Love Never Dies (musical)

Love Never Dies.

Love Never Dies is a stage musical and unofficial sequel to The Phantom of the Opera.

Cast

• Ramin Karimloo - The Phantom
• Sierra Boggess - Christine Daaé
• Joseph Millson - Raoul de Chagny
• Liz Robertson/Sally Dexter (cast recording) - Madame Giry
• Summer Strallen - Meg Giry
• Niamh Perry - Miss Fleck
• Adam Pearce - Mr. Squelch
• Jami Reid-Quarrell - Dr. Gangle
• Charlie Manton/Various - Gustave

Plot

Ten years after the events at the Paris Opera, the Phantom is now a well known tycoon and the mastermind of Phantasma, a Coney Island amusement park. Despite his success, he is tortured by the absence of Christine Daaé in his life and longs to hear her sing again. At Phantasma, a trio of freak show performers (Dr. Gangle, Miss Fleck, and Mr. Squelch) introduce the wonders of Coney Island. Meg Giry, Christine's friend from the Paris Opera, has become "The Ooh La La Girl" in The Phantom's vaudeville show, which Madame Giry produces. Meg and the Phantasma cast win the crowd over with their performance. Madame Giry has read in the newspaper that Christine is coming to New York to sing for Oscar Hammerstein at the opening of his new Manhattan opera house. She expresses concern that Meg has lost the attention of the Phantom and reminisces about how she and Meg smuggled him from Paris, France to New York City ten years ago. Meg ignores her mother's warnings, and looks with joy towards her old friend coming to visit after such a long time.

Christine, Raoul and their ten-year-old son Gustave arrive in New York and are met by crowds of paparazzi. They are greeted by Gangle, Fleck and Squelch, who arrive in a horseless carriage, to take them to Coney Island.

Raoul is angry at the reception and upsets Gustave by not playing with him. When Raoul departs in response to an invitation to meet Hammerstein in the hotel bar, Gustave asks Christine why his father seems not to love him. Christine encourages Gustave to look past the surface to try to help him understand. When Gustave goes to bed, the Phantom appears on the balcony and Christine faints in shock, having believed him dead. He carries her to a chair, where she awakens and the two recall a night of passion before Christine's wedding, and the Phantom explains why he felt compelled to leave her side afterwards. Moving to the balcony, the pair sadly remember how they once thought their love had a chance of succeeding ("Once Upon Another Time"). The Phantom offers to pay Christine twice Hammerstein's price if she will sing just one song that he has written for her, but Christine refuses. Gustave wakes up screaming from a nightmare and interrupts them and Christine introduces him to the Phantom for the first time. The Phantom promises to show Gustave all of Phantasma the next day. After Gustave returns to bed, The Phantom threatens to abduct the boy unless Christine agrees to sing for him again. A shaken Christine relents and the Phantom leaves her with the sheet music for the song he has written.

In the rehearsal studio for Phantasma, Meg is dismayed and hurt to learn that Christine has been assigned the "leading lady slot" in the show. Raoul encounters Madame Giry and discovers that the Phantom is the mysterious Mr. Y for whom Christine will be singing now. Gangle, Fleck and Squelch bring Gustave to the Aerie, where he is greeted by the Phantom. Child prodigy Gustave sings and plays a melody on the piano that leads the Phantom to suspect he is Gustave's father ("He plays like me! He's just 10 years old...ten years old"). The Phantom questions Gustave as he shows him around the dark wonders, illusions, and freaks of Phantasma and discovers that they are kindred spirits. He unmasks himself, believing Gustave will accept him, but Gustave screams in horror and flees. Christine comforts Gustave and then asks Meg to take him back to the hotel. When pressed by the Phantom, