In This Labyrinth: The Phantom Of The Opera In Erik's Times And Ours

The year is 2030. Phantom has been revived in Toronto, but not like before. As the city is transforming toward justice and sustainability, so, too, the production leads the way by being produced justly and non-extractively. The story, long gone, has returned to the heart of the city. This first episode of the Phantom Of The Future was inspired by and is my submission to The 2030 Archive, a project developed by the People’s Climate Movement of Toronto/GTA. The Archive seeks to use the arts to collectively imagine the city and world we want, and let that imagining inspire us to take action to bring that future into being. And of course, I want Phantom to be a part of that future and believe it has valuable contributions to make! You can check out the 2030 Archive and perhaps make your own submission at https://2030archive.org

In this (LOL very much belated - Oops) Halloween/Samhain episode, I explore some of Phantom’s mythological roots. In particular, I explore some of our Erik’s connections to/resonances with deities of the underworld, death and passion! Oh, and apologies for the issues with the sound-quality. Tech weirdness!

In this episode, I discuss the brilliant Phanfic Shadow Government/Shadows Over Eden by Quiet2885. I discuss how it explores the intersection of trauma and politics in a way I haven’t seen done elsewhere in Phanfiction. And I discuss some of the reasons why I find I prefer the original online Phic to the published version, at least on first reading of the Kindle ebook.

In this episode I interview Dutch Phan Melissa Duijvestijn. We talk about some of her experiences as an Autistic and Visually Impaired Phan, and also about the very cool POTO role-play and recording groups she’s involved in! #ManderleyAgain #QuarantineOfTheOpera #MusicOfQuarantine Plus, bonus, she sings and reads an excerpt from one of the role-plays! Special Guest: Melissa Duijvestijn.

PSA #SaveTheBrilliantOriginal #PhantomoftheOpera! As folks may know, the London and Broadway flagship productions have been closed due to #COVID19 (read more about it on the podcast blog). So now, we need to make sure that, when they reopen, Hal Prince’s, Gillian Lynn’s and Maria Bjornson’s original vision is preserved! You can sign and share the petitions https://www.change.org/p/cameron-mackintosh-save-the-brilliant-original-phantom-of-the-opera?fbclid=IwAR3P7JBdCaByzAps3Ofh4TvbpEOJK3W0ycEDNLxkVUnfDEgCSd6xsFh88 and https://www.change.org/p/cameron-mackintosh-save-phantom-london?fbclid=IwAR0WRO06G32BepAvz5oRaRiCqNdwmyEXKOF9QhVeglPF9B36DLGVnvJH87A or contact Cameron Mackintosh @CamMackLtd at https://www.cameronmackintosh.com/contact or @OfficialALW to make your voices heard!

In this twentieth episode - Wow!, I review and discuss the awesome Queer sequel to the Leroux novel - Lazare: Gaston Leroux’s Continued Investigation Concerning The Phantom Of The Opera - by K. E. Torwood. I talk about how this book is not only masterfully written, but awesomely historical and intersectional as well! Check it and the author out at @KETorwood and https://ketorwood.com.

Content warning. This episode weighs in on on-going discussions of whether or not Phantom condones, glorifies or romanticizes violence, especially gendered violence. I argue that it doesn’t! And I discuss how, instead, Phantom addresses certain realities of trauma and makes a powerful case for transformative rather than punitive justice.

In this first episode of 2020 - Wow! - I review the French language in-concert production of the Lloyd Webber Phantom that ran from January 8th to 26th 2020 in Montreal, Canada. I had the sheer privilege of going twice, and really loved it both times! Although, I also found myself having some friendly critiques. So needless to say, I have a lot to say about this production!

In this episode, in honour of COP25 (the climate negotiations that just took place at the UN) and the students striking for climate justice, I discuss the amazing Phanfic When All Is Lost by Quiet2885. I talk about what environmental justice is, and explore how it’s thoroughly woven into the plot and characters of this epic Phanfiction thriller! https://www.fanfiction.net/s/2942105/1/When-All-is-Lost https://www.fanfiction.net/u/731205/Quiet2885

Happy belated Halloween/Samhain everyone!! In this slightly belated (Oops, sorry about that) Halloween/Samhain episode, I talk about haunting in POTO! I explore what it means when the haunting isn’t by the ghost or spirit of a deceased victim of injustice, but a living, breathing human-being. I also give a shout-out to my newest Patreon supporter! :-) Thanks hugely for your contribution!! http://www.patreon.com/phantomfemme

Wow!! This is the first episode of the second year of the podcast!! Is that not cool? Anyway, in this episode, I discuss the recent U.K. and U.S./Canada touring productions of the ALW Phantom directed by Lawrence Connor. I discuss some of the changes he’s made from the original, and why some of those changes are down-right problematic! And on that note, content warning for mild references to kink and to violence against women.

