The Phantom of the Opera

The English composer Andrew Lloyd Webber (1948) has been able to produce one world success after another over the past five decades. The controversial musical and film Jesus Christ Superstar (1971) was followed by Evita (1976), Cats (1981), Song and Dance (1982), a combination of Variations and Tell me on a Sunday, Starlight Express (1984) and Requiem (1985). His Phantom of the Opera premiered in 1986 starring Sarah Brightman (Lloyd Webber’s former wife) and Michael Crawford. The musical won both the Laurence Olivier Award and the Evening Standard Drama Award for Best Musical of 1986.