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Opens with a very peppy Only for Him/Only for You then into something else...which, honestly, wasn't memorable enough to me the first time for me to recognize here...then into a third melody...which I again don't recognize.....then a kind of sweeping Rogers & Hammerstein sounding orchestration of Till I Hear You Sing.....back into a few bars of Only for Him/Only for You to end it out. Not terrible, but not memorable like the Entr'acte to POTO, either. The music and orchestrations, overall, really aren't bad.
Why Does She Love Me - Raoul
Act II opens in a bar with Raoul drinking himself into a stupor. Lovely. Sad orchestral underscoring...reminds me of something, but can't quite place it.....Raoul has obviously been drinking for awhile and the bar tender is just about to switch shifts...new bartender comes in...who might he be? I feel bad for this actor...he has a lovely voice and emotes well, but...lord! The lyrics they've saddled the poor man with! "She looks to me for sympathy/I give her sorrow/she asks for honesty/I've none to borrow/She begs it of me!/I give her ugliness/Why does she love me?" When did Raoul become such a sad sack? There's a bluesy saxophone in the scoring for this piece....sounds so out of place in time with this, pretty sure it's the only place a sax is used in the score....Oh....and in comes Meg....this can't be good...Meg sounds bitter and jaded...she tells Raoul to take Christine, Gustave, and go home to Paris. Raoul doesn't want to lose the money....or run away from the Phantom. Meg continues to try and convince him to leave....
Devil Take the Hindmost - Raoul, Phantom
Raoul yells after her that he isn't afraid of him. "I've bested him before! And if he ever had the courage to meet me face to face, man to man - " Not NEARLY as effective dialogue as "So, it is to be war between us! But this time, my clever friend, the disaster will be yours!" We get a bass beat similar to the one used as the Phantom steps down the grand staircase after Masquerade. The new "bartender" reveals himself to be the Phantom. He advances on Raoul, and Raoul threatens to kill him if he continues to advance. The Phantom suggests that they make a bet. Once again, Christine must choose between them - really? 'cause it's been done. She made her choice. Only this time, she is not being given the option - that is, the bet is between the men, and they are not telling her what the deal is. If she sings, she has chosen to stay with the Phantom and Raoul will walk away. If she chooses not to sing, the Phantom will pay Raoul's debts and let them all walk away. Now, really! This turns Christine into what people claim she was in POTO - a mindless doll walking through the show allowing things to happen to her rather than taking charge. I have always said this is not the case. Christine actively made choices in POTO - she got a backbone during the second manager's scene. Now these men are taking control and not allowing her say in her own life. They are BOTH treating Christine as a prize to be won, which was never the case in the first show. Raoul was willing to give up his LIFE for Christine at the end of POTO. He was NOT this selfish dissolute bastard. Personally, if I were her and aware of all this, I'd walk away from both of them. Raoul brings up that he and Christine have a child - which trumps any claim the Phantom may think he has on her. Of course, the Phantom counters with "Are you SURE he's your child?" He points out Gustave's similarities to himself...Raoul thinks he's bluffing. The Phantom leaves...Raoul suddenly realizes what he's done and regrets it - realizing only a few hours are left before Christine's concert. I'm not really sure what he expects here...Christine has made a commitment, and unless she is made aware of the bet, what reason would she possibly have to back out? Raoul has backed himself into a corner, and, even his drunken stupor isn't a good enough reason for making such a stupid bet.
Heaven by the Sea Reprise - Ensemble
Basically just a rehash of the first song - filler music...a place holder...nothing really significant to the show...vacationers enjoying themselves.
Ladies, Gents!/Coney Island Waltz Reprise - Fleck, Squelch, Gangle
The henchmen make an apparently impressive entrance in a hot air balloon to advertise the evenings performance - "the command performance of Christine Daae, the most heavenly diva of this or any age..." *gag* But, first, of course, Meg Giry, the Ooh La La Girl ("for those of you with whose taste is a little more earthbound") performs!
Bathing Beauty - Meg, Chorus
We now get to hear the full version of the "Hot Box" number that was rehearsed in Act I. Meg basically does a strip tease. *rolls eyes* Again, I hear Lois Lane from Kiss Me Kate.....the number is purely filler.....total burlesque...and sounds completely out of place. OMG...I just realized, this is equivalent to Pet Me Poppa from the film version of Guys and Dolls. Someone somewhere else compared it to Bushel and a Peck, but that number has a certain charm completely missing from Bathing Beauty. Loesser wrote deliberately wrote Pet Me Poppa to be BAD since he was upset with the film people for not using Bushel and a Peck. The opening phrase even SOUNDS like it musically! "Pet me, poppa, poppa, pet me nice," could EASILY be "Bathing Beauty on the beach...."
