Eh, if it were only the mannequin that frightened her, she would have fainted as soon as she saw it, but she doesn't. In fact, I've seen many Christines who look quite flattered by the fact that there's a life-sized replica of them in a wedding dress. So to me, it really does seem to be the leap out at her that frightens her. (I've also read that people who are in a hypnotic trance and are suddenly broken out of it tend to faint in reaction. But don't quote me on that.)
@@Niqhtmusic i think maybe she just needed some time to understand what was in front of her. Like “oh wow pretty dress”, wait shoot “is that meant to be me?” And then it comes out and then she faints because it’s creepy.
So disappointed the mirror bride wasn't included in the 25th anniversary.🤧 The creepy mannequin is very important to the story.... And she faints because she realizes that he wants to marry her....😆
Hearing and seeing the older videos gives me an amazing feeling. Just thinking about how many Phantoms sang to their Christines, how many Mirror Brides spooked them into fainting, and how long this has been going on. It's so incredible and I'm sorry to know people didn't appreciate such a masterpiece and it must close tomorrow. As the Phantom said so heart-breakingly, "It's over now, the music of the night."
My only problem with the catch is that those that do it, usually, it seems as though they are expecting it to happen, and as an actor, I guess you sort of are, the key is not to make it look as though you are going in to catch Christine even before she starts to faint. On the other side, I hate it when she does faint and the Phantom totally does not seem to care that the object of his obsession has just fallen, not to mention that if this were a realistic setting, the ground that she does fall on would be dirty and probably wet.
Well yeah, for safety reasons, Christine can't fall very far back or else it might hurt the Phantom's back to catch her night after night. However, Earl Carpenter IMO does a decent job of looking totally surprised at seeing Christine in his arms.
Beginning of the video- Awwwwww, the phantom cares about her. 5 minutes in- Okay, this song is getting repetitive. Halfway through- Can predict exactly when the mirror bride will move. 25 minutes in- Thiiissss ssssoooonnnnggggg End of video- Can play all parts of song on all instruments.
Thankyou so much for compiling this! I had so much fun trying to pick up little things in these. But there are so many, I can't choose a favourite! So instead, I've decided to give "awards". I've left out the obvious Best Faint because really, I'm never very convinced by most Christines' faints. But that's my only complaint. Here goes! *SCARIEST BRIDE:* Colm Wilkinson & Patti Cohenour Canada, 1992 3:53 This one was so scary! I was sitting there thinking what a brave Christine Patti is, going up to touch the bride, when suddenly, WHAM! bride does this explosive move. It literally made me jump! I love how Patti put her hand up, too, like the bride had struck her in the face. Nice touch (pun not intended). *QUIRKIEST BRIDE:* Jerzy Jeszke & Lori Zeglarski Germany, 1999 11:10 *MOST UNBALANCED BRIDE:* Hans Peter Janssens & Inneke van Klinken Belgium, 2000 13:19 *Honourable Mention:* Saulo Vasconcelos & Claudia Cota Mexico, 1999 12:46 (By the way, I love how the sound went whoopee right when Christine fainted - it was like we were hearing her hearing go funny, like it does when one faints, if that makes sense.) *MOST SWAYING BRIDE:* Richard Todd Adams & Kelly Jeanne Grant U.S. Tour, 2008 27:16 *MOST REVEALING BRIDE:* Paul Stanley & Melissa Dye Canada, 1999 11:48 *Honourable Mention:* Thomas Schulze & Maike Switzer Germany, 2004 18:36 *BOWING BRIDE:* Ian Jon Bourg & Alison Kelly Germany, 2000 14:22 *PROUDEST PHANTOM:* Henk Poort Henk Poort & Joke de Kruijf Netherlands, 1993 6:42 *Honourable Mentions:* Juan Carlos Barona Juan Carlos Barona & Julia Moller Spain, 2003 16:25 James Romick James Romick & Marie Danvers Broadway, 2005 19:45 Stephen Buntrock Stephen Buntrock & Rebecca Pitcher Broadway, 2005 20:49 *CUTEST PHANTOM REACTION:* John Cudia John Cudia & Marni