I loooove how he openly sobs in the final lair scenes, especially before the monkey starts playing. I love an emotional Erik. Plus Ben has one of the best singing voices of any phantom 😩
I would pay alot of money for a professional recording of Ben Lewis of the Phantom. He is so underrated and would kill to have his portrayal recorded on an album. Thank you so much for uploading this recording, I so wish I got to see him live. Hopefully I can at least hear him sing live someday.
I feel the same way as you Ben is Phoemnal I love his Acting N Singing ,hes my favorite Phantom, i have him on Both dvd n Blu ray in love nerve dies Australia
I find something quite interesting about his version. Ben followed every note in the score, especially the line ' leave me alone, forget what you've seen', all the other singers like Ramin, JOJ, Hugh, Colm and Earl didn't follow the notes in the original score, frankly this come as a real surprise, so I downloaded the full score to check for this part. Really bravo to him for following all the notes, and at the same time can give his personal interpretation of Erik. And to be honest, Ben is the Leroux Erik, Ramin is the ALW Phantom and JOJ is the Ken Hill Erik. A real surprise
I wouldn't easily just put these very well known actors in that category since there have been so many actors who've done Phantom , those who have gone unnoticed because they were simply not mainstream. But I agree that Ben is indeed Leroux Erik .
Love the voice of Ben Lewis,is an outstanding Phantom in Love Never Dies,is tall and elegant,his deep and round voice is really awesome,and the way he pronounce the words❤❤❤
One little detail I love is how Ben holds out the low note in "Be my guest, sir." The resonance of his baritone just makes that note powerful and haunting, which is something I wish Phantoms did more often
2:23 find me another phantom who slides up to the "seduction" and down to "lies" and can sustain such rich vibrato at the lowest notes. My favourite line in PONR, but only when Ben sings it
Actually, you know which other Phantom does the character from the same dangerously immature angle but is possibly even more spot-on than Ben? Brad Little. Look him up on here doing this same scene and you’ll see what I mean.
@daveofthejungle, I know this is an old comment but yes! I saw Brad play Phantom when I was 13. We actually met him. We were having dinner before the show when a server spilled a glass of wine down my sisters back. He saw it happen and came over to see if we were going to the show and that he hoped our night wasn’t ruined. SUPER nice guy. That was my first POTO show... I’m now 36 and have seen it 5 times live, numerous times for the movie, and watched the live stage film several times. But that memory of meeting Brad will be one of my favorites. That said... Ben is my all time fave Phantom. His voice is top notch.
I was very lucky to see Ben Lewis's performance in person in London, and his phantom was the first and only that brought me to tears - Would really really love to have a professional recording of his version.
He said in an interview,he was going to play Erik as an adolescent, his emotions going from angry to happy to sorrowful. The way an adolescents emotions run the gambit. I happy to say he did just that. Can anybody cry better than Ben? I think not.
Ive seen many phantoms during the final lair..and i cant remember the last time a phantoms performance like that made me bawl like a baby...especially the way he acts after he frees raoul and tells them to leave..the way he breaks down and cries..the way he literally clutches the veil to his chest and cries.. just every bit of the performace he gave..This is why ben lewis is my favorite
One of the line that really give me the clues of how Erik’s voice should be like the most when reading Laroux’s was his description of Erik’s sing as ‘he is now singing like the god of thunder.’ Now that I have seen Ben live, no other phantom’s voices would be ever beat his for sounding like the god of thunder
Ben Lewis really is the perfect Phantom. He really needs to be back on the West End Stage as soon as possible he truly was born to sing and act. Such a talent and such exceptional skill and technique should not be wasted.❤
A Very convincing performance by Ben Lewis as the phantom - so full of emotional content. Was reunited with Christine 10 yrs later in Coney Island only to lose her again in Love Never Dies. But gain a son.
It was such an honor to see Ben! I've seen greats like Hugh Panaro and Ramin, but the time I saw Ben was such a surreal experience. For once, I was constantly waiting for him to come back onstage! His voice is unbelievably powerful. While Hugh is still my favourite in terms of unique acting choices, Ben is an undeniable force. So cool!
First off, thank you so much for posting this! I wanted to see Ben Lewis sooo badly!! But a trip to England to go watch him was kinda not an option haha. Second, I love love love his voice as Phantom! I mean, yeah, he sings amazing as LND Erik, but this is just a whole different kind of amazing! And the Christine was really great too!!! I loved how he got on one knee while giving Christine the ring after Point of No Return, and how his voice broke when he said the "you" in "Christine, that's all I ask of you." The fact that he stayed in his throne while raising the bars instead of standing was something I have never seen before! I loved the Christine's "Tears of hate." It felt so real! The entire "Go Now and Leave Me" scene was really emotional. The Phantom crying, Christine trying to go to him but Raoul holding her back 😭 Then Erik crying while singing Masquerade!!! And did she put the ring back on him?? I love that but IT'S SO SAD!!! And then him when he hears Christine singing "All I Ask of You." Ohhh my heart. Also, is that Christine screaming after the part when Phantom says "Christine, why? Why?" Because I've never been sure.
He's got a style right? I have never seen throne thing in the other actors too. And also his scream after Raoul said "why make her lie to you to save me" is a whole new level too!
