Though we’re saddened that Ramin Karimloo (Phantom) and Sierra Boggess (Christine) did not have an opportunity to appear in these spur-of-the-moment interviews with the cast – the interviewer caught them as everyone was breaking for lunch – it’s still exciting to get a feel of the rest of the talented cast’s personalities beyond the stage. Evidently Joseph Millson (Raoul) is a light-hearted fellow who joked around with the brilliant director Jack O’Brien and shared that he grew a moustache for rehearsals even though costume will be providing him with a fake one for the live performances. (From us to Joe, keep the moustache – the look suits you so well.)

Talking with Summer Strallen (Meg) reveals that Jack the director has been impressing the entire cast with his passion for this musical and its characters. Apparently Jack is able to act out every single one of the character’s emotions and dialogue, making them wonder if this couldn’t all just be a “one-man show.” The narrative and details of the performance are still shrouded in mystery – every time it feels like someone is going to reveal a spectacular detail it all ends up very vague. However, if we make it through this period of sworn secrecy then we expect that we’ll be blown away come February 20th. (For assurance from a cast member that this is “Andrew’s best musical to date” and for a more detailed account of how a rehearsal day goes, read this blog by Richard Linnell who is one of 6 boys to play the role of Gustave in Love Never Dies. He shares the most interesting insights from a 12 year old’s perspective – like how all the cast members are so fond of tuna fish and cucumber sandwiches!)

Watch the video for updates from the Love Never Dies rehearsal:

We were so excited by this video update that after we went and watched Ramin Karimloo’s “Till I Hear You Sing” rendition twice more. With Valentine’s Day coming up, it’s so fitting to immerse oneself in a love story that neither time nor space can crumble. Whether it’s true love or the ill-fated kind remains to be seen. What we can say is that it’s difficult not to root for the lonely Phantom who continues to long for his muse and reason for being a decade later…

The bare bones of the story is that the ever-elusive Phantom has traveled to Coney Island in America to start a new life after the events that transpired in the original musical. Madame Giry and her daughter Meg have accompanied him to America for reasons that are still a mystery to us. Starting again as a freak show attraction, the Phantom ultimately works his way up to mogul of the island and architect of many of the attractions. It’s now 10 years later and our somber Phantom still finds his soul unfulfilled and his work meaningless since Christine is not in his life. What follows is a mysterious invitation to Christine to journey across the Atlantic and sing at one of the island’s attractions, with her husband Raoul and son Gustave accompanying her. We wonder how many years of longing and loneliness can change a relationship…

If The Phantom of the Opera album is still not part of your collection, you should highly consider adding it in time for the release of the Love Never Dies album (which will coincide with show’s opening in the West End in March). The original London cast album for Phantom was the 8th best-selling album EVER – incredible for a musical. That’s how good it is. Buy the The Phantom of the Opera album on Amazon.

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“Cats” musical figurines

Fans can choose from Jemima, Munkustrap or Victoria. All three cats strike a beautiful pose reminiscent of their characters in the musical; the figurines are very detailed. When you turn the key at the base of the figurine, suddenly you hear the soft, poignant notes of “Memory” play. Get this figurine here.

Munkustrap musical figurine... and it's the exact same pose we remember from the musical!

“Cats” charm bracelet

Absolutely gorgeous and stylized charm bracelet for any female fan. The bracelet comes with 5 charms: 2 silhouettes of “Cats” dancers, 2 glowing cat eyes that are signature of the musical’s logo, and (in case some people still don’t recognize it) a silver tag with the title of the musical etched in. It’s fun, yet elegant, which mirrors the tone of the show itself. Enjoy it here.

Purr-fect...

“By Jeeves” hip flask

Perfect for a friend who needs to take a swig of whiskey periodically. We bet you’ve never seen a flask so classy. Get it here.  

By golly! It shines.

“Jesus Christ Superstar” candlestick

The description on Really Useful Group says that this candlestick is “turned oak… dated by the dendrochronology to 2000 years old. Excavated from the Thames Waterfront Roman Dock structures.” The ancient oak adds a whole other level of meaning to this item and it’s sure to impress the recipient. Find the candlestick here.

Simplistic and representative of the times.

“Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” musical MP3 bear

Though pricier, this Limited Edition keepsake is worth it. Made from the finest mohair, the bear is fully jointed and dressed in his own personal Technicolor Dreamcoat. Joseph Bear is voice activated and comes preloaded with 9 favorite songs from the musical, including “Any Dream Will Do”, “Go Go Go Joseph”, and “Close Every Door”. Get this bear here.

