Karimloo Fronts Phantom 25th Show at Albert Hall
London’s Royal Albert Hall will host the 25th anniversary celebrations of Andrew Lloyd Webber‘s The Phantom of the Opera this October according to reports in The Stage.
It is also reported that Sierra Boggess, who starred in the show’s Las Vegas production in 2006 will be reunited with her Love Never Dies cast mate in the role of Christine.
In response Nicholas Allott, managing director of Cameron Mackintosh Ltd, said in a statement: “We plan to announce details of the 25th anniversary celebrations for The Phantom of the Opera within the next three weeks. In the meantime, nothing has been confirmed and any casting and creative team speculation is just that – speculation. We will shortly be able to present you with a comprehensive package for what promises to be a very exciting event.”
Karimloo played the Phantom at Her Majesty’s Theatre from 2007 to 2009 before taking role in the musical’s sequel Love Never Dies when it premiered at the Adelphi in March 2010.
The musical theatre star, who also appeared as Enjolras in the 25th anniversary concert of Les Miserables at the O2, told The Stage: “It’s going to be great and I will treat it like the Les Mis anniversary concerts, which I recently appeared in and where, because it was performing a part I had played before, I could tap into the work I had done prior.” He continued, “Our version will be a take on the old one, but designed specifically for the Albert Hall and created very much with that space in mind.”
As previously reported, Ramin Karimloo – who won this year’s Whatsonstage.com Award for his role in Love Never Dies – auctioned two tickets and VIP treatment at a “Phantom Concert” as part of this year’s Comic Relief #TwitRelief event. Listings for the auction, which attracted a winning bid of £1850, said the event could potentially be “one of the greatest nights in British musical theatre history”.
The Phantom of the Opera, which is directed by Harold Prince, has now been seen in 124 cities in 25 countries and played to over 100 million people. The musical is based on Gaston Leroux’s gothic novel about a masked man who falls in love with an ingénue singer at the Paris Opera House. The show premiered on 9 October 1986 at Her Majesty’s Theatre, where it continues to run.
The show is currently booking at Her Majesty’s theatre until 8 April 2012, but has a short gap in its booking period from 7 to 10 October. A spokesman for Really Useful Group Ltd would not be drawn on whether the break in performances was connected to any concert plans.
