The Phantom of the Opera

In 1910 the mystery novelist Gaston Leroux working from scraps of history theatrical lore and his own fertile imagination created a masterpiece in <i>Le fant&#244;me de l&#146;op&#233;ra</i> the story of a disfigured composer who lives in the labyrinthine depths of the Paris Opera. After the breathtaking debut of Christine Daa&#233; the whispers of an Opera ghost seem to become reality as the young singer vanishes. As the Phantom strikes again and again targeting foes from a jealous diva to a romantic rival Leroux spins a thriller of obsession and violence with at its center a tormented murderer who awakens our deepest fears and sympathies. The inspiration for Andrew Lloyd Webber&#146;s long-running musical Leroux&#146;s novel is still more riveting than anything Broadway could produce.