On Saturday, Mar. 10, I attended The Phantom of the Opera with my sister at the Durham Performing Arts Center (DPAC), located in Durham, NC.

This was my first seeing a broadway production and I could have not been more pleased. When I first arrived at DPAC, I was instantly drawn to the beautiful architecture of the building and the saxophonist on the sidewalk playing songs from Phantom. 

Although the line to get in was outside of the building, the process of bag checking and showing our tickets went quickly. Our seats were in the back row of the balcony, but we were still able to see the stage well.

I wish I could say there was one specific element of the show that blew me away, but all of them were phenomenal. The costumes were stunning, the singing was unbelievable, and the props were incredible.

The costumes were designed by Maria Bjornson and the scenery was designed by Paul Brown. Both were recognized with Tony Awards ®.

The setting varied throughout the production with unique places, such as the opera house, the Phantom’s dungeon, a cemetery, and a ballroom. One of the most beautiful scenes was when the Phantom took leading female character Christine Daae on a boat. While she sat in the boat, he stood at the edge of it and paddled, somehow gliding across the stage as if they were really on water. The blue lighting on the stage looked exactly like flowing waves in a river.

Another memorable setting was the masquerade party in the ballroom. As if the vibrant costumes, singing of “Masquerade,” and impeccable ballroom dancing wasn’t enough, the mirrors lining the stage made it even more incredible. The mirrors allowed audience members to get a 360 degree view of the dancing.

The music in the Phantom production was breathtaking. The orchestra was outstanding and Eva Tavares, who played Christine, sang as if she was truly under the Angel of Music’s spell. When Tavares sang “Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again,” in the cemetery, as a tribute to her deceased father, I was nearly brought to tears. I also thoroughly enjoyed hearing the well-known songs, “Think of Me,” “The Music of the Night,” and “Point of No Return.” Of course, the theme song, “Phantom of the Opera,” was executed perfectly, as well.  The orchestra and cast was comprised of fifty-two people in total.

The show began at 2 p.m. and ended around 4 p.m. The cast received a well-deserved standing ovation from audience members. I would have jumped onto the stage and hugged all of the cast members if that was culturally acceptable.

For those who are not familiar with The Phantom of the Opera, I highly recommend it. It is a timeless story that I appreciate more and more as I grow older.

I first fell in love Phantom when I was in sixth grade after my piano teacher gave me the music from it. That year, I also watched the movie in band class. From sixth to eleventh grade, I did not think much more about it. However, in September, I read the book by Gaston Leroux. Reading it rekindled my love for the heart-wrenching story and I became so obsessed with Phantom that I wrote about it in all of my college application essays. Needless to say, when I was surprised with tickets for my birthday, I was thrilled.

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Overall, the production was incredible and DPAC is such a neat place to visit. It only took a little over an hour to get there and the traffic was not overwhelming. The parking garage is close to the building and it is $6 to park.

I look forward to attending more productions now that I am familiar with DPAC. The last showing of The Phantom of the Opera will be on Sunday, Mar. 11.

The next Broadway production, The Sound of Music, is in April from the 20-22. If ordered in advance, tickets start at $30 and they can be purchased online.