The announcement said it’ll be at the theaters until Oct. 18, but if we were you, we’d dash to the cinema right now to catch the ultra-spectacular 25th anniversary celebration concert of “The Phantom of the Opera,” which was filmed live during its performance at London’s Royal Albert Hall recently, and is now being screened in select theaters worldwide, including some in the metro.
The film is currently showing, usually in the latter part of the day, at Greenbelt, Glorietta, TriNoma, Shangri-La Mall, Rockwell, Robinsons Manila, Eastwood Mall and SM Mall of Asia. Not many people are buying tickets, as evidenced by sparse attendance inside, so there’s a danger that the theaters might pull out the film before Oct. 18. Hence the need for haste.
Because if you miss this “Phantom,” you’d be missing a rare and exceedingly memorable treat. This is not the film version of “Phantom of the Opera”— the one directed by Joel Schumacher, with Gerard Butler, Emmy Rossum and Patrick Wilson in the leads, though it uses the same Andrew Lloyd Webber music.
This is a concert version of the musical, lavishly and fully staged, to give viewers the next best experience of seeing the show live (there is even a 20-minute intermission after the first act).
The ornate sets, costumes (the Maria Bjornson finery is incredible), full orchestration, and the outsize talents of Ramin Karimloo (as the Phantom) and Sierra Boggess (as Christine) anchoring a sprawling cast of first-rate voices are all filmed in crisp high-definition.
A 15-minute intro consisting of remarks and reminiscences by the original creators—pro ducer Cameron Mackintosh, director Hal Prince, lyricists Richard Stilgoe and Charles Hart, and Lloyd Webber himself—provides context to the stature and impact this musical has had over the last 25 years (with worldwise grosses of over $5.6 billion, “Phantom’s” box-office revenues are now said to be higher than any film or stage play in history, including “Avatar,” “Titanic,” “ET” and “Star Wars”).
The film clocks at over three hours, but do not EVER sprint out of the theater after the cast has taken its bows, because, as is usual with Cameron Mackintosh extravaganzas like this (the finales of “Les Miserables’” 10th and 25th anniversary concert productions, for instance), a sensational encore awaits viewers, designed to end the show on a truly exhilarating, unforgettable note. No spoiler alert here, be assured. Just go, watch—and swoon.