A tribute to Phantom’s legendary director Hal Prince, who sadly passed away on July 31 2019 at the age of 91 after a truly awesome and ground-breaking career that spanned nearly seven decades, winning him 21 Tony awards and transforming the modern musical stage! The whole music-theatre world, and especially the entire Phantom family, mourns this loss! #RIP #HalPrince #TheBrilliantOriginal #PhantomoftheOpera

Sharing some very sad news. Kevin Jackson, co-founder and co-organizer of the Toronto Disability Pride March @TDPM, has recently passed away very suddenly. RIP Kevin, and huge condolences to all the friends, family and colleagues he leaves behind, especially to his fiancee! Also, his fiancee is raising funds to cover the cost of his burial and celebration-of-life. So if folks can contribute, that would be a wonderful way to show support and solidarity to her at this really sad and difficult time! You can donate at https://fundrazr.com/e1XIM6?ref=ab_18EqWJTutyC18EqWJTutyC

In this episode, which marks the 1-year #podiversary of the show - Wow!!, I celebrate both that and #Pride2019 by exploring how the ALW stage-musical of Phantom actually contains a lot of Queer Crip sexuality and desire! I also run a little non-competitive contest for folks to win a poster-version of the podcast artwork, just to do something a bit special for the occasion. Happy 1-year podiversary everyone! Thanks for listening and making the show awesome this past year, and I can’t wait to see what year 2 brings!!

In this rather overdue episode (Oops, sorry about that), I finally review The Angel’s Flight by Louise Anne Bateman - the sequel to The Angel’s Shadow and second book in her Angels of Music series. In particular, I review the really superb full-cast dramatized audiobook of the novel! Btw, correction, you can find the info on where to get Bateman’s first book in the show-notes and blog-post for episode 9, not 10. Sorry about that! And you can, of course, find The Angel’s Flight in print, ebook and audiobook formats at any of the following: https://www.amazon.com/Angels-Flight-novel-Phantom-Opera/dp/1729545076 or https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07NYBR1H6/ref=sr12?ie=UTF8&qid=1550951092&sr=8-2&keywords=Louise+Anne+Bateman or https://www.amazon.com/Angels-Flight-Novel-Phantom-Opera/dp/B07NW4WNWJ/ref=tmmaudswatch0?encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr= to enjoy!

In this awesome, extended episode, I interview local Toronto author and activist Bridget Liang about their recently released young-adult novel What Makes You Beautiful, all about a bunch of Queer/Trans youth and a highschool production of Phantom! We talk musicals, gender, Queerness, surviving teenagehood, and, of course, Phantom as we talk about what inspired their writing. We have a really fabulous chat, and share some ideas for Queering up Phantom, both in Phanfics we’d love to see written, and in things we’d love to see tried in stagings of the story! Bridget’s book is available at http://www.lorimer.ca/childrens/Book/3083/What-Makes-You-Beautiful.html and also at: https://www.amazon.ca/What-Makes-Beautiful-Bridget-Liang/dp/145941411X https://www.amazon.ca/What-Makes-Beautiful-Bridget-Liang-ebook/dp/B07NLDGRRM/ref=sr11?keywords=What+Makes+You+Beautiful&qid=1555442351&s=digital-text&sr=1-1 :-). Plus, you can find info on their recent book-launch at: https://www.facebook.com/events/331900397679832 Spe

In this (slightly belated - LOL Oops) episode in honour of International Women’s Day, I talk about gender in Phantom. In particular, I explore what the Leroux novel, the ALW musical and the novel by Susan Kay do with femininity, and how they all present subtle but powerful critiques of the dominant division of women into “good girls/women” and “bad girls/women”. #IWD2019 #InternationalWomensDay And on an unrelated note, here’s that GoFundMe link I mentioned for my moving. Thanks in advance for any and all support! https://www.gofundme.com/gun7z-help-me-move

In this first episode of 2019, because it’s Valentine’s Day, I talk about romance in Phantom! I explore how the ALW stage-musical contrasts two distinct versions of romantic relationship, one decidedly heteronormative, and one more daring and potentially radical. P.S., Heads-up for very mild references to kink around power dynamics!

In this episode, I review Louise Anne Bateman’s Phanfic novel The Angel’s Shadow, book 1 of her Angels of Music Saga. In particular, I review her superb full-cast audio-dramatization of the book! Although, I discuss aspects of the plot, characters and Ms. Bateman’s excellent writing as well. So, warning, here be spoilers! Also, content warning for mild discussion of depression, suicide, and sexuality, as these are themes in the novel. https://www.facebook.com/theangelsshadow/ https://www.amazon.com/Louise-Anne-Bateman/e/B00NCFY0DI https://www.amazon.com/Angels-Shadow-novel-Phantom-Opera/dp/1500574600 https://www.audible.com/pd/The-Angels-Shadow-A-Novel-of-The-Phantom-of-the-Opera-Audiobook/B079R6YVCP?ipRedirectOverride=true&overrideBaseCountry=true&pfrdp=d1efe2ab-1a95-4ea2-9236-55c5b4f66273&pfrdr=E0904ZJAFWM6CSBHKQ6X&

In this episode, I explore the famous Masquerade scenes found in both the original Leroux novel and the ALW stage-musical. I look at the original short story, Masque of the Red Death by Edgar Allan Poe, that they’re based on, and some of the ways that story has been interpreted. And then I explore how Phantom, in both Leroux and ALW, puts an inadvertent? Disability twist on it!