Lena's POTO Trades

Tumblr Acount for Trading

[lenalikesboots]

Christine Daae Review No. 2: Carmen Cusack Based on the unofficial audio recording from February 17, 1996 (Edinburgh, Scotland).

Yeahhh I didn’t quite like her. I give her a 3/10, because her voice is quite lovely and she had her good moments.

Carmen used to play the alternate Christine Daae in the UK Tour of Phantom from 1995 to 1996 in Edinburgh, alongside Mark McKerracher (Phantom) and Andrew Halliday (Raoul).

I thought her voice was quite lovely, to be honest, with beautiful vibrato and a youthful sound to it. She shows quite a lot of emotion in Think Of Me, but not much afterwards. Though she does show a lot of sympathy and interest for Erik. She seems fascinated by the idea of him in the beginning, but is not very enthusiastic about meeting him. 

Though, she does seem enthusiastic when talking about him to Raoul.

She does a great job portraying her naivety and blind obedience, however, I can’t see much character development during the second act. 

I personally didn’t think that her high notes were the best. The Cadenza she sings in Think of Me (which is the London one) didn’t feel right, and neither did her high E in the Title Song.

But she sure as hell could let out a really high pitched scream when unmasking Erik.

Her acting reminded me of Emmy Rossum’s, especially in the Rooftop Scene. It’s very plain, not really that happy, especially not after Raoul tells her he loves her.

Over all, she didn’t show a lot of emotion throughout the show. She shows the most emotion during certain moments in the beginning of the Final Lair. Unfortunately though, her Tears of Hate was not convincing at all.

All in all, I didn’t quite like her. I’m sure she’s better in other shows though.

[lenalikesboots]

Christine Review no.1: Julie Lea Goodwin

Based mainly on the unofficial recording from August 21, 2007 (Melbourne, Australia)

Honestly, it’s a pity that I didn’t get to see a video of her, to see the way she portrays Christine, but if I had to rate her voice and the way she acts through it, I’d give her a solid 8 out of 10. 

Julie used to be the alternate Christine Daae in the Australasian Tour of Phantom, in Australia and Taiwan. She shared the stage with four different Phantoms (Anthony Warlow, Roy Weissensteiner, Alexander Lewis and Brad Little) and three different Raouls (John Bowles, Alexander Lewis and David Somerville)

Julie has such a clear, mature for her young age (at the time), with a beautiful vibrato and a beautiful flow to it. She sings her high notes with such ease, and her high notes in the Title Song are haunting, almost hypnotizing. She actually sounds like an angel. 

I also love her Cadenza in Think of Me, which is the Broadway one, by the way.

However, she seems to struggle singing low notes, and usually sings them very quietly, which is absolutely normal. A lot of Christines do that.

As for her portrayal of Christine (judged only by the sound of her voice), I think she captured Christine’s naivety, childishness and shyness well, as well as her happiness, enthusiasm and cheerfulness in the beginning of the first act. She also seems to be a very compassionate Christine. I loved how she didn’t scream during STYDI. 

I also like how fast she sings and speaks when she is genuinely scared though. For example, you can hear the panic in her voice towards the end of the first act and I like how she goes from being scared to literally swooning for Erik in the beginning of the Rooftop Scene. 

Her AIAOY is sooo freaking peaceful and beautiful though! She also seems genuinely happy when Raoul tells her that he loves her. She GENUINELY appreciates him! And wants him to be by her side, not just to help her cope with her issues! Like, she’s not just using him. I love that so much. 

Other than that, Julie’s Christine is also a very fiery one. When she is angry, like for example in the Notes II scene, she fights back and stands her ground. I really like that. 

However, in my opinion, she lacked emotion in a lot of scenes where that emotion and passion would have been needed, like in the Graveyard scene and the Point of No Return. That really disappointed me.

