[Sweeney Hyde]

Ok...so...I saw PotO last night at the Kennedy Center in DC.

I was in heaven last night.

We were in row O of the floor seats...the closest I've been when seeing PotO.
Here was the cast (we had some understudies filling in):
Rob Lorey...Phantom
Marni Raab...Christine
Greg Mills...Raoul
Pamela Shandrow...Carlotta
D. C. Anderson...Andre
John Kuether...Firman
Rebecca Judd...Mme. Giry
John Whitney...Ubaldo Piangi
Polly Baird...Meg Giry

Ok...here comes the actual review:
The Overture made me happy beyond reason...I laughed out of sheer joy...not loudly...possibly moan like...idk...
The Hannibal sequence was done very well...the dancing was spot on...as was the singing...I could tell from the get go that Pamela was going to be a great Carlotta and John was going to nail Piangi...which...I was correct on.
Think of Me was good...it's my least favorite song in the score...no complaints though. Marni hit the notes spot on.
Angel of Music was very well sung...however...it was at this point that I realized two things:
1. Marni wasn't going to blow me away with her acting (which she didn't...she was rather bland)
and
2. Greg was going to play Raoul more of a masculine character than a lover...his voice was more booming than tender...I prefer a tender Raoul.
The mirror scene rocked.
The title song was of course brilliant as always.
Rob's Music of the Night was...incredibly touching. He is a phenomenal actor...he also had a great voice. He seemed to me to be more of a high baritone...which was nice for me to hear, being a high baritone as well...long story short...the song made my eyes water.
Stanger than you dreamt it was extremely powerful...he acted superbly...full of rage...resentfull...etc.
Notes and Primma Donna were amazing...I have always thought it to be one of if not the most underappreciated songs in the score...really a fun song. Both Andre and Firman were excellent...very funny...very alive.
Poor Fool was hilarious.
All I Ask of You would have been significantly better had Greg acted more tender...it had the feel of..."I AM RAOUL!!! I AM HANSOMER THAN THAT OTHER CHARACTER!!! I AM RAOUL!!!" -_-
The AIAoY Reprise was extremely well done...Rob was extremely emotional and his singing and acting really meshed together rell here.

Intermission was ok...really crowded...had to go meet with people...meh.

Masquearade was very good...there wasn't as much going on during the break than there could have been...Why So Silent was great.
Notes and TEW was all very good.
WYWSHE would have been much better had she acted more...there was a lot of arm flinging going on...vocally it was incredible...but it is a musical after all...
The Don Juan sequence was very good.
Point of No Return was very passionate and well performed.
Down Once More and the rest of the show was just incredible. Still...I wish Marni had acted and Greg acted differently...Rob though...was just amazing...one of the best performances I've seen in a long time.

Curtain Call went well...not problems. Standing ovation for Rob.

THEN...because I have amazing connections...we got a VIP tour of the backstage and the stage of the Kennedy Center Opera House!! Our friend who understudied Raoul, not the one we saw unfortuneatly, whom I had seen in Into the Woods back in February gave us the tour, Sean MacLaughlin (he played Rapunzel's Prince in that Production). It was just so amazing...I got to stand at the organ...stand on the boat...sit in the throne...I was inches away from the chandelier...it was just all so amazing.

Now I'm done with my uber long story.

[pish123c]

Aw, this makes me want to go and see Phantom again. It was my first big tour, plus I was in the second row! It's been almost 5 years since I've seen it though...

How cool that you got to go backstage! I can't imagine how awesome that must've been...

[kozafluitmusique]

YOU GOT TO GO BACKSTAGE?!?!??!?!?

gahhhh.

I can't wait to talk to you about the show over AIM Sweeney.

[shakalakababy]

oh mann i am sooo jealous you got to go backstage. I would friggin die. I'm glad you liked it though

[HarmonicSoul]

I was in a Performing Arts camp in Washington DC earlier in July, and we also got to go backstage of Phantom at the Kennedy Center. We didn't meet anyone, unfortunately, but we saw all the costumes, props, and boxes. There were a lot of boxes that contained props and whatnot. XD

When I saw Phantom in July, John Cudia was playing the Phantom. He was absolutely amazing. I am curious to see how Rob Laurey did, but if I had the choice between seeing him and John again, I'd probably say John.

You were right about Marni Raab and Greg Mills. While she had a beautiful voice, her acting left much more to be desired. Not everyone can be Rachel Barrel, I suppose. As for Greg, I didn't get the (reluctantly) warm feeling I get when Raoul sings "All I Ask of You." Like you said, his voice was more booming and powerful than it was tender and concerned.

I saw it on the 8th row of the floor seats, and it was my first time seeing it live. (I usually just watch copies on Youtube. XD) It was amazing.

[SuperKabob]

OMG. US PerformingArts? I went the second week for MT.

Anywho, I went the night that the swing was playing the Phantom. You could tell he was thinking a lot more about the music than the acting, but he was alright. The only thing that really bothered me was the door in Notes....you couldn't discern it from the wall, and then it so obviously opened onto backstage...just sort of ruined the authenticity of the show.

As for the rest of the production, I enjoyed every minute of it.

[Sweeney Hyde]

[SuperKabob]

Still.....it, like.....wasn't the stage.

[Sweeney Hyde]

[SuperKabob]

It just sort of broke the illusion of the fact that they were in the late 1800s...I dont think the door out of the office of the managers (or wherever they were) opened onto an empty, blindingly-white hallway.

[jcstar]

I'm a little confused here. I'm looking at the dates and something doesn't make sense to me.

The Phantom Of the Opera tour was in Toronto at the Princess of Wales Theatre before coming to Ottawa. They have been here for a week doing previews.

Did I miss something?

Andy.

[Sweeney Hyde]

I really don't know...all I know is that it was in DC for about a month...maybe a month and a half...I saw it on it's second to last performance before going of to Ottawa...that is definately where my actor friend in it said it was heading next...idk.

[exT]

it was in toronto until mid-june, and came to ottawa mid-august, so i guess they filled in the gap with a stop in the states. after doing the tour for so long, i guess they can move it around pretty fast.

[jcstar]

Interesting. When Tewksbury and I were chatting, he talked about Canada and the audiences.

At one point he said "We just came from Toronto." to a fan who had seen the show there.

Oh well. All I know is:John Cudia was playing the Phantom as of August 12th in Ottawa. Tewksbury has taken over until Sept. 1st.

Andy.

[Paula74]

Between Toronto and Ottawa, they played the Kennedy Center for most of July. I have no idea why they didn't listed that stop on the official show site, but the official site isn't really the best source of information anyway.

A good friend of mine lives in the D.C. area and went a few times. She knows Sean and he e-mailed her to let her know when he was going on as Raoul.

Moving from one city to another isn't too difficult. I seem to recall there are two sets on the road, one in use and one that is sent ahead to be prepared at the next stop.