"Weber is the flavor," "Phantom" continues the fate of the Magic City, unveiling the North Bund Friendship Grand Theater

Located at the intersection of the Huangpu River and Suzhou River, in the core area of the North Bund, the North Bund Friendship Grand Theater, inspired by the "Art Treasure Box" design, will open on the 28th of this month with the original musical "Phantom of the Theater sequel: Eternal Love".

On September 16th, the North Bund Friendship Theatre teamed up with the Jiantou Bookstore to bring a guided tour of "The Phantom of the Theatre: Eternal Love" in the "Bookstore with Drama" series. The "destined person" of the Phantom - Qian Shijin, the first artistic director of Shanghai Grand Theatre and visiting professor at Shanghai Theatre Academy, and Qiu Ye, a senior musical translator, bring the story behind the "Phantom" to the audience.

On site of the tour guide

Nearly 20 years ago, the original musical "Phantom of the Theater" came to Shanghai; Nearly 20 years later, the musical master Weber's remake of "The Phantom of the Theater: Eternal Love" will premiere in Shanghai at the newly completed North Bund Friendship Theatre.

Starting from December 2004, the original version of "The Phantom of the Theater" made its debut in China, creating a box office myth of over 100 million yuan and becoming a musical enlightenment for many Chinese audiences. In nearly 20 years, the original English musical "The Phantom of the Theatre: Eternal Love" will continue the connection between "The Phantom" and Shanghai. In the sequel to Phantom of the Theater: Eternal Love, the characters on stage enter a new stage in their lives. Where did the Phantom go after leaving the Paris Opera House? What was the scene of his reunion with Little C? What secrets are hidden in the child's background in the play? The suspense left by the previous work have been answered one by one.

The Phantom of the Theater sequel: Eternal Love

Outside the stage, fans are also constantly growing. For example, Qiu Ye joined the promotion of "The Phantom of the Theater" at the Shanghai Grand Theatre as a fan and volunteer of musicals. At that time, the Grand Theatre established the "Golden Rose Club" specifically for "The Phantom of the Theatre". This original musical was also the first to perform a hundred times in China, attracting audiences from all over the country to flock to Shanghai.

Qian Shijin recalled that in the late 1980s and early 1990s, when he was exploring the American performance market, he first came into contact with the concept of musicals. From New York to Los Angeles, he finally bought tickets for the performance of Les Mis é rables. "Although sitting on the third floor, far from the actors on stage, I was in a state of excitement from beginning to end. Even if I couldn't understand every word the actors sang, their performance, music, and plot deeply moved me. When watching an opera, the audience's state was basically upright, and they didn't feel tired after watching a musical for more than two hours. I was very moved, but I didn't expect the musical to move me so much." From then on, Qian Shijin made up his mind to introduce this form of musical into China.

In 1996, while the Shanghai Grand Theatre was still under construction, Qian Shijin, who was transferred to work at the theater, began preparing to introduce classic original musicals, with the first goal being "Les Mis é rables". After years of arduous negotiations, in 2002, 21 performances of "Les Mis é rables" were launched with one hit. In 2003, 53 performances of "Cat", 35 performances of "Sound of Music" in 2004, 100 performances of "Phantom of the Theater" in 2005, and 101 performances of "Lion King" in 2006... Qian Shijin said, "At that time, our idea was to let Shanghai audiences see authentic musicals and understand the level and artistic charm of excellent musicals in the world."

"Musical theater is a product of industrial society and an art form that emerged together with movies. With the development of technology, the technology on stage keeps up with the times." Qian Shijin said that every top-level musical is very particular, and there should be a beautiful "gimmick" to attract audiences, such as the turntable in "World of Sorrow", the chandelier in "Phantom of the Theater", the helicopter in "Miss Saigon", and the elephant in "Cat". Back then, in order to allow elephants to enter, the door frame of the Shanghai Grand Theatre was dismantled, and the most important chandelier in "The Phantom of the Theatre" required the theater's beams to withstand significant tension. Back then, "The Phantom of the Theatre" only performed 100 times in Shanghai, which was not only a foundation for the audience, but also difficult for theaters in other cities to meet this condition. As a sequel to "The Phantom of the Theater: Eternal Love", the gimmick on stage is the glass maze, and this design is also related to the plot.

The Phantom of the Theater sequel: Eternal Love

"It can be said that a successful musical must have an unexpected place on stage, which is the famous scene of the musical," concluded Hong Yun, the program director of Shanghai Oriental Art Center.

Over the past 20 years, many Shanghai audiences still remember the ultimate shock that "The Phantom" brought. They brought ticket stubs, event magazines, three fold pages, and merchandise from the original version of "The Phantom of the Theater" when it first came to China in 2004, and shared their stories with "The Phantom". They also received small gifts from the vicinity of the North Bund Friendship Grand Theater.

Audiences share their stories with Phantom of the Theater

Audiences share their stories with Phantom of the Theater

In 2009, when Qian Shijin went to the UK to participate in a cultural event, Weber specially invited him to come and listen to a "newly written musical", which was the sequel to "The Phantom of the Theatre: Eternal Love" that was later released. "At that time, Weber said, 'Don't think I can't write any more beautiful songs, and don't think this is a sequel to' The Phantom of the Theater '. Just like the relationship between' Godfather 1 'and' Godfather 2 ', they are related, but' Godfather 2 'itself is an independent work. Later, Weber also invited us to his studio to see the stage design and invited me to watch the London premiere of' True Love Eternal 'on March 9, 2010.' Qian Shijin said that the introduction of 'True Love Eternal' was on the agenda several times, but it was ultimately unsuccessful. This year, the re arranged sequel to 'The Phantom of the Theater: True Love Eternal' was on the North Bund Friendship University." The premiere in the theater also fulfilled one of his dreams.

The Phantom of the Theater sequel: Eternal Love

"The scope and style of musicals are very broad and not fixed. But what is the essence of musicals? I asked Weber, and he replied: musicals are Story! Story! Story! He has always designed his own musicals according to this principle.".

"This movie 'True Love Forever' still has the classic flavor of Weber," said Hong Yun.

"Yes, Weber has this taste," said Qian Shijin.