Raab U.S. Tour, 2007 26:13 *PHUNNIEST PHANTOM REACTION:* Hugh Panaro Hugh Panaro & Julie Hanson Broadway, 2005 20:17 He reacted before she fainted! *BEST POST-FAINT PHANTOM EXPRESSION:* Ramin Karimloo Ramin Karimloo & Gina Beck London, 2008 27:51 *BEST PHANTOM PHUMBLE:* Colm Wilkinson Colm Wilkinson & Patti Cohenour Canada, 1992 3:53 Colm dropped the cape! *BEST CLOTH FLOURISH:* Luis Armando Luis Armando & Felicidad Farag Spain, 2002 15:54 *MOST DRAMATIC CLOTH FLOURISH:* Roy Weissensteiner Roy Weissenteiner & Marion Wilmer Germany, 2003 16:57 *BEST CAPE FLOURISH:* Howard McGillin Howard McGillin & Jennifer Hope Wills Broadway, 2008 26:48 *BEST CAPE TWIRL:* Ted Keegan Ted Keegan & Rebecca Pitcher U.S. Tour, 2002 15:25 *BEST CHRISTINE REACTION:* Elizabeth Southard Gary Mauer & Elizabeth Southard U.S. Tour, 2006 23:02 *MOST CURIOUS CHRISTINE:* Gina Beck John Owen-Jones & Gina Beck London, 2010 29:43 *MOST EAGER CHRISTINE:* Trista Moldovan Tim Martin Gleason & Trista Moldovan U.S. Tour, 2010 29:02 *MOST ROMANTIC:* Peter Karrie & Elizabeth DeGrazia Canada, 1998 10:36 The way he catches her and spins her around, and then gently lays her in the boat... AWWW!
How come the Phantom always just leaves her on the floor? Like, rude? At least in the 25th he has the decency to move her to the boat/bed instead of just in the middle of the floor.
***** Due to safety issues for the Broadway production, the Phantom does not catch her, and almost all the other productions follow that. Hence, London is the only production that actually has the Phantom catch her, and even then, they eliminate it if the actor has suffered an injury. It's also been done in the restaged tours, and occasionally other actors will do it (Peter Karrie in Toronto, Norm Lewis on Broadway), but for the most part, most actors are required to let Christine drop to the floor.
Glass Prism Ah, that makes sense. Still looks a little odd that Erik's obsession has just passed out and he just walks past her, but rules are rules, lol.
Phantom stepping over Christine's unconscious body just seems so bizarre to me, even if the reasons for it are outside reasons. They should have just incorporated what Howard McGillian did while Jennifer Hope Wills was pregnant into the Broadway blocking. What's the harm in that anyway? Phantom won't injure himself by gently lowering her. When I saw Norm Lewis play Phantom, I distinctly remember being surprised when he picked up Sierra Boggess. But I was glad too. Norm probably figured that he carried her around a lot when he was Triton and she was Ariel, so why not do it in a different play? Lol. I'm glad he got his way on it.
You know you're a Phantom Of The Opera fan when you watch this for 30 minutes straight!!! I had so much fun watching the same thing over and over again!
The fact that the Ben Cramer and Maaike Widdershoven (9:41) video seems to have been recorded from the wings is super interesting, especially for 1996!
Most people don’t recognize their own face immediately because we are used to looking directly and making eye contact with our own reflection in the mirror, not as a third observer. So I think it’s logical (as logical as a phantom scene can be) that she looks upon the mannequin with fascination at first (like, is this me? What in the actual fuck?) and it’s the sudden motion of it popping out that scared the shit out of her to the point she faints. I think the mannequin is designed to “give hugs”. As in, Erik probably uses this life size doll to simulate hugs from Christine… Christine probably will faint a second time when she realizes this lol
10:39 Lemme just say - first off, his lyric delivery is so *extra*. But then - this Princess/bridal catch is my favorite of all time. Freaking majestic. The way her dress flows. Ahh. My whole heart is crying. 💙
this is soooo memorable for me! I remember the very first time seeing this production whe I was a little girl, okay maybe 12. Upon leaving the theatre at the end of the show in New York, I heard lots of ambulances and asked my mother, ''Is that the Mirror Bride going to the hospital? She might have cut her hands on the glass! I hope she's OK!"
