keithjeannesimmons I have always grown up with the Phantom close by thanks to the love of this title coming from both my mother and grandmother. From watching the Movie over and over again with my mother to seeing it live with my family i had always come to cherish this title, which drew my to this 25th Anniversary. As I watched in awe i began to remember all of the love that that i had felt threw the years and all of the strength this gave my threw my hard times. To see such a play brought glorious tears to my eyes, and here is why. (Spoilers)First and foremost the Phantom. Going in I wasn't sure what to expect, I had always held a special place in my heart for Butlers Phantom (2007) and I was amazed by the live one which i had seen. But I must say, Ramin Karimloo shines and took my breath away. I truly could see the pain at the end when Christine leaves him and he is left alone in the dungeon with nothing but his monkey, voice, and tears. I was amazed by the notes he hit and the tone this man set that differed from the mood Butlers Phantom had always set in my mind, Simply Amazing. Second the Rest of the cast was amazing as they blended together. From Christines fear and confusion that is so well shown to Raouls love for her that blew me away. And compared to other adaptions, I truly did love the comedic look the managers of the Opera gave off. From scene to scene I was constantly lifted off my seat by the beauty that every singer gives. Lastly the costumes and music brought the entire thing together in one perfect set piece. From the production of Hannibal to Masquerade i was constantly amazed by the bright costumes and light to dark mood that it gave off allowing the viewers to see just how amazing or terrible it was becoming. And i especially liked the Phantoms outfit and makeup threw out from the hat he wore to help hide his face better to his Masquerade costume with the moving skull jaw. And don't get me started on how wonderful the music was, setting the mood and bringing the tone from bright and happy to horribly sad in a mere few seconds.All in all this was an amazing show with little to no error. From start to finish i was constantly enjoying the fun the actors had playing there parts and the sheer emotion each actor put into their characters. I give this a 10/10 for an amazing experience.

ihab-azar Andrew Lloyd Webber's the phantom of the opera is the world's most successful entertainment event of all time to date grossing about 5.6 billion dollars worldwide and seen by over 130 million people. i personally love this musical, having seen it in London last year and became a "phan" i went on to check the 2004 film adaptation starring Gerard butler as the title role. and absolutely hated it. luckily for me i heard about this special royal Albert hall production released on DVD celebrating the show's 25th anniversary and when i saw it i absolutely loved it. it was spectacular in every sense of the word. the thing that matters most in any production such as phantom is the cast, since one cast member that isn't rightfully cast can ruin the entire show (for instance, butler's casting in the film), but here every cast member was brilliant. ramin karimloo's phantom was exactly what the phantom character needed, having a voice that is intimidating yet caring and tender at the same time, and his acting was also superb. sierra bogges was also perfect as Christine, with a great voice that completely blew my mind away. all the other cast members were also brilliant in their roles, and the casting was ideal in my opinion. the scenery and effects were good, but not perfect. the sets for example was replaced by screens (due to the fact that the royal Albert hall is a concert hall not a theatre, and the sets of phantom are enormous) which was okay, but not as jaw-dropping as in the original London production, also the chandelier effect was barely believable here, instead of rising over the audience like in the original production, the chandelier simply shoots some fireworks and move a little, and at the end of act I instead of crashing down the stage, it shoots fireworks again and turns off it' lights, which might have been effective for the audience sitting in the royal Albert hall, but not very effective for the DVD viewer. still those flaws didn't bother me from enjoying this tremendously. at the end of the show the composer Andrew Lloyd Webber (whose music is nearly perfect in every way no matter how much criticism it received over the years) says a few words about the show and introduces the creative teams and original London company to the stage, which was very exciting. the grand final consisted the original Christine daae, the wonderful Sarah brightman performing the mesmerizing title song with 4 phantoms from the past, present and future was wonderful despite the fact that you could hear her breath a little during the first part of the song, but she hit those really high notes at the end perfectly, then the phantoms performed the iconic "music of the night" for one huge encore. all n all this production was awesome, and the next best thing to seeing the show in person, it proves why phantom is so loved and appreciated around the world and why it celebrated 25 years. a huge recommendation to fans of the musical and i think people that aren't familiar with the stage musical will like it too (not everyone though, if they don't like musicals and don't like this kind of repetitive musicals, which doesn't bother me). Andrew Lloyd Webber's the phantom of the opera: the most successful musical of all time is as timeless and haunting as ever in a sweeping breathtaking production. well done to all the ones involved in it.