However: it all gets better during the Final Lair. She was absolutely fabulous in that scene: from the very beginning, her Final Lair is a mix of angry, desperate and sad, all at the same time and she definitely sounds very disappointed in Erik. I like how bold she gets towards the end, before she kisses Erik. 

I don’t hear her crying or running away after the ring scene, and I really liked that approach, because it showed Christine’s mature side, since she didn’t make a scene when parting from her tutor. 

Side note: I love how Anthony repeats “I love you” after she left. So cute, it almost made me cry. 

Her last reprise of All I Ask Of You doesn’t sound as passionate as the first time she sang it, she sounds emotional and quite sad, which is totally understandable

[lenalikesboots]

My trading site! 

[lenalikesboots]

Bootleg Review n°2

Here’s my second bootleg review! I really liked this one, maybe a little more than the last one!

Part of that is due to the reason that this bootleg (unlike the last one) was a full bootleg and no scenes were missing (although the mic does cut out at one point)

Love Never Dies- June 25, 2010, West End

Starting off with the prologue: It’s not very different from the one in the last video, but you get to see/hear the whole thing, which I thought was very cool!

After Fleck screams at Madame Giry, Madame starts to remember the amusement park and we go on a trip down memory lane, Phantom-Overture style. And what follows was probably one of the coolest things I’ve seen!

It’s a show!

With good music and bellydancers!

Erik has bellydancers!

This serves as a great opening number for the next show: Meg’s show!

Which is in my opinion awesome! The whole number looks so cool and so vaudeville-ish! Which fits the timeline perfectly!

Next are these two numbers, which are basically a very good mix of Only For Him/Mother Did You See.

I like it, because it basically shows how dedicated Meg is to her career, and how much she longs for Erik to see her and recognize her talent and her potential! In my opinion, this shows that Meg is in love- with herself, and her future!

Till I Hear You Sing hit me pretty hard this time! It never fails to give me goosebups, especially when Ramin sings it with so much emotion and passion! I was literally tearing up during this scene.

This scene was pretty fun to watch, mainly because it was not in the first bootleg of London’s LND that I watched. I love how angry Ramin gets when Madame Giry tries to shit on Christine- who was actually innocent. 

The end of this scene is absolutely beautiful! I love how excited and love sick Erik gets, when invites Christine over to try to win her back! And I love how he calls her “My sweet Christine” in the end. 

This is probably the first LND bootleg in which we get to see Christine’s arrival in New York, and although it’s very similar to the Australian version, I can’t help but kind of like this more, mainly because of the song the trio sings when picking up the DeChagnys. 

Can we please comment on the fact that Christine can play the piano now!! And that she plays to cheer up her boy!

Like!!! Oh!! My!!! Goddd!!!

That little waltz of theirs!!! I cannot!!

I love how this time, Christine full on went to hug Erik during Beneath a Moonless Sky! It shows just how helplesslyshe is still in love with him, and I’m all here for it!

And the chemistry Ramin and Sierra have during that song is astonishing!

I’m in love with the way their voices sound during this song and with the way they blend! This is by far one of my favourite LND songs.

I feel like this version of Dear Old Friend was way more salt/tense  than the last, but I don’t mind. It was good. 

I don’t really understand this scene or what follows- Obviously, Erik loves his kid, but he seems to be kind of saddened by the existence of said child and of the fact that the child doesn’t magically love him and accept him with all of his flaws. 

After finding out that the child is really his, he decides that he wants to off himself and give everything he owns to Gustav...But later does the total opposite in Devil Take The Hindmost....And unless Christine came back to him later and asked him to leave everything behind and be with her, 

I like the changes they made to Bathing Beauty (with the hot air balloon)

They were quite cool!

Another thing I found quite wholesome, was how Christine tried to compromise with Raoul and give him and their marriage one last chance. Until Erik happened...

Yeah all these things are cool!

But they don’t compare to Love Never Dies...

I love this scene! I love this scene SO much!

