My personal opinions of the main characters in the musical

Characters

The Phantom

Michael Crawford was the first phantom and the most remembered. He wore the mask in the Original London Cast and shocked critics who previously said he could not sing.

Little is known about the Phantom's past, how his face became disfigured and how he came to live in the lake beneath the Opera house. In the book we are told his real name is Erik, but in the musical his name remains a secret. Other titles for the phantom are Opera Ghost, Angel of Music and later on Angel of Darkness.

The phantom remains a mysterious character, it isn't clear if he is really human or not. Christine sees him as an angel, sent to watch over her, after her father died. Raoul and the new managers see him as a myth, not to be taken seriously, while everyone else sees him as a ghost and a danger if not obeyed.

It has been strongly argued that the disfigurement of his face came from the environment he lived in. For years he has lived alone in the dark, damp and smelly sewers with rats as his only company. If the phantom was a human then it is very likely his body would be deformed by disease.

The phantom expresses a deep and obsessive desire for Christine. Although he does love her, I believe another reason he is so obsessive is because Christine is the only one who has showed him kindness and love. Christine of course sees him as the angel sent by her father, and I believe the phantom knows this and plays on it.

After feeling threatened by Raoul, the Phantom takes Christine to his lair. He seduces Christine by playing the part of an angel, singing Music of the Night. A lot of the lyrics in this song can be interpreted in different ways; some illustrate his true nature, only then, can you belong to me.

The mask the phantom wears acts as a metaphor. Wearing the mask hides his true appearance and also his true nature. When Christine removes his mask he becomes violent and expresses his true feelings, Now you can never be free, Fear can turn to love.

The rest of the musical shows that he will do anything (even murder) to get his own way. He can not let Christine go and is only made more determined after watching Christine and Raoul express their love on the roof of the Opera house. The saddest part is that his attempts to keep Christine only push her farther away.

Finally he threatens to kill Raoul if Christine does not promise to live with him for ever. A no win situation for Christine, but she chooses the phantom to spare Raoul's life. The phantom finally understands Christine's feelings when she kisses him. I believe that during the kiss he realises there is no love, that she is only doing this to save Raoul. Thinking not of himself, he releases them and disappears. Top

Christine

Sarah Brightman played Christine in the Original London Cast. Born outside of London, she made her name as a ballet dancer before amazing audiences with her child like singing talent.

Christine is very fond of her father, who died when she was only 7 years old. Before he died he promised her that he would send an angel to watch over her. Being so young and upset about losing her father, she made herself believe in this angel. So when the phantom appeared she instantly thought of him as the angel her father promised her.

I had never got the Angel of Music whom my poor father had promised to send me as soon as he was dead. I thought that it had finally come, and from that time onward, the voice and I became great friends. (Quote from a monologue of the original book).

The original book tells of how the phantom taught Christine to sing, but he made her promise not to use her best singing voice in front of anyone else. She once questioned the phantom, asking why she had to keep their relationship secret. The phantom threatened to leave her and go back to heaven. Afraid of losing her angel she obeyed the phantom's orders.

Christine seems lost in a fantasy which she has never grown out of as a child. Often her thoughts and emotions are confused and appear strange in the eyes of others. When the phantom takes Christine to his lair, he makes one rule, that she is not allowed to remove his mask. Christine's curiosity and playful child like manner take over and she disobeys the phantom.

From this point her mind is in conflict, she desperately wants to believe the phantom is her angel, but how can something so ugly and disfigured be an angel? She confronts Raoul about her confusion on the roof of the opera house, but he is quick to tell her that it is all in her mind. He changes the subject and offers his protection and love to her. Christine accepts much to the despair of the phantom.

Later on she goes to visit her father's grave and expresses how much she really misses him. Too many years, fighting back tears, why can't the past just die! She wants to grow up, live with Raoul and be free of this angel. She finally gains her independence when she proves to the phantom that she never did love him. Top

Raoul

Steve Barton played Raoul in the Original London Cast. He was born and trained in Texas, United States and then moved to Europe and appeared in several of Andrew Lloyd Webber's musicals before being chosen to play Raoul.

It is assumed Raoul comes from a rich family as he becomes a patron for the opera house when the new managers take over. We learn that during his early childhood he was a playmate with Christine until her father died and they went separate ways. When she takes over the role of Carlotta Raoul and Christine are re-united.

This causes conflict with the phantom who is jealous and afraid of Raoul, as he fears Raoul will take Christine away from him. Raoul knows that Christine believes in angels, but believes it is only a fantasy. Even after the incident where the backstage worker gets murdered he doesn't believe in the phantom. He tries to convince Christine that it is all in her mind. It is also at this point where they fall in love.

During masquerade Raoul questions Christine as to why they must keep their engagement a secret. She fears that the phantom will find out and threaten them, but Raoul doesn't understand this. It is only after he meets the phantom face to face that he finally believes in him. At this point he doesn't understand how dangerous the phantom is and makes a plan to capture the phantom, using Christine as bait, despite her protests about betraying him.

Raoul throughout most of the story doesn't seem very sympathetic towards Christine, not understanding how frightened and confused she is. He sees the phantom as a childhood fantasy.

After the phantom kidnaps Christine he risks his life to save her. Even at this point he is ignorant of how dangerous the phantom is, and easily gets captured by the magical lasso. He shows some bravery by saying Don't throw your life away for my sake but it is Christine that saves the day. Top