 The side of the Pantages |
I was sooooo excited to see the show this day, for several reasons. First of all, it had been over two years since I had last seen it, and I was going through severe withdrawal. 🙂 Plus, I was finally getting a chance to see it at the Pantages theatre in Toronto, which is just a beautiful theatre. And, I was getting to see a new Phantom, a guy with the strange name of Ciaran Sheehan. 🙂 |
| So, we arrived at the Pantages early, and had really great seats. And the show was wonderful!! Ciaran was a great Phantom, it was Glenda Balkan again as Christine, who I’d seen 2 years before. Laird Mackintosh as Raoul…well, I don’t know what to say without sounding really mean. 🙂 He *does* have a nice voice, but he overdid the vibrato, and his interpretation of Raoul annoyed me to no end. But, I know plenty of people that do like him!! Anyway, the rest of the cast was great, and the show is much more impressive in Toronto than on the tour…as amazing as the tour is, when you’ve got a permanent production like the one in Toronto, you can really alter the theatre to meet your needs. So the lair was just that much more impressive, plus Raoul actually jumped into the stage at the end, rather than a box! 🙂 |  Me and Alice with Laird Mackintosh |
 A *terrible* picture of me, along with Glenda Balkan and Alice |
This day was special for another reason…it was my first stage door experience ever!! Shortly before I went, I had discovered the Internet, and through talking with some fellow theatre fans, I learned that you could go speak with the performers at the stage door! Well!! 🙂 Needless to say, I haven’t missed a stage door since. This particular day, we talked with Laird (we had to ask him for a pen though, since we weren’t prepared! LOL! 🙂 and Glenda, though we missed Ciaran somehow…he probably looks a little different out of all that makeup. 🙂 However, I did have the pleasure of speaking with him on the phone a few months later, and he’s a very nice, sweet man!! |
The Quotes:
“No, you’re not in it at all!”
Me, right before taking a picture of the Pantages…and all of Alice’s head.
“What if my hand gets caught??”
Me, trying to decide whether or not I should try to steal the box office guy’s pen.
“Can I have your autograph? …. Do you have a pen?”
Alice, to Laird Mackintosh
The cast:
|
The Phantom of the Opera |
CIARÁN SHEEHAN |
|
Christine Daaé |
GLENDA BALKAN |
|
Raoul, Vicomte de Chagny |
LAIRD MACKINTOSH |
|
Carlotta Giudicelli |
KIM STENGEL |
|
Monsieur André |
BLAINE PARKER |
|
Monsieur Firmin |
GARY KRAWFORD |
|
Madame Giry |
KRISTINA MARIE GUIGUET |
|
Ubaldo Piangi |
JOHN DAVEY-HATCHER |
|
Meg Giry |
BRENDA MATTHEWS |
|
Monsieur Reyer |
GERALD ISAAC |
|
Auctioneer/Don Attilio (“Il Muto”)/Passarino |
PETER ATHERTON |
|
Porter/Marksman |
BRIAN C. DUŸN |
|
Monsieur Lefèvre |
PETER BARNES |
|
Joseph Buquet |
JOHN DODINGTON |
|
Lion Man/Fireman |
TIM STIFF |
|
Slave Master (“Hannibal”) |
MARK SNOW |
|
Flunky/Stagehand |
KIRK HANSEN |
|
Policeman |
ROBERT MEILLEUR |
|
Page (“Don Juan Triumphant”) |
CATHERINE DUFF |
|
Porter/Fireman |
PAUL MULLOY |
|
Page (“Don Juan Triumphant”) |
PAMELA MacDONALD |
|
Wardrobe Mistress/Confidante (“Il Muto”) |
LISA GAASENBEEK |
|
Princess (“Hannibal”) |
SANDRA MARGOLESE |
|
Madame Firmin |
LISA COSENS |
|
Inkeeper’s Wife (“Don Juan Triumphant”) |
JANET MARTIN |
|
The Ballet Chorus of the Opera Populaire |
SAMANTHA ADAMSON |
|
Dance Captain/Ballet Swing |
BARBARA SMITH-LEESE |