Filing An Emotional Distress Claim Against Jonathan Roxmouth For:

Oh shit, I started a fanfic!

Welp, we've gone this far. Follow me on AO3 and tune in to a POTO retelling lol.

An Essay on Why David Shannon and Gina Beck Are My Favorite Final Lair Coupling

They are just absolutely brilliant together. And I think it's a combination of bouncing off each other's spontaneous reactions well, but also having a plan and complete synergy in how they understand their characters and the arc of the scene. It all works together to secure the Phantom's transformation and redemption while also leaving the audience feeling like Christine made the right decision, which is such a hard line to walk in the final lair.

I think Gina's Christine genuinely loves Erik in this one, but there was absolutely no way she was going to stay with him after everything he'd done. The decision is questionable for other Christines, but her particular take on the character just wasn't going to allow for that, especially given his Phantom's more aggressive approach to the final lair.

And unlike other interpretations of this scene, both she and David/the Phantom know that and it plays out in their body language post-kiss. Up to that point, David had literally been grabbing Christine at will and throwing her all over the place, all while desperately denying that his actions were dooming their relationship. And now she comes back to return the ring and he literally can't make himself touch her because he knows he's pissed away every claim to that kind of intimacy with her. There's no verbal or physical bid for her to stay; that unfulfilled caress says "I recognize what I've done and that I have no right to ask you to be with me, so I'm letting you go." And even worse is the fact that David also plays Erik with chronic pain, so we can hardly tell if the face twitch/wince he does is literal or figurative (let's just say it's both).

GIVE THEM A DAMN OSCAR, IDC.

The content I didn't know I needed.

another excerpt from The Hang With Ramin Karimloo where Sierra talks about regretting her choice at the end

Ted Keegan's Phantom is always so happy and innocent at that organ before STYDI, why would Christine do such a thing to him?

(Side note: I love when actors lean into reminding us that Erik is genuinely in love with music. Adds unspoken character depth and helps answer questions like: Why is he so obsessed with Christine? How has music functioned as his primary means of socialization and processing emotions?)

"Letters To Milena", Franz Kafka

In one of your older posts I read about how Marcus Lovett deliberately echoed Raoul and Piangi for some scenes, because he thought that Erik would mimic them in terms of “manly” behavior. I thought this was really interesting, and I was wondering if you could talk about any scenes in particular that stood out in this way?

One scene that definitely stood out was the proposal after “Point of No Return”, before the unmasking. Here Marcus Lovett’s Phantom seemed to perfectly mimick Raoul’s movements and manners in the Rooftop scene.

I thought it was an interesting take on it, and I brought it up when talking to Marcus Lovett after the show. He looked mighty pleased that I had noticed that detail. He told it was an acting choice; that he envisioned the Phantom studying the men of the opera numerous times to try and understand how a man was supposed to appear to the world. Which is why the Phantom has a slightly theatrical flair, because without realizing he was just as much studying opera roles than actual men. But with Raoul he saw genuine affections towards a woman, and this is what he figures out Christine wants - hence the PONR moment (albeit he could probably pick up more clues from Raoul, given what happens next...!)

There’s something deeply human and adorably clumsy about this, and when seeing Marcus Lovett’s Phantom again with this arch in mind I loved him doubly. He had really thought of every single little detail he did on stage, from hand movements to grander arch storytelling. Which is also why, despite moments of rusty vocals, I list him as one of my favourite Phantoms.

Again: Marie Danvers stood on business when it came to laying smooches on her costars. And her roster was impeccable.

Was completely unprepared for JRox to snatch my entire soul and now I'm just...unsettled. How am I supposed to sleep?!?!

Hugh Panaro's evolution over the course of his different runs deserves more attention.

There's that mysterious year long run in the 90s that I know nothing about (is there even footage of it?).

Then he came back around '03 and early on it seems like he tried to fit the mold of the more "classic," operatic Phantoms...but then by '05 you see him embrace his unique vocal style and that more psycho, jokeresque approach to the role.

And then you've got the final run in the 2010s where he builds on what he started exploring at the end of run 2 and perfects the unique touches like "my angel" and offers a more queer-coded Erik, and I love it all. How many Phantoms do you get to have these kind of change over time analyses with??