Age doesn’t matter. Experience and maturity do, I’m proud to be living my dream role today!
Jonathan Roxmouth
The Music of The Night…
Romance, passion, mystery, jealousy, and obsession – The Phantom of The Opera is your quintessential love story that returns to the Sands Theatres (Marina Bay Sands) from 24 April to 8 June 2019. The Phantom of the Opera (nicknamed POTO for short) outlines the love triangle between the Phantom, Christine and Raoul – and is sure to keep you at the edge of your seat, as the age-old mystery, based at the Paris Opera unfolds.
The musical is without a doubt, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s most popular, longest-running show on Broadway, having bagged several awards since it’s premiere in 1986.
I was fortunate to snag the opportunity to talk to some of the actors at the media call, namely Jonathan Roxmouth (The Phantom), and Matt Leisy (Raoul).
Clearly born for the stage, Jonathan Roxmouth (JR), who plays the titular character, is back in Singapore, playing the Phantom for the second time.
Jonathan, you grew up playing The Phantom. How do you feel you’ve grown this whole time?
JR: Come with an open mind – the Phantom of the Opera is the kind of musical which you can watch as a kid and as an adult, and have different takeaways each time. It has shaped my idea of human connections in a realistic way. I’ve been playing the Phantom since I was 24 years old – that’s 8 years and counting. In the beginning, there were many people who doubted me. How could a young boy effectively be the Phantom, and show his range of emotions? The doubt and experiences forced me to grow and develop, and I’m glad to be living my dream role today still.
What are the highlights / challenges of your role?
JR: The Phantom is a product of what happens when society comes across somebody who is different – they either shun, or accept – there’s no middle ground, so it’s taught me a little more about tolerance in our interactions. Love comes through tolerance, and they can’t exist without each other. But what’s beautiful is how this musical puts the two together in a way that it never leaves me.
Matt Leisy (ML), who plays the other love interest, Raoul, is new to the world tour, having joined them in January 2019.
The Phantom of the Opera is highly-awarded, and easily Andrew Lloyd Webber’s most-successful musical. Is there any pressure you faced, in preserving the integrity of the musical / were there personal touches that you added?
ML: Yes and no – yes, because of how long a history this musical has. Everybody knows and has certain expectations of how Raoul should be. However, with every actor playing Raoul, or any character for that matter – we do add our own personal touch. And I count myself lucky – because it comes a little more naturally to me.
What should Singapore look forward to when they come for the musical?
ML: On that note – something to look out for in this run of the musical is definitely the intricate costumes! During the party scene, “Masquerade”, be prepared to watch the whole stage come alive with actors in completely different costumes, in hundreds of colours and textures – it’s easily your childhood dress-up dream-come-true.
JR: The musical’s timelessness and lessons are things to look out for.
The Phantom of the Opera is a huge operation with a 130 cast, crew, and orchestra members. Assistant Director of the production, Rainer Fried, added how much attention was paid to the set design. They transformed the otherwise modern-looking Sands theatre, into a Victorian-themed opera house like the Paris Opera, with a full chandelier (a key piece in the musical), hanging from the middle of the stage. “Everything is designed in a space-saving manner, to increase efficiency of transport on sea in between trips during this tour,” he also added how the candles in the scene where the Phantom kidnaps Christine in a gondola to his underground lair, were made with lots of technology backing it – things which would enhance the audience’s watching experience.
The musical runs from 24 April to 8 June 2019 at the Sands Theatre, Marina Bay Sands – come and be entranced here, that’s “All I Ask of You”.
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