SUA Performing The Phantom of the Opera

St. Ursula students and boys from other schools in grades 8-12 will be performing The Phantom of the Opera this school year in January at the Valentine eatre. In addition, 6th-7th graders who are trained ballerinas were granted admission into the cast as special Corps de Ballet performers. The themes in The Phantom of the Opera are in contrast with last year’s musical, Annie. This musical has complex themes and elaborate dances. With the soon closure of the 35-year long run on Broadway, this musical will surely be an exciting opportunity for the SUA community.

The Phantom of the Opera had its first performance in Her Majesty’s Theatre in London. Since then, the musical has gained international fame and praise for its music, lyricism, and writing. e idea for the musical came from Andrew Lloyd Weber in 1984, who was inspired by the French novel The Phantom of the Opera written by Gaston Leroux in 1909. Though the story is fictional, specific elements of the piece are influenced by legends about the Paris Opéra House. The story follows Christine, played by SUA senior Annika Pendell, a dancer and aspiring singer. She becomes the object of a strange, musically gited man’s obsession, the Phantom will be played by Toledo Christian senior Lucas Patterson. e Phantom lives beneath the Paris Opéra House. e show begins with an auction, and the part of the auctioneer was given to Mr. Maas!

A chandelier, one of the items at the event, was in a well-known, mysterious disaster. The auctioneer asks the auction assistants to power on the chandelier, and as it whirs to life, the overture begins to play, and we are taken back to 1881 before the disaster occurred.

St. Ursula’s portrayal of this classic musical will surely be an experience worth seeing! Tickets are to go on sale during the month of January.