That coat sure looks spiffy.

“The Phantom of the Opera” musical MP3 bear

Same idea as the Joseph Bear, but instead the Phantom Bear plays “All I Ask of You” and “Music of the Night” among others. Get the Phantom Bear here.

He's dressed in a white mask and velvet cloak.

“The Phantom of the Opera” musical monkey waterglobe

The iconic music box guardian sits inside a lovely waterglobe. If you wind the key up at the bottom of the globe, “Masquerade” will play. Find it here.

It's mysterious...

“Mary Poppins” parrot umbrella

Looks exactly like the one Mary Poppins uses! The title of the musical is embroidered on the fastener; there’s a youth and adult size choice for whichever one you prefer. Find the umbrella here.

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious

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Earlier in October, Andrew Lloyd Webber unveiled his global press launch of The Phantom of the Opera’s upcoming sequel called… Love Never Dies.

The launch took place in London’s West End where Webber gave a little introduction on how this idea for a sequel came about. He also introduced the much anticipated two leads for the original cast of Love Never Dies: The Phantom will be played by the dark and handsome Ramin Karimloo (who’s currently playing the Phantom in London’s West End production) and the role of Christine will be portrayed by Sierra Boggess (who played the part of Miss Daae in the Las Vegas production of Phantom). The launch wrapped up with a sneak video performance of one song by the Phantom in the sequel called, “Till I Hear You Sing” performed by Karimloo. (We’ve included the video for you to enjoy below the article.)

We’re hotly anticipating this spectacular sequel to the major Broadway hit… but there’s also an underlying sense of worry and wringing of the hands. The Broadway nation loves The Phantom; there’s no denying that. It’s all at once the most uplifting, beautiful and saddest story ever told. Yes, there was a cliffhanger at the end of the musical leaving audiences wondering what exactly became of the Phantom – but I’m sure audiences could have lived in suspense indefinitely. It was such a powerful story that tied up in a nice satisfying package.

Hence, our grim concern on what Love Never Dies means for us and how things will all play out. Frankly I can only think of one moderately successful musical sequel production. That would be The Talk of New York which was the follow-up to George M. Cohan’s Forty-Five Minutes from Broadway. The actor Victor Moore played Kid Burns in both productions and the sequel remained popular for 20 weeks or so.

This sequel’s success is the exception to the rule. Otherwise, Broadway is littered with epic sequel failures – many of which were so poor performing that they closed within weeks. William Gibson’s The Miracle Worker was a moving play about Helen Keller and her teacher, Annie Sullivan. Gibson’s sequel, Monday After the Miracle, depicted what happened to Keller and Sullivan 20 years later. Apparently no one wanted to know.

Similarly, Bring Back Birdie which is the sequel to the 1960s fun hit Bye Bye Birdie hit a wall. This musical ended after only four sad performances. We can also refer to Annie 2 and others to see that this musical sequel business is very risky and often-times turns out for the worse.

Nonetheless, Webber’s confidence in his Phantom continuation story inspires us. We’re holding onto our optimistic hopes that this sequel will buck the trend and reach phenomenal heights. We’re eagerly anticipating the world premier in London at the Adelphi Theatre on March 9, 2010. The second production will open in New York on November 11, 2010 and then move to Australia in 2011.

Webber shares that Love Never Dies will involve all the original characters we fell in love with in The Phantom; the only new addition will be Christine and Raoul’s young son. The story is set 10 years after the Phantom’s mysterious disappearance from the Paris Opera House. We learn that he is alive and well living overseas in the fairgrounds of Coney Island in America with Madame Giry and her daughter Meg. He’s risen to prosperity amongst the freaks and oddities around Coney Island and has become somewhat of a mogul. Though he should be content with this new life where he can live above ground as opposed to below, as the title suggests the Phantom still clings to his eternal love for Christine. He lives waiting only to be reunited with her and plots to make this happen.

Taking 18 months to complete, this sequel story is obviously centered on obsession, passion and intrigue. Webber is extremely happy with the casting for the production and describes the romantic tension between the two leads, Karimloo and Boggess, as so intense it’s at times “unbearable.”

From the audience perspective, we wonder exactly what’s in store for our favorite characters? Apparently it will be similar to a Beauty and the Beast story with many twists. Could this mean that our beast will finally win the beauty’s love? Time will tell.

Please enjoy the video of the “Till I Hear You Sing” song number from Love Never Dies:

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