Fielga If you can't go see it live, this DVD is an excellent substitute. Though nothing compares to the live experience, this is a life saver for people like me who live in places where traveling productions of this caliber are few and far between. Little else can be said in it's favor simply because this is the genuine Lloyd Webber Phantom in all it's phantomy goodness, that alone ought to sell the product.The special ending is almost tear-jerking for longtime fans of the show. It was unreal to see the epic guest appearances, albeit mildly somber by the obvious lack of Mr. Barton, may the generous and kind gentleman rest in peace.As for the quality of the performances specifically, the vast majority were as wonderful and memorable as fans have come to expect from this show. Lovely, witty, perfectly pitched. I have only two complaints and bear in mind that these are merely my personal opinion and I hope that you go out and grab this DVD and judge for yourself.I thought the character of Raoul seemed more pushy and abrasive, more like the Love Never Dies version, less like the romantic "hero" of Phantom. And as for the title role, although Ramin is a phenomenal singer who has played this role so successfully for so long, I found this particular performance of his to be more shouting and less singing, unwittingly conjuring up horrible visions of Gerard Butler's teeny bopper Phantom, much to my distaste. With significantly more emotion to his acting, of course.All in all, those little complaints do very little to bring down the quality of this DVD. If you don't already own this, why in the world are you still reading reviews in IMDb? Go buy it!

ben83 Finally a full staging of my favourite musical and the second longest running one in the U.K is here for the first time on DVD. This live production filmed straight from the iconic Royal Albert Hall in London, which was broadcasted to cinemas and theatres around the world and celebrates 25 years of the Andrew Lloyd-Webber musical, is nothing short of a lavish treat for the eyes and ears, with amazing performances and acting from the cast, including all the songs that fans of the show will know and remember.The 25th Anniversary production stars the amazingly talented Iranian born Canadian Ramin Karimloo as the Phantom and American Broadway star Sierra Boggess as Christine Daae, with a great supporting performance from Hadley Fraser as Christine's love interest Raoul. Karimloo and Boggess incidentally are no strangers to the characters, having played them previously in the London production of the sequel to this show 'Love Never Dies'. Their chemistry on stage is perfect as are their performances. Ramin is terrific as the Phantom and injects emotion and passion into the show playing the phantom as essentially a victim, with a voice that at times can be vengeful and deadly, yet soft and vulnerable at others. His delivery of the 'insolent boy' line near the beginning strikes fear right around the Albert Hall. I would even go as far to say that he is the best Phantom that I've watched so far, having previously experienced others on stage live and unfortunately the terrible 2004 movie version starring Gerard Butler. His acting is great without being over the top, and you really feel for the character. Sierra Bogges is also amazing displaying sensitivity, vulnerability and sexuality all throughout the show. Her performance of 'past of the point no return' being a particular highlight. The two leads work very well together and make the show believable. There are also good supporting performances too. Hadley Fraser's Raoul is dynamic and energetic without becoming too irritating and makes quite a good match against the Phantom in the battle for Christine's heart. Wendy Ferguson and Wynne (Go Compare) Evans are very funny as the diva Carlotta and Piangi, the two Italian opera supremos who are the subjects of Phantom's rage and eventually driven to obedience. Equally as funny and memorable are the opera house managers Firmin and Andre, played brilliantly by Barry James and Gareth Snook, who camp it up and provide some additional comedy. The staging and scenery is spectacular, with the doomed chandelier hanging above the audience and the on stage sets, especially the bridge leading to the Phantom's lair, featuring prominently. Due to the venue they had to make a very slight change to the chandelier scene at the end of the first part of the show, but it isn't a big deal and still has a great impact in my opinion. The show is pretty much identical to that of the theatre version that one may see in London's West End or anywhere else it may be on. Some lines were changed ever so slightly but nothing noticeable or significant. The performances throughout will leave you astounded and definitely not disappointed. In fact there are simply no scenes or performances that can be criticised. If you are a fan of the show you will love this and not be disappointed. As in usual 'anniversary style', like the Les Miserables 25th concert, they bring back all the old Phantom's and stars who have performed over the years in various productions. Including Michael Crawford and Sarah Brightman. Andrew Lloyd-Webber also makes a speech about the show and it's legacy. So now finally you can watch the show like you were in the theatre itself whenever you want. One advantage this production has over seeing it live is that you get to see all the facial expressions and emotions up close, thereby really getting a feel for the show almost like a movie in some parts (but definitely much better than the actual movie).