Am I the only one who realizes that the "boat" is no longer a boat by this point? Yes, it's the same set piece, but now it's a bed, not a boat. That's why the "boat" is coffin-shaped (the Phantom sleeps in a coffin)
It's unfortunate that the Phantom isn't "allowed" to catch Christine in most productions. It's a small detail, but I feel like it adds a lot to this scene. I'm sure it's only marginally safer for Christine to drop to the floor on her own accord and I doubt it's any more dangerous than all the trapdoor antics.
I find it a little weird in many of these that the Phantom doesn't catch her and in some doesn't even seem concerned. (Dumb question, but is it just an actor's preference, either for performance or personally just not wanting/being able to to lift her?) Though I did like Thomas James O'Leary at 9:07 actually hurrying for her and Howard at 26:49 at least half-catching her. Also, holy cow, Las Vegas mirror!
Only the London production does the catch (though it has been added to the Broadway production recently and Peter Karrie, who was in London before, took it to him when he went to Toronto). The Broadway production was the first to change it for safety reasons, and all other replica productions copied it. Howard McGillin half-caught Jennifer Hope Wills because she was pregnant/just came back from maternity leave at the time. Also, in the London production itself, if the actor playing the Phantom is injured in some way, they will usually forgo the catch too (for the same safety reasons).
I never have understood the significance of the mirror bride, much less why it would jump out at her. Most of the phantoms just quickly almost ran to crab their capes to cover. A few hesitated to check on her then get the cape. Very few actually had the scene staged whereby tje Phantom could catch her. Though it didn't show it here, I believe Michael Crawford's mirror bride scene was restaged so that he caught her and placed her in the boat. A more compassionate scene, and not so hard on the actress to be hitting the floor every night.
Michael Crawford caught Christine when he was in London, but let her fall in the Broadway and LA production. So it's actually reversed - MOTN was restaged so that he let her drop. As for the scene, the Mirror Bride is of course meant to symbolize the Phantom's ultimate plan for Christine and his most cherished desire (a companion, a bride). The bride falling could mean a variety of things: it's an allusion to Leroux's book, where the Phantom is stated to have built automatons; it highlights the Phantom's mix of both romance and creepiness; and it could all be something in Christine subconscious, a stage shorthand of how she perceives this fantastical yet terrifying place, and that she suddenly comprehends what the Phantom wants with her. You're free to pick or choose amongst those.
David Hunerjaeger just kind of points like "Yup. Now you're on the floor!" Lisa Vroman's faint was actually realistic! I love how Peter Lockyer and James Romick tries to show off the bride! The Las Vegas production actually gives Christine something to be scared of. YES JOHN CUDIA! Running over, looking at her head and giving a moment of panic as to why Christine was hurt! Tim Martin Gleason did it too! AND HOWARD MCGILLIN! He caught Jennifer as she fell!
Can we talk for a minute about how utterly creepy the whole concept of the Mirror Bride is to begin with? Brilliant yes, but completely creepy! Like, who was it among the creative team - ALW, Hal Prince, etc. - who came up with the idea that the climactic moment of the song would center around the reveal of a dummy made in Christine's image wearing a wedding gown that came from God knows where that inexplicably lunges forward at Christine when she comes close enough like a theme park robot in a dark ride? Like, that shit is creepy, particularly for a song that has been pretty dramatically tame up to that point!
In the new production of the US Tour of Phantom, there's no mirror bride and Phantom lifts her up at the end of Music of the Night, and Christine falls asleep in his arms.
that's what I don't get. I saw love never dies in boston...no gorilla. Cam Mackintosh's phantom...no BRIDE! I mean, the libretto is the same...why change the action?
