Tim Tobin ended up being my Spanish teacher in middle school after having to stop preforming. It's super crazy to think about. He would sing for us sometimes too. He was a super awkward guy lol.
Renée Knapp, alternate Christine in Hamburg 1990-1992, principal 1992-1993, and alternate again in 1993-1994. She was also emergency cover principal in the original Melbourne production for four months in 1991. Alas no photos ever emerged from the latter, so all photos here are from Hamburg.
Renée Knapp and Tim Tobin in the boat scene in POTO Hamburg
The first photo comes from an alas too blurry photo of a framed wall photo at Neue Flora in Hamburg. It shows a slightly different pose than the one printed in the 1992 souvenir brochure (second photo).
...but what this, and the general amount of Renée Knapp photos they had backstage, tells me? There’s a whole photo series they never shared with us of these two. And I’d LOVE to see more!
hey so fun fact: my french teacher is ex broadway performer Tim Tobin.
this dude lmao (but he's older now obv)
we're on our way back from our french club field trip and my friend is playing music, and mr. tobin just fuckin starts singing a lady gaga song and some other things.
She started as the original alternate in 1990, and remained so until she took over as principal in 1992. She went back to being alternate in 1993, and remained so for another year, before she left in 1994.
In 1991 she also did a four-month run as Christine in Melbourne.
So I was asked to write a bit about the Phantoms I’ve seen. Putting it behind the cut, as the post turned into a quite massive lil’ thing when I was done...
I must say that although I have my favourites, I’ve never seen a bad Phantom live. They’ve all been good, in different ways. But if I were to list my top 5 Phantoms, it would look something like this (in no particular order): Flemming Enevold, Scott Davies, John Owen-Jones, Earl Carpenter aaaaand... not sure who the fifth one is, as there’s so many solid candidates. Somewhere between Brad Little, Marcus Lovett and Ian Jon Bourg, probably. Though I also have a big heart for Preben Kristensen and David Arnsperger.
59 performances, 16 Phantoms. Here’s my thoughts on them.
Tim Tobin (Thomas Schulze?), Hamburg: Alas I remember very little of this performance. I was a youngster, we were traveling, I just wanted to go to the hotel and sleep. But I DO remember being absolutely fascinated by the colours, the visuals, the voices. Saw him (or Thomas Schulze, I cannot be sure) once, opposite Renée Knapp (probably).
Flemming Enevold, Copenhagen: The performance that really got me hooked on Phantom. A performance like none I had ever seen before. Absolutely haunting and powerful. Commanding, unpredictable, owning the stage. Like a force of nature. Nice operatic touch to his voice when needed. I saw Flemming Enevold many times after that, some 8-10 times, and he is way up there on my list. Possibly my favourite. Saw him opposite Susanne Elmark, Hanne Damm, Mia Karlsson and Teresia Bokor.
Peter Jorde, Copenhagen: Another Phantom I saw quite early on, and another of my favourites. Very ghost like, hollow and cool voice, super tall and slender, elegant, with depth. Expressive hands. I especially liked his all too visible restaint, like in the Final Lair, where you can see he’s repressing every emotion and that it’s bound to explode. Also one I saw many times, some 10-12 times in total. Susanne Elmark, Hanne Damm, Viktoria Krantz, Agnete Munk Rasmussen, Mia Karlsson and Teresia Bokor.
Preben Kristensen, Copenhagen: Now here’s a special bloke. Nothing about him really screams Phantom. On the lower side, a comedian. But he really found his take on the role, so he became absolutely memorable. He played him more like a worn-out elder man, giving up on life, awkward at times, and then Christine comes into his life as a glowing light. He also transposed the score down here and there, always caught me by surprise. I started out not liking him, as he was so different from everything I knew. But he totally grew on me, and now I love his Phantom. Saw him some 4-5 times, opposite Agnete Munk Rasmussen, Viktoria Krantz and Mia Karlsson.
John Owen-Jones, West End: My first English languaged Phantom, and what a legend! The probably best voice to ever sing the score. Sings it with ease, with beauty, with drama. Also a passionate portrayal, and quite adaptive to his co-players. Another favourite, which I was happy to see five times. Would have seen him five more! Saw him opposite Celia Graham, Katie Knight-Adams, Nicky Adams and Rachel Barrell.
Earl Carpenter, West End: To think I was sad I got the standby Phantom instead of John Owen-Jones! Well, that only lasted until the Mirror scene, and from then on I was completely mesmerized. Earl Carpenter was totally different from the principal, almost afraid of his Christine, shying away. Also did some giant leaps of doom in the Mausoleum scene. And oh! The details, the nuances! Saw him three times early in his run, and once late in his run, and he had changed a lot, more confident in the later performanc, but I liked both takes on it. Saw him opposite Rachel Barrell and Katie Knight-Adams - they could not have been more different.
