The final curtain came down on April 16 on New York’s production of The Phantom of the Opera, ending Broadway’s longest-running show with thunderous standing ovations, champagne toasts and gold and silver confetti bursting from its famous chandelier.
It was show number 13,981 at the Majestic Theatre and it ended with a reprise of The Music of the Night performed by the current cast, previous actors in the show — including original star Sarah Brightman — and crew members in street clothes.
Andrew Lloyd Webber took to the stage last in a black suit and black tie and dedicated the final show to his son, Nick, who died last month after a protracted battle with gastric cancer and pneumonia. He was 43.
Photo: AP 照片：美聯社
The musical — a fixture on Broadway since opening on Jan. 26, 1988 — has weathered recessions, war, terrorism and cultural shifts, but the prolonged pandemic may have been the last straw: It iss a costly musical to sustain, with elaborate sets and costumes as well as a large cast and orchestra. The curtain call on April 16 showed how out of step Phantom is with the rest of Broadway but also how glorious a big, splashy musical can be.
Based on a novel by Gaston Leroux, Phantom tells the story of a deformed composer who haunts the Paris Opera House and falls madly in love with an innocent young soprano, Christine. Webber’s lavish songs include Masquerade, Angel of Music and All I Ask of You.
The first production opened in London in 1986 and since then the show has been seen by more than 145 million people in 183 cities and performed in 17 languages over 70,000 performances. On Broadway alone, it has grossed more than US$1.3 billion.
Photo: AP 照片：美聯社
When Phantom opened in New York, Die Hard was in movie theaters, Adele was born, and floppy discs were at the cutting edge of technology. A postage stamp cost 25 cents, and the year’s most popular songs were Roll With It by Steve Winwood, Faith by George Michael and Rick Astley’s Never Gonna Give You Up.
Lloyd Webber’s other musicals include Cats, Jesus Christ Superstar, Evita, Sunset Boulevard and School of Rock. The closing of Phantom means the composer is left with one show on Broadway, the critically mauled Bad Cinderella.
The closing of Phantom, originally scheduled for February, was pushed to mid-April after a flood of revived interest and ticket sales that pushed weekly grosses past US$3 million. The closing means the longest-running show crown now goes to Chicago, which started in 1996. The Lion King is next, having begun performances in 1997.
Photo: AP 照片：美聯社
Broadway took a pounding during the pandemic, with all theaters closed for more than 18 months. Some of the most popular shows — Hamilton, The Lion King and Wicked — rebounded well, but other shows have struggled.
Breaking even usually requires a steady stream of tourists, especially for Phantom, and visitors to the city haven’t returned to pre-pandemic levels. The pandemic also pushed up expenses for all shows, including routine COVID-19 testing on staff. The Phantom became a poster boy for Broadway’s return — after all, he is partially masked.
Fans can always catch the Phantom elsewhere. The flagship London production celebrated its 36th anniversary in October, and there are productions in Japan, Greece, Australia, Sweden, Italy, South Korea and the Czech Republic. One is about to open in Bucharest, and another will open in Vienna in 2024.
(AP)
在紐約演出的《歌劇魅影》，4月16日最後一次降下帷幕，如雷的起立鼓掌、香檳祝酒，以及從著名的水晶吊燈中噴發出的金銀五彩碎紙，為這百老匯演出最久的音樂劇畫下了句點。
這是該劇在美琪劇院的第13,981場演出，最後由現任卡司、幾位前任演員—包括初代女主角莎拉布萊曼—以及穿著便裝的劇組人員，重新演繹了該劇名曲「夜之樂章」。
安德魯‧洛伊‧韋伯身穿黑色西裝，打黑色領帶，最後走上舞台，將最後一場演出獻給其子尼克，尼克跟胃癌與肺炎搏鬥多年後於上月去世，享年43歲。
這部音樂劇自1988年1月26日開演以來一直在百老匯上演，經歷了經濟衰退、戰爭、恐怖主義與文化變遷。但漫長的疫情可能是最後一根稻草：維持這部音樂劇的成本很高，它有精心製作的佈景與服裝，還有龐大的演員陣容與管弦樂隊。4月16日的謝幕顯示了《魅影》與百老匯其他音樂劇的格格不入，同時也展示了一部大型、引人注目的音樂劇可以是多麼壯觀。
《魅影》改編自卡斯頓．勒胡的同名小說，描述遭逢變故而毀容的作曲家在巴黎歌劇院出沒，瘋狂愛上天真爛漫的年輕女高音克莉絲汀的故事。韋伯眾多華麗的歌曲包括「化妝舞會」、「音樂天使」及「你是我的一切所求」。
該劇首次演出是1986年在倫敦，從那時起，該劇已在183個城市演出，觀眾超過1.45億人次，並以17種語言演出了超過七萬場。僅在百老匯，其票房總收入便超過13億美元。
當《魅影》在紐約開幕時，《終極警探》在電影院上映，愛黛兒出生，磁碟片屬尖端科技。美國一張郵票的價錢是25分錢，當年最流行的歌曲是史蒂夫．溫伍德的「Roll With It」、喬治麥可的「Faith」、瑞克‧艾斯里的「Never Gonna Give You Up」。
韋伯的其他音樂劇包括《貓》、《萬世巨星》、《艾薇塔》、《日落大道》及《搖滾教室》。《魅影》的結束，表示韋伯在百老匯只剩下一齣劇上演，即飽受惡評的《壞壞灰姑娘》。
《魅影》原定在二月結束，但延至四月中旬，因為觀眾興趣重燃，門票銷售激增，讓每週票房收入超過300萬美元。《魅影》的落幕，表示演出時間最長的寶座現在屬於1996年開演的《芝加哥》，其次為1997年開演的《獅子王》。
百老匯在疫情期間遭受重創，所有劇院關閉超過18個月。一些最受歡迎的節目—《漢密爾頓》、《獅子王》和《綠野仙蹤女巫前傳》—反應良好，但其他劇碼卻舉步維艱。
要達到收支平衡，通常需要源源不斷的遊客，尤其是《魅影》，而造訪紐約的遊客仍未恢復疫情前的水平。疫情還增加了所有劇目的費用，包括工作人員的COVID-19例行檢測。《魅影》成為百老匯回歸的代言人—畢竟他是部分蒙面的。
粉絲還是能在其他地方看到《魅影》。倫敦的旗艦製作在去年十月慶祝上演36週年，並且日本、希臘、澳洲、瑞典、義大利、韓國與捷克都有演出。一齣將在布加勒斯特開幕，另一齣將在2024年於維也納開幕。
（台北時報林俐凱編譯）
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