Sunday, July 25, 2004
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal
'Phantom' headed to Strip
Agreement to bring Broadway hit
to Venetian in 2006
By MIKE WEATHERFORD
REVIEW-JOURNAL
"The Phantom of the Opera" finally will haunt the Strip, but not until they build an opera house for him.
The producers of Andrew Lloyd Webber's blockbuster announced the Broadway hit is headed to The Venetian as long anticipated, but with an opening not scheduled until 2006.
"They have to design and build a theater and we have just started that process," said a source familiar with the negotiations. "The talks that have gone on have been financial and business in nature and not about the creative aspects of the show."
David Rockwell will oversee construction of a $25 million to $30 million theater that represents The Venetian's part of the investment, while the show itself will be financed by Webber's Really Useful Group and Clear Channel Entertainment.
Rockwell's company The Rockwell Group built the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles and the Motown Center in Detroit.
The custom venue will house updated special effects, including a lake of real water and an exploding replica of the Paris Opera House chandelier, created specifically for this production. However, the 90-minute running time will be shorter than the Broadway version.
Original director Harold Prince will return to supervise the 46-member cast.
" `The Phantom of the Opera' is the jewel in the crown of the world's musical productions," said Sheldon Adelson, chairman of Las Vegas Sands Inc., in a statement.
Producers say the show has grossed $3 billion since its London premiere in 1986, and has been seen by more than 58 million people. A movie version starring Gerard Butler is due in theaters in December.
The drawing card for the Las Vegas show will be neither star power nor exclusivity. The Venetian will not have to wait for the closing of the Broadway edition, which opened in 1988, and the local production will not have recognizable stars.
