The reputation of “The Phantom of the Opera” precedes any form of viewing. Globally known and critically acclaimed, theatre buffs and average people alike are aware of its famous music and colossal success. However, once “Phantom” is seen on stage, one can understand the reasons for the sensation – it’s a darkly simplistic tale wrapped in elaborate, breathtaking theatrical design. “Phantom” truly presents itself as a poignant, global presence through its beautifully composed music and performers that boast enrapturing vocal power.

The musical runs at the St. Louis Fabulous Fox Theatre from Sept. 30 through Oct. 25 and tickets are $28 to $130. It is being performed amidst the recent, major news of a “Phantom” sequel titled “Love Never Dies” set in Coney Island. It is reported to premiere in 2010 in London.

The musical, based off of Gaston Leroux’s 1911 novel “Le Fantome de L’Opera,” is a masterpiece of Andrew Lloyd Webber, who composed the music with lyrics by Charles Hart. Webber, knighted in 1992, has composed 13 musicals including “Evita,” “Cats,” and “Jesus Christ Superstar.” One of the richest men in Britain, Webber has won numerous prestigious awards for his creations, including seven Tony Awards, three Grammy Awards, an Academy Award, and a Golden Globe Award.

The musical truly possesses the most impressive record in the history of musical theatre.

The show has won over 50 major theatre awards, including three Olivier Awards (the equivalent to the Tony Award in London), the most recent being the 2002 Oliver Audience Award for Most Popular Show, seven Drama Desk Awards and three Outer Critic Circle Awards.

The Broadway production, the first being in 1988, became the longest running show ever on Broadway when it overtook “Cats”, another Webber creation, with its 7,486th performance on Jan. 6, 2006.
“Phantom” is also the most financially successful musical ever, as it is estimated that more than 80 million people in 124 cities and 25 countries have seen it since 1986. The total worldwide gross now exceeds $5 billion.

The original cast album entered the music charts at number 1, a first in British musical history. Album sales are in excess of $40 million worldwide and it is the best selling cast album of all time.In 2004, a big screen version of the show was released starring Gerard Butler and Emmy Rossum and directed by Joel Schumacher. Numerous other literary adaptations have been created.
The story is set at the Paris Opéra Populaire in 1881, where we meet the beautiful ballerina and soprano Christine Daaé. She has been taught operatic vocal skills by a mysterious tutor, an “angel of music” presumably sent by Christine’s deceased father. This “angel” is revealed to be the Phantom, a masked musical genius who haunts the opera house and lives in the Paris sewers. He becomes obsessed with Christine and lures her through the Paris catacombs to his lair so that he can mold her vocal talent around his musical aspirations, wishing for “my music and your voice in one combined.”

But his horrifying appearance and violent despair poisons any potential for love between the two. Chaos ensues when Christine falls in love with her childhood friend and patron of the arts, Raoul. The outraged Phantom plots revenge on the lovers as well as anyone who stands in his way. Disastrous events descend upon the Opera Populaire before the fates of the Phantom, Christine, and Raoul are decided.

The musical cannot accurately be defined or described in a single word or simple phrase. There are so many facets of the production that cause it to be both a classic and a masterpiece.
The show combines the raw emotional beauty of its music with elaborate theatrical designs for sets and costumes, as well as thrilling special effects. The production retains an aura similar to a magic show, but it has more substance resulting from its intricate plot weaved by characters with a striking amount of depth and bold power. Even if such detailed lighting, costumes, and sets were stripped away from the musical, it would still maintain a haunting command over its audience, which is one reason why the cast album has been so successful.

One of the largest highlights of the entire production at the Fox was the Phantom himself, Tim Martin Gleason. Gleason has had a long history with “Phantom,” completing a record-setting tenure as Raoul for three different American companies in over three years. He is the longest-running Raoul in American history, playing the role more than 2,600 times, and he originated the role for “Phantom: The Las Vegas Spectacular.”
Gleason is absolutely phenomenal in his performance of the title character. His voice is perfectly suited to the emotionally charged songs in the musical as he reaches his higher notes with chilling sentiment and poignancy. His take on the Phantom’s character is also significant – Gleason seems to prefer to convey the loneliness and misery of his character in a more subdued manner, commanding attention without overdramatic fervor in such songs as “The Music of the Night,” “The Phantom of the Opera” and “All I Ask of You (Reprise).”

Trista Moldova, who plays Christine, also contributes to the brilliance of the cast. She played Cosette in the regional premiere of “Les Miserables” at the Pioneer Theater Company and recently worked with Julie Andrews in the John Bucchino musical “Simeon’s Gift”. She has appeared in many television shows such as “The Guiding Light,” “All My Children,” and “As the World Turns.” Moldova exhibits great skill with a dash of warm feeling in songs such as “Think of Me,” “Angel of Music”, and “Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again.”

Other spectacular additions to the cast include the dashing Sean MacLaughlin as Raoul, who gives a lovely, sweet performance – an appropriate contrast to Gleason’s dark Phantom – in songs such as “Little Lotte” and “All I Ask of You.”

Other actors that deserve recognition are Kim Stengel as the humorously over-the-top soprano Carlotta Giudicelli and D.C. Anderson and Michael McCoy as the opera’s bumbling owners. Each of these characters gives the musical a drop of light-heartedness amidst an otherwise emotionally draining plot. Songs such as “Prima Donna,” “Notes,” and the operatic parodies of Carlotta caused the St. Louis audience to actually laugh, a striking dissimilarity between most of the other scenes.

The Fox proves to be a character in itself – its beautiful designs and magnificent height completely transform the performance so that the audience truly feels that they are completely absorbed in the atmosphere of the Opera Populaire. The Fox legitimizes the elaborate, gorgeous period costumes, colorful operatic scenes, and startling lighting effects of the show. A scene where the Opera’s chandelier (reported on the  Web site of “Phantom” to be 1,000 pounds) is suddenly brightened and surreally raised to the ceiling of the Fox is especially powerful.

Other breathtaking special effects include the use of fog on the floor of the stage to simulate a lake in which a boat containing the Phantom and Christine is traveling. The fog ripples as water would, a mesmerizing feat that uses 550 pounds of dry ice for each performance. The scenic design is also unique. Scenes are depicted from behind the stage of the opera, with strategically placed curtains and rooms that transport the audience to the other side of the stage. This masterful design by Maria Bjornson is truly brilliant.

The Gothic, haunting music affects all who have the privilege of hearing it in a theatrical setting. They define the musical as dramatic, romantic, and beautifully tragic. Webber establishes himself as a musical genius, enhancing his creation’s plot rather than distracting from it with over-embellished music.

He combines the appropriate mixture of raw power and subtle delicacy to define “Phantom” and the utter complexity of its meaning. Songs such as “The Music of the Night,” “Point of No Return,” and “Why Have You Brought Me Here/All I Ask of You” display dilemmas within characters including the meanings of darkness versus light, and emotional versus intellectual supremacy.
One could endlessly describe the wonders, mysteries, and delights of “Phantom.” Such a musical is proven to be timeless, not only because of its global success but because of the universal themes and moral dilemmas it depicts. The end of the production emphasizes this idea. The standing ovation was clearly an earned response rather than mechanic. Audience members seemed to be experiencing choking emotion from the tragic plight of the Phantom as Gleason somberly bowed.

“The Phantom of the Opera” is truly a musical not to be missed.  It is a tragedy on a Shakespearean level, an epic, theatrical masterpiece of a lifetime.