Ken Hill's "PHANTOM OF THE OPERA" Peter Straker / Shaftesbury 1991 London Flyer

Description

This is a rare four-page advertising herald (flyer) promoting the opening of the Original West End production
of the
KEN HILL musical "THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA" at the Shaftesbury Theatre in London. (The production began previews on December 12th, 1991, officially opened December 18th, 1991 and ran for four months, closing April 11th, 1992
.) .....
Ken Hill's
Phantom of the Opera
premiered on July 26th, 1976 at the Duke's Playhouse in Lancaster, England with a book by KEN HILL and a modern score by IAN ARMIT. In 1984, Hill revised the show, discarding the modern score and writing original English lyrics backed by 18th, 19th and early 20th century opera arias, creating a musical that reflected the era in which the original novel was written. This updated version was first produced jointly in Newcastle, England and London in 1984 ....
. The West End production starred PETER STRAKER in the title role, CHRISTINA COLLIER as "Christine Daae", REGINALD MARSH as "Richard" and STEVEN PACEY as "Raoul"
and featured TONI PALMER, MICHAEL McLEAN, HALUK BILGINER, GARY LYONS, RICHARD TATE, KATE HARBOUR, TRACY GILLMAN, JACQUELINE BARRON, QUENTIN McLAIN and RICHARD SHILLING
..... Side note: ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER, his wife SARAH BRIGHTMAN and producer CAMERON MACKINTOSH attended a performance of Ken Hill's
Phantom of the Opera
at London's
Theatre Royal Stratford East in May 1984. Prompted by the good reviews, they approached Hill about the possibility of collaborating on a grand scale version of his
Phantom of the Opera
in the West End. But in the end, Lloyd Webber chose to pursue the musical on his own, and the rest is history
..... CREDITS: Book, Music and Lyrics by KEN HILL based on the original novel by GASTON LEROUX; Music by VERDI, GOUNOD, OFFENBACH, MOZART, WEBER and DONIZETTI;
Sets and Costumes designed by SARAH JANE McCLELLAND;
Directed by KEN HILL; Produced by STEWART MacPHERSON and BERNARD THEOBALD
..... DETAILS: Advertising handbills (heralds) were distributed or inserted into the playbills of other productions to help generate ticket sales for upcoming shows and events. This four page flyer measures 4 7/8" X 8 1/4" inches and includes wonderful graphics, full color photography, production credits, promotional text, excerpts from several reviews, performance schedule and booking information ..... CONDITION: This rare flyer is in excellent condition and will make a wonderful addition to the collection of any theatre aficionado or historian. This item will be carefully packaged in a protective, carded sleeve and backed by stiff cardboard.