The re-staging for the new tour was done so it can be performed in smaller theatres. Not all theatres have the stage and wing space for the standard phantom show, but with the new staging, (Cam’s) there were less set pieces, (no staircase for masquerade, upper grid work for the labyrinth scene, mirror bride). But because of the new staging, Christine and the phantom were on stage during the entire Phantom song, so you actually got to hear them sing. On Broadway, and most tours, Phantom is pre-recorded, and played during the song because they are backstage for most of it.
i just thought of an idea after watching this! if my CHURCH did this production and my pastor played the Phantom, there's that centuries old Bride of Christ reference they could use. *leads me as Christine to the mirror and pulls dust cover off* "There she is! The perfect Bride of Christ!" lol
I ersonally love when the phantoms catch their Christines/carry them after they faint. I think it's oddly touching. Ignoring...you know...the reason they fainted in the first place lol (I also really like when the phantoms seem to have a sense of urgency/surprise. Like "oh crap wait, you fell, let me help you!")
I suppose it's a good way to: 1) show the creepiness of the Phantom and his intentions towards Christine, 2) show a bit of his softer side as well, since he either carries her to the boat or covers her up, and 3) end the song. And it's not that long, really; just a few moments.
Here are some that stood out to me: 10. Gary Mauer & Elizabeth Southard (23:03) 9. Uwe Kroger & Beatrix Reiterer (24:12) 8. Roy Weissensteiner & Marion Wilmer (16:58) 7. Thomas Borchert & Sandra Danyella (21:19) 6. Stephen Buntrock & Rebecca Pitcher (20:49) 5. Hugh Panaro & Julie Hanson (20:17) 4. Peter Karrie & Elizabeth DeGrazia (10:37) 3. Thomas James O'Leary & Tracy Shayne (9:08) 2. Earl Carpenter & Rachel Barrell (21:55) 1. John Cudia & Marni Raab (26:14) Honorable Mentions Kevin Gray & Dodie Pettit (5:31) Paul Stanley & Melissa Dye (11:39) Saulo Vasconcelos & Claudia Cota (12:47) Hans Peter Janssens & Inneke van Klinken (13:19) Ian Jon Bourg & Alison Kelly (14:23) Ethan Freeman & Anne Gorner (23:36) Howard McGillin & Jennifer Hope Wills (26:49)
30 1/2 min of Mirror Bride scenes; manna from heaven! although some I'd've exch for others (Hugh and Sandra, S Davies/C Page, and there's a really old (good) one of Cammell/Barrell). The Japanese ones *suck* (exc for the 1st one). But overall these are great! and most of the Phantoms are excellent. 00:16 grainy but still good 00:46 is she fainting, or lying down for a nap? only decent Japanese 1:57 ah, the one and only MC. LEG 2:31 even more LEG 3:11 acts like he doesn't give a damn 4:13 very romance novel-heroine. poor guy tries to look cool, drops it 5:20 C Bessett falls exactly the same every time 6:24 never see Christine here!? 7:00 like these two, but she just goes flat on her face 7:35 her "faint" is pathetic 8:55 never see *her* either 9:14 love these two (at least him) she just almost falls into the Bride! 9:35 *what* is he doing? 9:38 awesome angle 10:52 lots of flourishes! 12:03 you *fling* that cloak! lil' R&R? 14:05 good, little obscured. good. 15:07 bad. that's not an elegant faint. I don't know *what*, what *is* that? 16:11 like his gestures 16:28 one of my FAVES, love everything about this one, esp his gestures, how she falls... 17:44 like him, her not so much. almost like she forgot she was supposed to fall 18:25 and 18:58 Maaike Switzer's falls are awful. Is she fainting or tripping over herself?? she needs to keep her knees together. 18:58 *boobs* 19:27 like his "mistake", little diff 20:00 great clip. think he coulda not thrown it on her *face*? "watch the face, Jim!" 20:20 oh Hugh :D! love this one; her fall, not so much, little clumsy (and painful?) 20:32 why's he looking at her so intently? kinda funny. 21:03 Rebecca Pitcher always falls *exactly* the same way. Every time. And I don't like hers, weird looking. 21:44 would you really look like that if you'd fainted? 21:60 another of my faves. love how he catches her! 22:45 faint is a little too stilted, stiff. love the clip anyway. 23:14 ah, these two! she really goes for it, love his reaction, so concerned 24:22 looks stupid, like she forgot 26:16 one of *the* *BEST*! love his reaction, priceless, he tucks her in! 26:57 also good. glad camera person remembered to aim left at last minute. 27:36 love his reaction!! 27:53 perfect perfect perfect, love everything about this one. her faint, his distraught reaction, all of it. 29:07 love Tim and Trista. he's also trying to be John Cudia! poor Bride just fell over. 29:55 another of my faves! even if her wig is half-assed. did he have trouble lifting her? thank you for such a phantasic collection/assortment!
