Luxe Life Blog

Photo Galleries: Phantom of the Opera fans celebrate beloved musical

Posted September 18, 2009 • 12:34 p.m.

Costumed fans and cast members of Phantom of the Opera take part in a Masquerade Ball at St. Mark's Square in The Venetian.

Photo: Tom Donoghue/www.donoghuephotography.com

Phantom of the Opera fans from around the world turned out for the opening day sessions of Phantom Fans Week at The Venetian yesterday. They’re celebrating the amazing musical reaching the 50 million audience mark for Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber’s theatrical production globally.

The first morning session started with a conversation with The Phantom, Tony Award-winning actor Anthony Crivello. He told fans that he undergoes two hours of makeup before each show. The transformation of his face goes from normal to the hideous, distorted features of the millionaire mentor of his student singer Christina Daae, so ugly that half his face is hidden behind a mask for most of the musical.

Fans also got to meet behind-the-scenes crew and other production staff. Our contributing photographer Tom Donoghue shot these close-up, intimate photo galleries exclusively for Vegas DeLuxe.

In the afternoon, it was time for the audience to meet more of the Phantom cast in a Q&A session at The Venetian. Andrew Ragone, who portrays Raoul, and Kristi Holden and Kristen Hertzenberg, who play Christine, were among the participants.

Last night, it was time to party and participate in the Masquerade Ball. Everybody descended on St. Mark’s Square in The Venetian, many in elaborate costumes, for the memorable event.

Motley Crue frontman Vince Neil, on a 10-day break from the Crue Fest 2 Tour, and his wife Lia showed up for last night’s special fans performance of the show and met with Anthony backstage. Fans from as far away as Australia, Japan and Canada wore costumes to the show and the after-party in St. Mark’s Square.

Anthony told me: “I have been genuinely amazed today at the extraordinary level of interest and appreciation from the fans. To describe this as a success would be an understatement. It has overwhelmed us, and we know this will become an annual affair now and be even grander next year now that we know what to expect. These fans are as passionate about the show as we are onstage performing it. We’ve been completely thrown by the level of sophistication, intelligence and knowledge.

“They know as much about the show’s history and production complexities as we do. They know the script and the lyrics. Some could even step right into my role if necessary and not miss a beat. The costumes they’ve created run into the thousands of dollars, and they told me they wear them whenever they can. Not just at Halloween but regularly to parties and events, even out on the street sometimes!”

Longtime Las Vegas resident and actress Tina Walsh told me that Andrew Lloyd Webber had invited her to New York days ago to audition for his Phantom sequel Love Never Dies as he prepares it for Broadway and London premieres next year. To date, he has not sold the rights for it to be performed anywhere else -- including Las Vegas -- for several years.

Tina, who almost ran late to the show for the first time ever last night because she had been successfully rescuing her Koi fish trapped in a rock fall of her garden pond, added: “Each of our cast here met the fans, and everybody had different questions for us about our work, our rehearsals, our regimens. Most of my questions went into detail about the auditioning process: how many there were, how long they take, how long before decisions are made. I was really fascinated by their level of interest.”

Longtime director and 21-time Tony Award winner Harold Prince arrived at The Venetian yesterday and will deliver a 90-minute keynote address to the fans tomorrow. This morning, the fans peek into the makeup and wardrobe departments backstage, and two lucky ones will be transformed into The Phantom and Christina. This afternoon, the giant crystal chandelier, dubbed Maria, becomes the star of the convention, and fans will get to sit directly beneath it as it crashes down from the ceiling into the seats below!

We’ll continue our coverage of Phantom Fans Week through the weekend.

Robin Leach has been a journalist for more than 50 years and has spent the past decade giving readers the inside scoop on Las Vegas, the world’s premier platinum playground.

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