Who can forget the unnerving first organ notes of Andrew Lloyd Weber’s The Phantom of the Opera? It grabs the audience’s attention and injects excitement into the whole room.
The iconic music makes the show unforgettable and enthralling, so after being offered free tickets to see Clovis West High School’s performance of the play on Feb. 5, I could not pass up the offer.
After seeing this show in New York, I expected to find myself comparing the high school rendition to the Broadway masterpiece.
Although I was excited to see Phantom again, I was prepared for an amateur performance, fearing weak voices and embarrassing story portrayals. I thought nothing could even come close to the showing in New York, but Clovis West proved me wrong.
Clovis West’s rendition of The Phantom of the Opera tells the story of a haunted and lonely man, the Phantom (Isaac Ellis), who lives under an opera theater. Although no one has actually seen him, he frequently sends letters to the directors, threatening them to correct a show according to his opinion, or to suffer the consequences.
Over the years, the Phantom vocally trains a company ballet dancer named Christine Daae (Haylee Cotta) to become the star of one of his opera productions. However, the directors do not cast Christine as the lead in their production, Hannibal; rather, they place the over-dramatic opera singer Carlotta Giudicelli (Kelsey Sutton) in the spotlight.
When Carlotta is unable to rehearse, Christine stands in for her and ends up taking the role during the song “Think of Me.” Her performance is greatly applauded by the directors and by her childhood friend, Raoul (Trent Dahlin). Raoul hopes to go out to dinner with her, so he waits for her outside her dressing room.
Christine then sings the song “Angel of Music” as she becomes frightened by not knowing who her vocal teacher, the Phantom, really is. The Phantom then abducts her and takes her into his lair underneath the theater as they sing “The Phantom of the Opera.” Christine seems as if she is under a spell while with the Phantom.
The rest of the story focuses on Christine as she decides whom she wants to be with: Raoul or the Phantom. While Raoul wants to keep her safe from the dangers of the opera theater, the Phantom is very possessive of her. The audience is left to decide whether or not Christine’s decision is the right one.
Throughout the performance, Cotta’s vocal abilities as Christine were excellent, but seemed to lack confidence when she was trying to reach the higher notes. However, her performance was very well-done and impressive to watch.
Ellis’s portrayal of the Phantom definitely met my expectations of how this character should be portrayed: a mentally tortured and easily angered person, but one with a caring heart. His vocal and acting abilities were very impressive, and he made effective use of his time on stage. He helped create a purpose for his character and illustrated it well.
The play demonstrated quality not only by the actors, but also by Clovis West’s orchestra. I was shocked and impressed to see high school students warming up their instruments, as I had been expecting to hear a recorded soundtrack.
The timing of the singing with the music was excellently done and struck me as superior, as I imagined that high school students may have trouble with this. Since lead roles were taken by seniors, their vocal maturity and experience gave the show a more professional atmosphere.
Although the musical exceeded my expectations, it still had slow moments when the actors did not keep movement and actions flowing. Their motions seemed to have no purpose or motivation, like they were simply following their stage directions.
In addition, Phantom was also very well-constructed and had a good use of props, such as a real chandelier slowly swinging over the audience. Some instruments in the orchestra seemed to lack strength, but this may be expected from a high school production.
What I saw was definitely not what I expected; it was far better. I highly applaud director Elizabeth Fiester for training all members of the cast to put on this wonderful production.
I would enthusiastically recommend The Phantom of the Opera to audiences of all ages. Anyone would enjoy this performance for its spectacular music, vocals and atmosphere.
The Phantom of the Opera will continue to play Feb. 17-19 at the Mercedes Edwards Theatre.
For more play reviews, read the Dec. 18, 2010 article, ‘Nutcracker’ proves quality of local arts.
