THIS IS THE FIRST VIDEO OF BEN LEWIS THAT WE HAVE AND I’M CRYING

A guide to stage dooring

Going to stage door is quite a normal thing to do if you love a musical, however, when I first did it, I was quite unsure of what it would be like. So here are just some tips for stage dooring. Keep in mind, I have only stage doored 4 times, 1 time at Tanz in Hamburg, 2 times at Tanz in Vienna and once at Vivaldi die fünfte Jahreszeit, so I’m definitely not an expert, but at least I’ve experienced it some times.

- If you want to let the actors sign something, have the thing that you want to get signed ready before they come out, and bring your own marker.

- Going to stage door alone isn’t awkward or odd, always remember that you will probably regret it that you didn’t go to stage door just because you thought that you would feel awkward. (And sometimes you have the best conversations with actors because of the fact that you’re alone.) Going to a show alone also might be awkward at first, but once the curtain raises, who cares if you’re alone or with family/friends.

- Please don’t go to the stage door before the show starts, the actors just want to get to work, you can say hi to them after the show.

- Know the actors’ names. This might be a very obvious one, but it’s kinda strange when you want an autograph of “that handsome actor” but you don’t actually know his name.

- NEVER go to the stage door of a show you didn’t attend.

- Are you not sure where the stage door is? Google maps is your best friend, if you turn on the street view function and you virtually walk around the theatre, you’ll usually be able to find it. Or take a walk yourself around the theatre in the afternoon before the show, this is usually quite a good plan because on the evening that you’re seeing it, lots of people will be crowding around the entrance of the theatre to get in, and you probably don’t want to spend that time looking for the stage door.

- Does a certain actor walk by, but they don’t notice you? Just politely say his/her name and they will probably take their time to speak to you.

- Want to take a selfie? ALWAYS ASK FIRST, some people don’t like having their photo taken.

- Do you want to say something that takes longer than “Hi, I think you’re great, could you please sign my programme.” Then consider being the last in line, this way you have the most time to talk to the actor, and you are also not annoying other fans who might also want to interact with him/her.

- Are you watching a show in a country in which you don’t speak the language of? Then English (or of course the language that the actor speaks) is the way to go. Trying to do your best to say that you really appreciated someone’s preformance in a language that you don’t really speak may lead to awkward situations. So just stick to what you know and what they know.

- Don’t know how to start the conversation? you could begin by saying: “Thank you for being such a great -insert character here- I was blown away by your performance.” Of course you have to mean what you say, but usually that is a fine way to start.

- Some actors choose not to leave via stage door. Always have that in the back of your head when you stand there, this way you won’t be terribly disappointed when the person you’re waiting for doesn’t appear.

- In my opinion it’s rude to only pay attention to the star of the show. Surely there must be some other people that you also like! You don’t have to ask for their autograph or anything, but you can let them know that you really liked their performance, you might have a lovely conversation with the actors that you would usually ignore.

- And lastly, be polite, to the actors and to the other fans that are waiting. Some actors don’t like “the whole stage door thing” and you should accept that. You have paid for the show, not for a meet and greet with a certain person.

I love this!

Especially the last point, I hate it when fans act like the cast owes them to spend lots of time with them after the show; that is NOT their job!

Thanks for this comprehensive guide. I really appreciate it

Thank you for this

Thanks for these tips @coffintanz. You’re spot on about not feeling awkward. There’s always other people there waiting for the same thing. I’ve been seeing musicals for many years and too shy go to stage door. started stage dooring in the last year and been 3 times. It’s heaps of fun meeting the actors, even if it’s only for a brief moment.

Graf von Drama Queen Krolock

OMG THAT is a beautiful gif set! So glad about that awkward show. I could watch him 24/7 <3

Thanks for this gif set @heather-destler, love his facial expressions in the middle panel. @3andastra3 agree, strange to say but watching drewlock brightens my day

Here you go LND Fandom, a studio recording of the tour version of The Beauty Underneath. This is from the Australian Cast Recording that they are selling currently on the tour at the merchandise booth. 

Can anyone tell me WHEN this CD was produced, when it was added to the tour, and what else it has that’s different????? What does it look like??

Goddamnit. I didn’t know they were selling it when I saw the show or I would have picked it up. Sunovabitch.