But what I love the most about this scene is that moment where Christine finally figures out who her heart belongs to... And this does show in the way she reacts to the two men leaving her. 

Later in the scene, Raoul leaves. Erik leaves shortly after him (probably to get the flowers and champagne). 

When Raoul leaves, Christine turns towards him to watch, but doesn’t react in any way. But when Erik leaves...She full on stops singing abruptly for a moment, and then starts again, louder and even more passionate, as if she was trying to get him to hear her...Trying to get him to return...My heart!!!

They have a sweet moment in her dressing room, where they hold each other’s hands, before realizing that their kid is gone and freaking out.

Also: can we talk about how freaking HOT Erik is, when he’s freaking out about his kid? 

And how hot it is when he stands in front of everyone else, being all protective?

Christine’s death scene was suuuper sad, although a little underwhelming this time. But the little moment Erik and Gustav share later- suuuper wholesome! I loved it!

[lenalikesboots]

Bootleg Review n°1

So I watched this bootleg video yesterday and I must say...I’m impressed,

From what I know, this is the oldest video out there of the West End production of Love Never Dies. It’s completely pre-changes - it uses the soundtrack from the original album.

The leads are played by  Ramin Karimloo (as Erik), Sierra Boggess (as Christine), Joseph Millson (as Raoul), Summer Strallen (as Meg), Liz Robertson (As Mme. Giry), Richard Linnell (as Gustav)

What really bothered me at first is that it’s missing about 25 minutes from Act 1. Everything in between Till I Hear You Sing and Mother Please I’m Scared is missing. The bootleg is otherwise complete. There is some washout in bright lights and the camera strays at times from the action, and there’s a  bar that blocks some of the actors, but otherwise, this is a very a decent bootleg. 

I liked seeing the scenes that they cut off in the Australian production. I thought it was interesting. 

The Coney Island Walz is instrumental only, and it serves as kind of an Overture thing, in which, just like in Phantom, they take you back in time and set the whole setting of the show.

It goes all the way back to opening night of Phantasma. 

In the beginning, there are people chattering about the new amusement park, wanting to go in. 

After that, we get to see the whole only-for-him; only-for-you thing, which I thought was cool.

Also- Although I do think that it’s possible Meg has developed the hots for Erik,this Meg seems to just want a promotion. She’s in love with her career, not with her boss. I genuinely like that!

In Summer’s portrayal, Meg seems to be giving 110%, and wants nothing more than to be noticed and have her work appreciated. Of course it’s a blow for her when her mother told her that her boss didn’t care enough to show up. It’d be a blow for anyone, really, because it means your work is alright, but still not outstanding. What’s next, he doesn’t even know her name? Calls her Meghan, instead of Meg? 

Anyways- it’s safe to say, I like Summer’s portrayal of Meg a lot!

Next we move on to Till I Hear You Sing! I absolutely loved the way Ramin sang it for this performance!

It was absolutely breathtaking!

I’ve had chills so many times listening to him sing it, like damn!

Unfortunately, the recording stops right after that and picks back up at Mother Please I’m Scared, where it’s really mostly audio and you can’t really see a thing. 

I must say, I liked this Dear Old Friend! I liked how this time, Meg didn’t sound judgemental of the fact that Christine stopped singing to become a full-time wife and mother.

And I liked how instead of sounding bitter, Meg sounds rather confused when Christine said she was going to sing. 

Moving on- in the middle of Dear Old Friend, Gustav runs off. 

Obviously, he goes to see Erik. 

And here we come to the first thing I didn[’t like about the show: Ramin’s Erik is really cold and mean towards Gustav in this performance particularly. I know that it’s only because he believes him to be Raoul’s son but come on- even if Raoul were Gustav’s father, it’s not the child’s fault! You can’t choose your own parents goddamn it!

I liked Beauty Underneath...kind of...idk,. I generally don’t like the vibe this song gives me. 

I liked the whole “wow! You and I think the same!” idea, but the way they carried it out was bordering on genuinely creepy.

Next up! Erik takes his mask off and...fucks everything up. Kid runs away. 

I liked Christine’s reaction to all of this. I liked how she asks Madame Giry to take him away and how she apologises to Erik for her child’s reaction. 

And here we come to another of the things I didn’t like about Ramin’s portrayal of the character...Repeat after me: You do NOT strangle the woman you thought could possibly have bore your child. You. Do. NOT. 

And you do not tighten your grip when she accuses you of abandoning her- especially if you DID abandon her! Dammit Ramin! Why so angry?

Good thing that he releases her- HOWEVER...

Why so angry Ramin??? Damn!!!

Then she tries to kiss him (which I must admit- was out of nowhere) and he pulls away, still looking super angry.

 I get it-he feels awful that not even his own son can accept him the way he is. I get it. 

BUT...why take it all out on Christine?

Poor girl already had to go through enough because of him. 

Moving on: there are a few other things I didn’t like...but this time, I won’t put the blame just on Ramin.

Number one: when he uncovers his face, Christine turns away. Isn’t that kind of contradicting the whole idea behind “This haunted face holds no horror for me now”?

I understand that his face may not be the prettiest sight, and I understand that she was kinda shocked-after all she hasn’t seen it in 10,almost 11 years. Buuuut she didn’t have to full on turn away.. I thought that directing/acting choice was a little over the top. 

And number two: after Christine leaves, Erik is left all alone to think about what just happens. He seems to be a really proud dad at first...but then there is one line that really threw me off, considering what happens in the next act. “If it’s true, I’ve no reason to live” 

Uhm...dude?? If you’re planning to kill yourself, why the hell would you make a bet, which would be forcing your baby-mama and your kid to stay in America if you’d win it (and you already know you will) ?

And if he suddenly had a change of heart before that, why didn’t we get to see any of that happen? What motivated him? What made him change his mind?

Did Christine maybe ask him to make that bet? It wouldn’t be a surprise if she did....

And I am not saying this to hate on Raoul! I absolutely love Raoul and pity him greatly in Love Never Dies. He’s not an abusive monster. He’s sick! Not only is he suffering from an addiction, but he also seems to be suffering from depression.

He blames himself for all of Christine’s suffering- although, he had nothing to do with it. It all goes back to Erik leaving her, creating a vicious cycle. Christine then marries Raoul just so she wouldn’t be shunned for having a child out of wedlock. She’s obviously unhappy in her marriage, which ends up making Raoul unhappy, so he ends up drinking his sorrows away. In the end, he blames himself for the fact that Christine is unhappy. 

This is what I got from Why Does She Love Me?

Quite obviously, she doesn’t. 

He thinks she does, because she says so, but she is obviously unhappy in her marriage because she doesn’t. However, Raoul takes her sadness to mean that he is the one who is not good enough. He is the one making her unhappy. He is the one unworthy of love.

It breaks my heart that after everything he’s done for her, he ended up feeling so damn bad about himself. None of this is his fault.

 Then, in walks our second unappreciated character: Meg. There are a lot of parallels in between these two. I feel like they’re both going through the same pain, although in very different ways. 

When I watched LND for the first time, I thought this would be the start of a brand new love story, one that would steal the show, and inevitably, our hearts.

Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. 

When Meg leaves, Raoul starts talking shit about Erik, only for him to end up showing up behind the bar. Talk of the devil, they say...

Over all, I think this scene is a really funny one- probably a fun one to rehearse and perform as well. 

But the whole idea behind it...Guys, I hate to be the bearer of bad news but...Christine is a human being..She’s not property...Let her make her own damn choices for once, she never ever got to do that in her life. 

I hate how Erik starts objectifying Christine in Love Never Dies. He didn’t do it in the original, why start now?

Moving on to the next day:

Bathing Beauty is so damn catchy! Like damn!!

