Phantom won the 1986 Olivier Award and the 1988 Tony Award for Best Musical, and Michael Crawford (as the phantom) won the 1986 Olivier and 1988 Tony for Best Performance by an Actor in a Musical. It is the longest-running musical in Broadway history, the second-longest-running West End musical, and arguably the world's most financially successful single entertainment project to date. The Phantom of the Opera opened in the West End in 1986, and on Broadway in 1988. The central plot revolves around a beautiful soprano, Christine Daaé, who becomes the obsession of a mysterious, disfigured musical genius. Alan Jay Lerner was an early collaborator, but he withdrew after completing work on a single song, Masquerade, and died shortly thereafter.

Additional lyrics were written by Richard Stilgoe. The music was composed by Lloyd Webber, and most lyrics were written by Charles Hart. 'Quite literally, the end of an era.The Phantom of the Opera is a musical/opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on the French novel Le Fantôme de l'Opéra by Gaston Leroux. 'I've always thought Phantom would run on Broadway forever,' wrote theater director Andrew Keates. 'I cannot imagine a world without the phantom of the opera on broadway, it will literally be the end of the world as we know it,' said one Twitter user. In January, the show will commemorate 35 years on Broadway before its final performance on February 18, 2023, much to the dismay of many fans. Simon Fergusson/Getty ImagesĪccording to the New York Post, which broke the news of the show's closure earlier on Friday, the show is reportedly losing close to $1 million a month, and the cast and crew were informed on Friday that it is past the point of no return. Broadway announced that after 35 years, the show will close in February 2023. Here, Anthony Warlow, left, and Ana Marina, cast members of 'The Phantom of the Opera' perform on stage at the photo call for the new production of Broadway's longest-running musical 'The Phantom of the Opera' at the Princess Theatre on Jin Melbourne, Australia.

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