Theater producer Cameron Mackintosh has been bringing long runs of grand theatrical spectacles to Chicago for nearly half a century now. Delivering a big night out for regular folks remains a point of pride for him, and his brand-new tour of “The Phantom of the Opera” remarkably manages to deliver the classic Hal Prince production in a refreshed and fiscally practical package that, necessarily in my view, gives more sensual self-actualization to Christine while maintaining the empathetic Phantom so crucial to the experience.
I’ve seen this show a dozen times or more from Chicago to London to Las Vegas, home of the most terrifying chandelier in “Phantom” history. I was there when the Broadway production finally closed in New York. And most recently, I reviewed the new interactive version, dubbed “Masquerade,” in New York.
These experiences have taught me that the show, while never as emotionally substantial as “Les Miserables” (the greatest of the Mackintosh extravaganzas), engenders a unique hold over its fans, a relationship which has not meaningfully diminished over time, regardless of the problematic elements of the melodrama at its core. This remains an aspirational show that people purchase to impress a date, or relive a memory or to find something with multi-generational appeal that can bring a family together. One need only look at how the audience dressed at Saturday night’s opening — which took place in frigid temperatures — to see the expectations and while I like eavesdropping on audience conversations, this time I made a point of overhearing. The chatter of anticipation was palpable and, more importantly, so was the talk of expectations fulfilled. “They kept breaking the fourth wall,” one ‘tween girl seating near me, said to her mother, offering up dramatic theory like she was George Bernard Shaw. I can’t say I saw much of that myself, but I suspect she was reacting to the uncommonly intense relationship between the show and its fans.
The job of a critic in these rare instances, it seems to me, is one of protector. So. This “Phantom” delivers on all prior expectations. This is no longer easy since director Prince, the original “Phantom” choreographer Gillian Lynne, and the original production designer Maria Björnson, all are no longer alive. So we are in world of recreation (direction by Seth Sklar-Heyn, design by Matt Kinley and choreography by Chrissie Cartwright) but Andrew Lloyd Webber and Mackintosh are joint keepers of the “Phantom” flame, with the latter most invested in this Prince production above all.
It is now a historic entity, really, from Prince’s famed “Masquerade” staging on the steps to Björnson’s boat ride through the catacombs, illuminated by those famed giant candles, to her incredible use of heavy drapery to delineate space; I view it with great affection and it is a wonderful thing that it has been kept alive in the famously ephemeral world of the theater. Few great pieces of direction are so lucky.
But musicals are mostly the province of humans and this one retains its cast of 32 (plus about 16 musicians in the pit), a true rarity these days among touring productions and, indeed, shows on Broadway, at least in the cast size, plus swings and all. Isiah Bailey is a moving “Phantom,” fully able to inhabit the, well, operatic requirements of the role while offering some gentleness at the same time and Jordan Lee Gilbert’s more accessible Christine is no pushover, even as Gilbert beautifully hits all comers and goers within the part’s famous vocal range. Midori Marsh adds an uncommon note or two of humanity to the trampled-upon role of Carlotta.
Cameron Mackintosh and Andrew Lloyd Webber unveil their new tour of ‘Phantom of the Opera’
Daniel Lopez, a floppy-haired actor who plays Raoul, has a boyish quality that works well for a role which can (and has) come off as the province of a stiff. This show needs Raoul to be empathetic, too, especially given the conclusion and he serves that well, without trampling on the reality that Christine sees (and feels) some things in and from the Phantom that her besuited young boyfriend can’t yet understand about a woman and maybe never will. That’s all part of what this show has been selling for decades and, so far, it has found more than 160 million global buyers.
Long may the chandelier rise and fall, eight shows a week, hooking casual theatergoers on an art form that very much needs their help beyond this one title. And in an era of shorter runs, how great to have this guy committed all winter to Chicago’s Loop; you can’t see it in New York anymore, unless you want the Phantom right in your face.
Chris Jones is a Tribune critic.
cjones5@chicagotribune.com
Review: “The Phantom of the Opera” (4 stars)
When: Through Feb. 11
Where: Cadillac Palace Theatre, 151 W. Randolph St.
Running time: 2 hours, 35 minutes
Tickets: $49-$195 at broadwayinchicago.com