I love how Meg arrives in a hot air balloon. 

I liked this randition of Summer’s Bathing Beauty. I couldn’t see much of it and I couldn’t see the bathing suits either, but the whole scene was really nice. 

I felt so bad for Meg in the next scene though!

Madame Giry was waaay too harsh with her. 

Next scene is Christine’s dressing room scene.

I love how conflicted and anguished Sierra portrays her to be. And I love the contrast between the way she acts around Raoul and the way she acts around Erik. Around Raoul, she’s really sweet, like a good wife should be and she is also quite affectionate. 

But around Erik...

I think this picture speaks for itself...

By the way: The way she doesn’t question why Raoul asked her not to sing, and the way she gets all conflicted later, makes me think that she knows about the bet, but is starting to have second thoughts about it. Which is completely understandable. As a wife, her first priority is her marriage, which they could, possibly work out.

And as a mother, she has to put her son and what would be best for him first too. She can’t just force him to accept a new guy as his father- even if he is indeed his biological father. So all that anguish she’s feeling? Completely understandable. 

You can see from her body language, even when she’s singing, that she is having second thoughts. That this is really hard for her and that she doesn’t know what to do. There is so much pressure on her, the poor girl is close to breaking down on stage, in front of thousands of people.

But then Raoul leaves...And everything in her body language changes. She becomes more confident, more content with her decision. For once, she put herself first. She realizes that she will finally get to be happy. 

She, Erik and their child...

I love how happy and hopeful she looks in the next scene as well!

It’s sad that they don’t kiss in this scene, but oh well...We move...

Another thing that made me believe that Christine knew about the bet was how unbothered she seemed by the fact that Raoul left. She wasn’t shocked. She knew this was going to happen. She didn’t want it to happen like that, but it did. 

And then when she realizes that Gustav is missing, she nearly gets a heart attack, 

I absolutely LOVE Erik’s reaction to the whole thing! I love how worried and angry he got! See, this is one of those times I do appreciate his anger. 

Moving on to the next scene:

One thing I didn’t like about it was how close Erik got to Meg when he told her “We can’t all be like Christine”.

That line is such a bad thing to say when trying to comfort someone who’s having a mental breakdown...

Meg has been working for him for ten years. She has helped him so damn much, and she doesn’t even get a thank you, or a decent. No, she only ever gets all these dumb vaudeville numbers, making her a showgirl, not a respected performer. 

While Christine, who has only been in town for two days, and hasn’t been performing for a couple of years, immediately gets the aria, the nice dress and the beautiful jewelry. 

And then, he has to point out how perfect she is, in front of Meg, who then, when she just wants to talk back to him, ends up accidentally pulling the trigger. And you can tell this was clearly an accident in this performance. She even runs off to get help, only to later return, probably with a doctor on the way, when Christine is already gone (maybe. nobody checked her pulse or her breathing, and the bullet didn’t hit an important artery. She might still be alive)

I loved Erik and Christine’s last kiss. It was so sweet, so passionate. I love how he kept kissing her even after she let go.

However...I didn’t like the way Ramin portrayed his reaction to her death. I understand that the feeling he was going for was numbness, but it literally ended up looking like he didn’t even care that much. For someone who’s never seen Phantom before (maybe just read the book) , who ends up watching this recording, this is the vibe you would get from it. 

I love the fact that Meg came back and that she is holding Christine’s body. You can tell just how sorry she is. 

I loved the whole unmasking scene. I loved how Erik slowly started opening up to Gustav, when he was finally ready to accept him. And I loved the hug in the end.

And I must say: Erik is getting better at hugging. That’s good!

All in all: I really liked this recording of the show. 

If I were to grade it, I’d give it a 7,5/10.

 Before I end this post, can we please appreciate just how gorgeous that dress is? Like damn!!!

Sierra looks absolutely stunning in it as well!

(When does she not look stunning though?)