Mother Did you Watch - Meg, Mme Giry
Meg seems to think her Bathing Beauty number was enough to gain the Phantom's attention and make him forget Christine. Seriously, now? Meg was never known for her singing...the disparity between what Meg does in that number and what Christine has always done....there's no possible way it's even close to on par...she CAN'T be THAT dimwitted...then again...everyone else in the show is.....she's counting on the huge audience reaction to be enough to change his mind about her....Mme Giry of course disillusions her none too gently - the Phantom wasn't even there....well, come ON people! He's NEVER been there! His only concern is Christine! Of course he's busy with final preparations for Christine's performance...why would he come by to watch Meg now when he never has? Only for Him/Only for You melody recycled here. Meg snaps over the edge...Mme Giry up to this point has apparently been feeding Meg the lies that the Phantom will come around, fall in love with her, and they will live happily ever after, and is now crushing all Meg's hopes and dreams - which Mme Giry apparently fostered in the first place. Where the hell did this come from? What is the point?
Before the Performance - Gustave, Christine
Opens with Gustave vocalizing. The kid does have a very clear and lovely boy soprano. He is watching Christine prepare for her performance. Return to Gustave's melody from the aerie....Raoul enters....Raoul and Christine reminisce briefly about the past - how lovely Christine was the first time Raoul went to her dressing room. How handsome Raoul was in the opera box....Raoul asks Gustave to leave...he is told he may explore a bit, but not leave backstage. Raoul attempts to make an apology to Christine for his behaviour...I hear more Evita in the music here...He asks Christine not to sing...of course, he makes no mention of the bet - no mention of the game he's playing with her life. Christine has made a commitment and won't agree. Raoul promises to be the man he was before they married "...but we must leave here now, if you still love me..." What incentive does she have here except that Raoul is, apparently being selfish and has no real reason to ask her not to sing? I feel bad for him...he does appear to still love her, but....geeze....he tells Christine he's booked passage for the three of them on a ship that leaves in an hour "...let's be on it, for both out sakes...and the child's." Just seems like a petulant ploy to get what he wants.
Raoul leaves and the Phantom "materializes." I doubt this is nearly as dramatic as his entrance in "The Mirror." He tells Christine that Raoul knows love isn't enough. She needs and deserves more...there's a bit of Learn to be Lonely in his melody...I realize it was in a few places in Act I as well, but couldn't quite place it...the melody shifts back into Till I Hear You Sing. While he tells Christine Raoul is aware that love isn't enough, he seems to be telling her that the music between them is enough. He doesn't even mention love...which I suppose is just a given, and doesn't need to be spoken.
The stage manager let's Christine know it's time...She sings Twisted Every Way from POTO.....Raoul's voice comes in "Christine, Christine don't think that I don't care...." and the Phantom "But ev'ry hope and ev'ry prayer rests on you now..." I believe both these voices are in her head....but, in this instance, Christine has no idea what is being asked of her - what choice she is making? She is performing because she is under contract...I think there is also something of wanting to sing for the Phantom again, but this isn't an active decision about her fate as far as she is aware....her assumption is that she will sing and go home with her husband and child. How is this fair? How is this right? How does it make either Raoul or the Phantom look sympathetic and like she should choose one over the other? Things simply happen to her in this show.
Devil Take the Hindmost Reprise - Gustave, Raoul, Phantom, Mme Giry, Meg
Gustave wanders aimlessly backstage and vocalizes...Raoul is in agony over whether or not Christine will sing. Coney Island Waltz underscore...a more sinister bass line and morph into Devil Take the Hindmost. Counterpoint of Phantom and Raoul....each asking Christine to make a choice...a choice she is unaware of...*facepalm* Mme Giry joins the counterpoint....hoping Christin will not sing, therefore leaving Mme Giry in the position of power and getting her and Meg what they want. Mme Giry, bitterly "I hope Christine is worthy of you. I hope her singing makes up for what your blindness has done to Meg and me." Seriously? Where the hell did this character come from? This is NOT Mme Giry, the ballet mistress who was protective of Christine...who tried to save Christine from the Phantom...and she surely had no designs on securing the Phantom for Meg in POTO.
Love Never Dies - Christine
Well, I've done a fair analysis on this in a previous blog, so...I'll just leave it at this - I love the melody. The lyrics are completely generic and don't really hold the meaning of The Heart is Slow to Learn, or have any specificity to the plot. Sierra's voice is lovely, and she is definitely emotionally connected to it. Raoul, apparently was in the audience for this, and leaves as she is singing. The stage direction indicates that Christine "(finds) courage in the decision she has made...gathers her all and sings with every fiber of her body." WHAT decision has she made? She hasn't made a conscious decision to do anything but sing and honour the contract she made. Oh and, to include one of the best comments I've heard regarding this show as a whole via Tiffany Maxwell on Twitter: "Incidentally, "Love Never Dies" is, you know, wrong. Raoul and Christine's love has died. Creepy Baseless Obsession never dies."
