finding this book at the local Waldenbooks when I was fifteen. I'd loved Leroux's novel for years, but I had had no idea that there was anything beyond that novel until I stumbled upon this book. I bought immediately, even though the $20 I spent on it was pretty much all the money I had in the world at that time, and I never regretted my purchase.

This book opened a whole new world for me. I thought the pictures were gorgeous, and I memorized the entire libretto show more of the ALW musical without hearing a note of the music. I fell in love with the story, and I had never even seen it except through the pictures in this book. And when I finally did get to see the musical on stage, at last, four years later, I was enthralled with how beautiful it was.

Although, I really must partially blame this book for the horrible disappointment I experienced when I watched the ALW movie version of the musical. The movie was so very ugly in comparison to the stage production. I guess it didn't help that two of the three leads couldn't sing at all. I came home after watching the movie for the first (and only) time and made a beeline for this book, studying the photos in this book that I knew so well and saying to myself, "Well, at least the stage show has it right."

I've moved onto other things now, and though I still enjoy the musical, I'll never look at it with the same eyes as I once had. Still, I'll never forget how I felt when I first flipped through these pages. It was like magic. show less

I thought this was gonna be cheesy and forgettable! Why did nobody tell me that it was the twentieth century's premiere dramatization of the Christ legend--the vacillating Pilate, the wounded Judas, the Mary Magdalene who dares to dream that she may be worth something in this world after all, that the reconciliation between the trauma she's experienced and the self-reliance she's learned walking the streets may be that she can be a pillar of strength for this beautiful, special man (it made show more me think of the girl I've been seeing, who is a children's ICU nurse, and how sometimes it's the strongest people who most need support and rest because of the extreme situations they get into as part of helping their fellow man, because they're strong. I'm not comparing myself to Mary Magdalene, but I understood that feeling). The tiny voice inside saintly Jesus that says it's not fair and makes him human, the implied tyrant God. My friends put it on tonight, and after JC was crucified he came on and danced on the bar while Judas led the crowd in some soul-power-star-time wearing a white leisure suit. This is no joke; it's serious art. show less

This autobiography is a fun read. Depending on your interest in the origins of Phantom, Cats, Evita and Jesus Christ Superstar will impact your experience. Lots of tell all bitchy stuff. I especially enjoyed the portion about Streisand wanting to see the production of Cats prior to recording Memory. She sat through the first act and then requested a glass of milk. After the milk arrived she left the theater before the second act began. Of course, the second act is when Memory is sung! She show more later told Andrew Lloyd Webber that she was claustrophobic. I guess when you are the number one Diva in the world you can get away with anything. She did record the song and you know the rest. show less