At 11 o'clock on the eighth day of October 2009, I will be making an announcement of global importance.
Should my commands be ignored, a disaster beyond your imagination will occur.
Amor Numquam Moritur
Your Obedient Servant,
The Phantom "
this letter came from RUG (The Really Useful Group). i had expected this: the announcement of when the sequel of The Phantom of the Opera will be released. at first, the news about that sequel was mostly received coldly by die-hard fans. i am one of those die-hard fans, but my doubt did not reach the extent of condemning a possible sequel. i thought, 'i haven't even seen the original one. then, a sequel just came up..Haay, Michael Crawford..if only i had been born before the height of Phantom's success. i would have been one of those who were awestruck by God's gift to musical theatre.'
8 October: Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber made the announcement. he looked pretty much excited about his new work, but not as excited as the release of his first one. he related that back in 1997, he had a talk with Maria Bjornson, the production designer of Phantom on stage, about a possible sequel. Maria find the ending lame (Christine went on to live with a 'boring' wealthy aristocrat). Andrew began collaborating with the writer Frederick Forsyth, but the project was put on hold because he felt the ideas were not suitable to be adapted on stage. Forsyth later released a book called The Phantom of Manhattan based on some of the ideas. then, Ben Elton approached him in 2007. he related his own idea of preserving the original characters. thus, the sequel Phantom: Love Never Dies began.
if you will ask me about the title, i find it lame. i don't know. it's too typical and unappealing, but my belief in my favourite composer never dies out. i guess the reason why the sequel has gone on and off is that he had no initial inspiration in making the musical score; unlike in the first one in which his then wife and lead actress on the show, Sarah Brightman, had been the inspiration and reason behind the most successful musical theatre of all time. however, upon hearing some music from the latest sequel, i guess it would be one great show. his artistic musical genius never loosen its grip, at least for me. Ramin Karimloo will play the Phantom, and Sierra Boggess will play Christine. i hope John Barrowman will play as Raoul because in the cast recording, he's Raoul.
“LOVE NEVER DIES” continues the story of ‘The Phantom’, who has moved from his lair in the Paris Opera House to haunt the fairgrounds of Coney Island, far across the Atlantic. set 10 years after the mysterious disappearance of ‘The Phantom’ from Paris, this show is a rollercoaster ride of obsession and intrigue...in which music and memory can play cruel tricks...and ‘The Phantom’ sets out to prove that, indeed, “LOVE NEVER DIES”.
the new show will have its World Premiere in London at the Adelphi Theatre on tuesday 9 March 2010 followed by New York on thursday 11 November and in Australia in 2011. (loveneverdies.com)
generally, i am excited. i am thinking about pre-ordering the cast recording. two sample music, 'Till I Hear You Sing' sang by Ramin Karimloo and the 'Coney Island Waltz' were played during the grand launch. i wouldn't be able, however, to see it on stage. Poor me. i may satisfy myself listening to the music and, probably, watching come clips in YouTube (just like what i did in Phantom).
for all you know, this is my obsession, and i will be obsessed by it forever. the Music of the Night is not over, never will be over...