Ian Jon Bourg, Essen: Opposite of Earl/JOJ, here I was quite happy to get an emergency cover rather than the principal (Uwe Kröger). Though in retrospect it would have been epic to see Uwe. But anyway. Took me some time to get used to his way of singing German guttural R-s (he kinda rolled them, or rather gurgled them). But Ian Jon Bourg has an amazing voice, large, operatic. He’s also a quite sensual Phantom, with danger when needed. Super solid. Legend. Saw him once, opposite Anne Görner.
David Shannon, West End: David, David, David... Seeing him on stage was frustrating. Felt like lots of potential not fulfilled. He had moments where I curled my toes of glee and happiness. The curse on the angel being one. But for the most he seemed to hold back, not letting go. I was later told it was due to the directing, that he was instructed that way. Not sure if it’s correct, but it could explain a lot. Also heard he didn’t give a fuck the last week, and was brilliant. So he kinda feels like a missed opportunity, and that he would have been amazing with different directing? Saw him twice, opposite Gina Beck.
Hugh Panaro, Broadway: Highly interesting to see this Phantom legend. His take on the Phantom kept changing, but he always kept two qualities: a sort of androgynous appearance, and a sarcasm. Not many Phantoms go that route, and people are divided in how they like it, but I loved it. Brought out a childish, or rather child-like, side of the Phantom which I found added some layers to my idea of Poor Erik. Also, when I saw him, he had approaced a darker side of the Phantom as well, and the balance between that and the sarcasm was quite cool. Saw him twice, opposite Marni Raab.
Anthony Crivello, Las Vegas: So I had been warned about his portrayal. He had some antics some just couldn’t handle. And his voice was blown. I mean, yeah the antics were there, randomly slapping himself and whatnot, and he struggled vocally, to the point of having transpose down notes and still sounding bad. Yet. I rather liked him. A lot. Probably because I find it so touching to see people add heart and soul to the role. And that’s exactly what he did. He also added a nice rugged touch to the role, I’ve come to prefer that to the too smooth portrayals. Saw him five times, opposite Kristi Holden and Kristen Hertzenberg, in the closing week in Vegas.
Marcus Lovett, West End: Now, his Phantom is difficult to describe. Raw, unpolished, mysterious, completely Leroux-esque. So many details. Didn’t quite have the voice grandeur from his Broadway run in the early 1990s, but I couldn’t care less. I basically sat at the edge of my seat because I found his portrayal so interesting. after the show he showed me that he had highlighted the whole goddamn Leroux novel to get details right. Floored. Saw him twice, opposite Anna O’Byrne and Sofia Escobar.
Scott Davies, West End: So Scott Davies has a tendency to do pop-up performances, that’s the nature of being a standby. Luckilly he’s had to go on twice when I’ve randomly been in London, and each time he blew me away. He’s an absolute wonderful old-school Phantom, still echoing a lot of the moves from Crawford, Willetts and Karrie. He has an operatic voice, but can also go to a whispering level, and the contrast is really nice. And his Final Lair is a killer. Holy wow. An absolute gem of a Phantom. Saw him twice, opposite Olivia Brereton and Celinde Schoenmaker.
Gerónimo Rauch, West End: So, a bit divided in my view here. A Phantom doing absolutely everything right, singing very well, displaying elegance, emotions, correct blocking, check. And yet I found him rather unmemorable. In no way bad, mind you. Just not particlarly interesting or challenging. But he might be one I had liked a lot in the past, when I wanted smoother Phantoms. Saw him once, opposite Olivia Brereton.
David Arnsperger, Hamburg: So I saw a performance wher eliterally everything went wrong. Lots of wardrobe mishaps, the mirror got stuck, people tripping. And he just kept performing like nothing had happened, forcing the mirror open with his hands while singing. THAT, ladies and gentlemen, is impressive. Like Rauch, he was one of those Phantoms sticking to the blocking and score as taught, an absolutely solid Phantom. but unlike Rauch, I found him quite memorable and expressive. Saw him three times, opposite Lauri Brons and Valerie Link.
Brad Little, Istanbul/World Tour: THREE dreams came true when I got to go to Istanbul (check) and see the World Tour (check) and the legend that is Brad Little (check). So despite vocal fatigue, he delivered a helluva performace. So passionate, living and breathing the role, and so many unique moments. Adding small unique touches, tweaks to the blocking and score, that made you realize that although he’s the world’s longest running Phantom, he still experimented with the role to keep it fresh. LUV. Saw him three times, opposite Emilie Lynn and Kristi Holden.
Mathias Edenborn, Hamburg: A Phantom who faced a bit of critique the first months, for too pop-sounding voice and too boring portrayal. Eventually he started adding lots of details to his portrayal, small quirks, personal touches. And that really worked. For example, he introduced a half-catch in MOTN, as well as some really tender details to the classic pose. Overall very solid. Saw him two times, opposite Michelle van de Ven and Valerie Link.
In total: all of these men have challenged and expanded my idea of how the role should be performed. Each has added details I still think of when I see a completely different portrayal. That’s also the joy of keep returning to the show, to see new takes on a role I thought I knew exactly how should be performed.
