'Phantom of the Opera' will now close in April
Ben Crawford as The Phantom and Emilie Kouatchou as Christine currently star in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s "The Phantom of the Opera." Credit: Matthew Murphy
Following a flurry of ticket sales after “The Phantom of the Opera” producers announced in September they were closing the musical in February after 35 years, the longest-running show in Broadway history is extending its run an additional eight weeks.
On Tuesday, the producers said the Andrew Lloyd Webber-Charles Hart musical, originally set to close Feb. 18, would now end April 16. This will mark the 13,981st performance of the show at the Majestic Theatre, where “Phantom" opened on Jan. 26, 1988, after 16 previews. It cannot extend further, the announcement said, because the Majestic will then be closed for major renovations.
Tickets for Feb. 6 until the show's close go on sale at Telecharge.com Wednesday at 10 a.m., excluding a charitable event on April 14 and the final performance on April 16. “Please note there will be a waiting room system in place, so be prepared for potential waiting periods in a virtual line in order to purchase tickets," the musical's Twitter account noted Tuesday.
“The response to the news that 'The Phantom of the Opera' is finally going to end its record-breaking original Broadway run after 35 years has been as phenomenal as the show itself," producer Cameron Mackintosh said in a statement. "We are all thrilled that not only the show’s wonderful fans have been snapping up the remaining tickets, but also that a new, younger audience is equally eager to see this legendary production before it disappears."
Nominated for 10 Tony Awards, the original production won seven, including best musical, best actor in a musical (Michael Crawford) and best direction of a musical (Hal Prince). Based on the classic horror novel "Le Fantôme de L'Opéra" by Gaston Leroux, the production initially starred Crawford as the tragic yet menacing disfigured musical genius who lives in an underground lair beneath the Paris Opera House, and who becomes obsessed with the young soprano Christine Daaé, played by Sarah Brightman.
Its songs include "The Music of the Night," and the show became famed for a spectacular effect involving an immense chandelier.