WHAT DO YOU MEAN THERE’S AN AUSTRALIAN CAST RECORDING

WHEN THE FECK WAS THIS RELEASED??? IS IT FOR SALE OUTSIDE OF THE TOUR??? WHERE CAN I BUY IT????? WHAT THE HELL

I’m…literally crying…a RECORDING OF THE TOUR VERSION OF THE BEAUTY UNDERNEATH. this is officially, without a doubt, one of my favorite Phantom songs now.  if anyone knows where I can buy the full CD, please let me know!!

@deannix was this song recorded recently? Ben sounds better vocally here than he did on the video/dvd recording.

finally finished it!!i’d like to see the story coming to an end like this.happy the fifth day after valentines’ day!

Ben Lewis in Love Never Dies

Pretty boi

LEFT: the 2004 costumes (worn by Emmy Rossum)

RIGHT: the Broadway costumes (worn by Ali Ewoldt)

Which do you prefer?

Die roten Stiefel cape swishing, because the Vienna cast know how to cape swish fabulously!

The masters of cape-swishing everyone!

Expert cape swishers

New trailer for Broadway Phantom’s 30th anniversary, feat. London cast (x)

Love

go Ben and Kelly!

Military vs floral bodice is a great way to describe the difference. I see know they both have quite a bit of bling. Thanks for the comparison!

Einladung zum Ball: Honestly, I think this is my favourite perfomance of him except “Vor dem Schloss” in sense of facial expressions. Tried to compare the Berlin and the Viennese version but could not decide. From an aesthetical point of view the Viennese Drewlock is better (costume), he just looks gorgeous, preserved ageless, beautiful and young (but with an old devil inside). Berlin Drewlock ist much more mature with the grey hair but it gets me, too, maybe he is more evil? Although the Dracula carnival costume is not my taste, it fits and I am lost, too *smiles whimsically* Would like to read your choices…?

SO GLAD THIS HAS BEEN MADE AS A COMPARISON GIF SET!!!!!

Can’t decide either, but if I remember correctly there was a smug appreciative glance with eyebrow action in the Berlin production XD. 

But yes, definitely Vienna costume

I quite love the dramatic smug look he has as Berlin’s Krolock, but he’s definitely got a cold, allure for Vienna Krolock.

Love the comparison gifs. I really like acting in both of them. Drew performs this song especially well, considering some other krolocks just sing the song and walk around Sarah (and almost ignore here). Drew maintains the eye contact, engages and charms her. I like the aesthetic of the Vienna production better with the long coat and the blue lighting. In the Berlin version, he seems a bit more animalistic giving a little growl before stepping both feet onto the block/bath. 

Ah the dramatic cape swishes. One of the reasons why I love tdv so much.

Elisabeth?

OK, I give up.  Someone please explain….

For at least a year I’ve been baffled.  What is the deal with all this Elisabeth stuff?  Sissi?  Apparently a real person who was once Empress of Austria?  Related somehow to a musical?  Which may or may not be related to Tanz der Vampire?  I am so lost.

@Rienerose happy to explain as I asked similar questions to @3andastra3 a few months ago.

Elisabeth is the most successful German language musical of all times. Historically accurate in telling the story of Sisi, Empress of Austria. Written by Levay and Kunze who have also written many other successful Austrian/German musicals. This musical is packed with so many great and memorable songs. 

Tanz der Vampire is another popular German language rock musical with a cult like following as my fellow Tanzblrs can attest to. Written by Steinman (who wrote for Meat Loaf) and Kunze. It has an interesting history from a POTO fan point of view, with the lead Graf von Krolock being originated by Steve Barton in 1997. They created an English language version on Broadway in 2002 with Michael Crawford as the lead, as sadly Steve Barton passed away in 2001. They made so many changes to make it appealing to American audiences, butchered the original musical, and it was a total flop. So tragically, this musical is not known to most English speaking musical fans.

If you are a fan of musicals, highly recommend watching these two to start. I was skeptical at first when I started a few months ago. It can be hard to appreciate them at first when you’re watching grainy bootlegs with subtitles (rather than a live theatre performance). Hang in there, you get used to it and the reward is great. These musicals are on par with POTO and Les Mis in terms of story, feels and melodies. The German language is so dramatic and powerful when sung, perfectly suited for these musicals. My playlist is now filled with mainly German language musical songs + a few POTO songs. 

Here are some YT links of subtitled versions:

Elisabeth 

Tanz Der Vampire (It took me 20 mins to start enjoying this one - when Krolock makes his entrance).

Hope you like them @rienerose. Don’t spend all your free time watching these. I am eagerly awaiting your POTO FFN updates. XD