Ah Christine - Phantom
He's reveling in Christine's performance as Christine return to her dressing room. Christine sings Gustave's melody, telling the Phantom how beautiful the music was...how beautiful she felt singing...lost in the music once more...she then notices a red rose and note on her dressing table...from Raoul....Raoul sings in voice over to Little Lotte.....telling Christine that the two people who fell in love at the Paris Opera no longer exist, and that he is giving her to her "Angel of Music." Ugh! How I HATE this writing and plot! Let's not forget the Phantom is a MURDERING PSYCHOPATH! Where along the way did this fact get lost and/or changed? When did the Phantom become such a nice guy? And, what the hell is with Raoul "giving" Christine to the Phantom? She is a PERSON, not an object, not a toy, not a PRIZE TO BE WON! Why is she not allowed to have a say in her fate? Why is she all of a sudden a mindless doll?
Gustave! Gustave! Christine, Phantom Squelch, Fleck, Mme Giry
Christine suddenly realizes Gustave is not there as he promised...the Phantom jumps to the conclusion that Raoul took Gustave and swears to kill him...ah! There's our murdering psychopath! The Phantom calls for Squelch to seal the port and stop Raoul. Squelch informs the Phantom that he saw Raoul leave - alone. So where is Gustave? Ah! He remember Mme Giry was backstage! Get her, bring Gustave back safely..and then he'll tear Mme Giry limb from limb. Mme Giry turns up outraged by the accusations. She points out that she has been the most faithful to the Phantom - mother to you and Christine. Fleck appears and tells the Phantom that in passing Meg's dressing room it was "empty as a tomb..." Really? You needed a rhyme that badly that you went with that? As someone on one of the boards pointed out, tombs are not empty. Semantics! Fleck saw Meg leaving with someone. Mme Giry suddenly feels guilty for upsetting Meg and thinks it's her fault for causing Meg to leave with Gustave. But, of course, she is sure Meg won't hurt Gustave....for some reason the Phantom is sure he knows where they've gone....they run through Coney Island searching for Meg and Gustave..
Please, Miss Giry I Want to Go Back - Gustave, Meg, Phantom, Christine, Mme. Giry
Meg has taken Gustave to the pier. During the bar scene, Meg told Raoul that area was called "Suicide Hall. It's where people end up when they don't know where else to go. The hopeless...the desperate..a good place to step off the pier and quietly vanish..." Well, it's pretty safe to say Meg has become one of the hopeless and desperate...she has crossed over to insanity. She plans to drown Gustave....guess it's now just a matter of hurting Christine and the Phantom the only way she knows how. She has obviously gone mad. Again, I'm getting a sense of Menotti....Christine and the Phantom find Meg they yell at her to stop...Meg says she isn't done...she always wondered how to make him watch...she has apparently found the way. She sings a reprise of Coney Island...explaining her motivation.....Ha! Apparently, Meg basically whored herself out to pay for everything they needed to get the things they needed to start Phantasma....in order to get the permits to go through...to buy time when the money wasn't there to pay the bills...which, apparently, no one else was aware of....oh lord! Honestly! What a soap opera this has become! She has a gun - where was she hiding this? She points it at the Phantom (Gustave gets away) and the Mme Giry...at the end of her ranting explanation she points at her head "Here's the big finish, and then you can go..."
The Phantom attempts to talk her down.....oh, brilliant....he tells her that, although she feels ugly and used, he can see the beauty underneath. He tries to get her to blame him and give him the gun. "Give me the chance to see you clear at last." Meg is mesmerized, and seems to be faltering....oh! frickin' GENIUS...."Diamonds never sparkle bright/if they aren't set just right/Beauty sometimes goes unseen/We can't all be like Christine." Really? You thought this would help HOW, exactly? Of course, Meg comes out of her trance at this...and she is PISSED...and points the gun at Christine....it goes off...Christine falls....Meg claims she didn't mean it....
Gustave asks where his father is...Christine as she is dying - this will be a long operatic death, of course - informs him that his real father is the Phantom, through a reprise of Look With Your Heart....she "swoons"...Gustave yells "no." But, wait! She's not dead yet! She's getting better! She can sing another duet! Now Once Upon Another Time is reprised with the Phantom...the Phantom asks what he's to do with the boy? Christine tells him to "Just love/just live/and give what you can give/and take the love that you deserve..." Really, no one should be able to sing that high and that well this close to death.....Christine then asks him to come closer to her and tells him "Remember/love never dies/kiss me one last time.." and she dies in his arms. He lays her lifeless body down....Gustave reaches for the Phantom's mask "and in a gesture of tender acceptance, the boy removes the mask and gazes unflinchingly at the Phantom's ruined face (which from what I hear isn't nearly as ruined as it was in POTO....and, come ON...he's flippin' HOT on the other side of his face....) Father and son look into one another's eyes..." and the curtain comes down...the orchestration here has a lot of Learn to be Lonely "You've always known, that your heart was on it's own..."
OK....who else feels completely cheated? Who else feels like an important work from their life has just been bastardized in a cheap effort to capitolize on it's original success? The entire message of the original show was lost. It took FOUR people to write this book...I've read better phan-pic sequels - and ones that effectively created a Phantom/Meg romance. How can FOUR "professional" writers put something this poorly thought out together when complete amatuer writers have written sequels that hold my interest and make me believe in what they've written? I don't think a Phantom sequel was needed. The first show had a definite ending.
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