@Krystal Hardwood Well, i look at it as like Its "the Phantoms Marriage proposal take 1"! "phantoms marriage proposal take 2" is Him giving Christine his ring during when hes singing the all I ask of you reprise.
They do not catch Christine in any production except London due to safety rules and union regulations. Supposedly, an actor injured himself doing the catch, and even today an actor in the London production might not catch Christine if he's suffering a back injury or something.
Glass Prism the irony of that is that London is the most safety conscious city I've ever been in. To a point where it's annoying. Can't do a damn thing without someone calling HR. So I'm surprised by this but there you go.
He was just ''phan-tasizing'' about her being his future bride, and in doing so, creates an image of her in the wedding gown to symbolize the future. And her fainting is her way of saying, ''I don't believe it! This guy's nuts!" It's not the mannequin that frightens her, she's just had it with him being obsessed over her
There's 5 videos of Matthew Cammelle so you're going to have to be more specific. Also, that's a real actress, not a robot, so no springs are used, she just falls forward at the right moment. So her dress might have been caught on something, but it's unlikely to be a spring.
Thanks for uploading the video since I really like these comparisons. Some random observations: 1) The mirror seems to be all sorts of sizes depending on the production and it's not always broken 2) You can really tell the size differences of the stage by how far away the boat is. 3) I really like the mirror effect in Vegas. 4) I don't really like the mirror bride blocking in Japan since it doesn't look mechanical (spring-loaded enough). The blocking was exactly the same last week in Tokyo.
There are tons already on RU-vid: the one of John Owen Jones with Gina Beck, the one of Earl Carpenter with Rachel Barrell, one of Marcus Lovett with Anna O'Byrne, and many more I can't remember.
26:33 i like this one cuz he reaches out his hand to Christine and she is kinda like checking "herself" in the "mirror". 27:53 Don't get me started on Ramin ❤. I only seen him were he carries Christine. So this is my first time seeing him do MOTN with the mannequin.
I may be nuts, but I've just created a parody of this musical using reality show Project Runway judges and contestants, using the models as the Mirror Bride each time and Zac Posen as the Phantom!! and the judges/contestants as the lead and rest of the cast
I wondered why most phantoms just let her drop to the floor! It seems so unnatural and out of character. The simple act of catching her adds so much affection and tenderness to the scene.
+Graham Beaumont The way I see it is that after this initiation that the Phantom is trying to give his protege Christine, this is the moment that he "blows her mind" by pushing the boundaries for her. She sees herself in the mirror. It's that moment we all have suddenly when we see ourself in reflection, perhaps our double or perhaps in these days on video when we suddenly see deeper into ourself. It can be super confronting and this is her moment that she transcends deeper and truly understands that there is more to life than what she knew. She is forever changed.
two productions which lack the mirror bride are cam macintosh's and I think the Hungarian one. the phantom still has the mirror but it shows the phantom and Christine kissing which is contrary to the libretto
The Hungarian production has both a Mirror Bride and Mirror Groom; since it's a non-replica, the actions of the Mirror Bride doesn't have to match up to what the libretto says. Other productions that lack a Mirror Bride appear to be the Estonian production, the Romanian production, the Finland/Gothenburg production, the Norwegian production, and possibly the Serbian and Bulgarian productions.