Anna Harrell the scream after the "why, why?" line is madame giry, she and Raoul come across the rat-catcher (a reference to Leroux) and he takes her by surprise. It's really easy to miss though.
Anna Harrell yes ma'am. I only know cause I've read the script. Like I said it's super quick and most people probably don't realize what she's screaming at but yup, it's giry screaming at the rat-catcher 🙃
Ben is my favorite Phantom alongside with Ramin’s. But as year goes by, I fall more and more for Ben’s, some tiny gestures but show how much more thought Ben had put into his character. At the point when he wants to get away with Christine, he covers her up with his cloak, takes her under his wings literally like he always does throughout his entire life of “guiding, leading, and protecting” her. A loving and caring person, who has never tasted the joy of being treated well and shown how to love and care for someone.
Ben Lewis é o melhor no quesito chorar de verdade, lágrimas reais. Não sei como ele faz isso sem desafinar... porque ele chora pra valer. Não são só apenas algumas lágrimas. Ele é um ator e cantor fantástico! A voz de barítono dele é linda demais! 😍
Sim! A voz dele é fantástica! Só assisti a performance dele na famigerada sequência, mas foi o bastante pra me deixar encantada! E a cara de perturbado impagável que só ele consegue fazer! 😂 Ótimo ator!
Same here. I think my top 5 would be something like Michael Crawford, Ben Lewis, Anthony Warlow, Ramin Karimloo, and Gary Mauer, though I'm starting to think I might like Lewis better than Crawford. It's a tough choice.
I absolutely adore Ben Lewis. His deep velvety sultry voice....resonates with me...”be my guest, sir”. He’s the best Phantom. ❤️Both in LND and POTO. hopefully one day I will get to see him perform live. 🙏🏻 Thank you for posting the video.
So at 7:19, you see Meg, Giry, and Raoul standing with the red curtains behind them. Giry and Raoul exit stage left, and then Meg sort of temporarily stands there for a simple millisecond, next thing you know the candles from the floor are rising, where the hell did she go?!
Ben Lewis is one of my three favorite Phantoms (Michael Crawford and Ramin Karimloo being the other two). I have watched dozens of recordings of the musical, I'm only sorry I never got to see it in it's prime.
Always love when a "Christine" screams as an acting choice.... when both "The Phantom outs the noose around "Raoul" and then when he drags & attacks her.
Holy shit. I wasn't a huge fan of Ben Lewis since I'd seen him in the love never dies recording. He wasn't bad I just didn't feel the emotion in the music as well as with say, Ramin. But at someone's suggestion I found this clip and like... Wow. I see what the problem with love never dies was (well, it has lots of problems but specifically with Ben lol). Love Never Dies never puts the phantom in a position to be vulnerable or weak or "pathetic", so it feels... Alright, but maybe 'dry.' But given the chance to show that side... Wow. Holy shit.
i like a lot of the choices that he makes such as the way that he moves and some of his yelps but the way he keeps grabbing/throwing christine by the head and face makes me concerned for her actor’s safety. i hope she doesnt get a neck injury
I find a little weird that the reverse curtain closes almost entirely while the lights are still on. Why use a blackout afterwards? It should be used to hide that scene change. If you want to use the curtain as the transition, it's fine, but using both makes it look like a mistake (although done on purpose, since I've seen it several times in London).
I do love his voice, but the man-handling at the end is a little over the top. All the movements are choppy. I think if he slowed down just a bit and was smoother, he would definitely be in the top 3. I really wish they would make a movie with him and Kelly like the trailer they released. OMG, that would be amazing.
I think Ben interpreted the Phantom as a man who is very intellectually developed but emotionally stunted (he's kind of like a child emotionally imo) so the choppiness represents him throwing a huge tantrum. I mean, the Phantom has a super unhealthy obsession with Christine - he's fixated on her - and then Raoul just comes gallivanting along and is trying to take her away. So the Phantom is angry at Raoul for existing and angry at Christine for exposing him during Don Juan Triumphant. Super angry, the lot of them 😂. I guess Ben plays a Phantom that has a huge (too huge?) capacity for love but has a very short fuse. I love his interpretation; I find it very Leroux-esque. However I do appreciate calmer/sweeter Phantoms like Earl Carpenter as well :) Yes Ben and Kelly totally deserve a film for POTO (too bad we can't see their expressions and more subtle movements that we experience in a live performance which makes their acting so much more nuanced). And then we'll have a voice crack-less phantom on DVD!
It has always been there when I have I seen the production. It's part of the stage directions. It supposed to be the doll that Christine sees in the mirror with the wedding dress, it's just she is now wearing the wedding dress.
Ben Lewis looked like he didn't mind with the recording, though. He said that when he's up there high he could see everything included the people who recorded the show illegally.
Sarah Harker when I saw Phantom in June I got to see Jordan Simon Pollard and I think he is much better. He also jumped into the lake. Strange that Jeremy doesn't🤔
In March he didn't pick Christine up for the spin cuddle after all I ask of you, the lift during Masqurade or the jump into the lake. I assumed it was back injury or something at the time. The first and latter are small details that make Raoul a most interesting character, so I really noticed them not being there. Now hoping for the understudy when I go in September!
Sarah Harker that's strange, he is a principal, he was supposed to do that😕. Have a great time in September! Hope you get Scott Davies. I was lucky to get him and he is absolutely the best