This video is focused only on the replica stage productions of ALW's musical. (You'll notice how I didn't include the non-replica Polish and Hungarian productions.) Plus, half the fun in this video was watching how the Mirror Brides vary their jumping out at Christine, and the movie one did not do that.
and there is a production , I forget which one where instead of a bride, the phantom shows the image of himself kissing Christine. totally unlike the usual plot
It's a shock. Christine is half-hypnotized, and I think the Mirror Bride popping out breaks her out of the trance so completely that her body possibly can't take it, and shuts down. (Also, good way to end the scene.) And I think the Phantom wants to show his eventual plan for them - her married to him. In his state of mind (isolated for almost his entire life, maybe a bit stir-crazy), he probably thinks it's quite romantic.
I know they change it so that he doesn’t catch her for safety but why decorate the boat to look like a bed if the phantom doesn’t carry her to it and put her in it?
During the blackout, Christine walks over and lies in it. So she still uses it as a bed and she still wakes up in it, the only change is that the Phantom doesn't carry her over to it.
It makes more sense when they keep it in because then Christine has a more concrete reason for fainting, but in terms of whether it's actually that vital to the plot - no, not really.
I have to point out that almost all of them are really lazy to carry their Christine. I thought that they would do anything for her and that counted as carrying her to the boat/bed not just putting a blanket over her! She is sleeping on the floor and may I remind you that that is the Opera’s underground sewer so her back will probably be aching when she gets up because of the stone floor and she might just probably smell like sewer water!!!!!
Ted Keegan was my first Phantom when I was only ten! I almost got to see him again as the Phantom when I was in sixth grade but Brad Little played the Phantom that afternoon I was OK with that but I would have liked to have seen Ted again!
Cus they will they can do it again on the Fillmore too with Gerard to And with Emmy they can try it with a mannequin and it’s just fine to see it too that waxed figure to keep it in real life and it’s looks like Emmy wow 🤩
Pardon? What about the London production? (If this is a reply to my reply to your post, it's the same thing - she walks towards the doll, it jumps out at her, she faints. Only difference is that the Phantom catches her.) I've put a bunch of clips from the London production up... and labeled them in the video...
Women nowadays don't have to wear super tight corsets.. soo they really wouldn't faint at the sight of their doppelganger mannequin dressed as a bride.
This actually made me very confused. Is the mirror bride an actual doll/mannequin or is an actual PERSON? I thought it was a mannequin, but now I’m confused because some of them moved more then just the fall, and I’m thinking they’re alive. I’m scared.😂🤣
+DJ Touray Due to safety issues for the Broadway production, the blocking was changed in the Broadway production so that the Phantom does not catch her, and almost all the other productions follow that. However, it's been done in the restaged tours, and occasionally actors will bring it over to other productions will do it (Peter Karrie in Toronto, Norm Lewis on Broadway).
WAIT WAIT WAIT! IM LATE BUT WHEN HE SAYS THIS IS HE SAYING 'POWER OF THE MUSIC OF THE BRIDE'?? I ALWAYS THOUGHT THAT BUT IVE NEVER BEEN ABLE TO CONFIRM IT- CAN ANYONE TELL ME IF ITS TRUE?? MAYBE IT DIFFERS BETWEEN TIME OF THE PRODUCTIONS AND CERTAIN ACTORS BUT IM ACTUALLY CONFUSED HELP XD
Tbh before the reopening there really weren't Christines of color, or if there were, their skin color wasn't noticeably different. After the reopening, they changed the Mirror Bride masks to a silvery color, which works with any actress's skin tone, I suppose.
I am a huge Phan but this scene always raises questions for me. Why does Christine faint when it springs out at her? I can understand jumping in shock but the full on fainting..seems a bit of an overreaction? Plus I don't get the Phantom showing it to her in the first place. I mean he's intelligent enough to deceive her into thinking he was the angel of music, to seduce her with song into his lair why destroy that mood he has spent years planning/creating by showing her the mannequin?
If by Scandinavian you mean Norway, Sweden, and Denmark... there is no Norwegian version of Phantom. There are no video bootlegs of the Swedish version. And there are very few video bootlegs from Denmark, and none of them good quality. Believe me, I wish there were, but I had to make do with what I had available.
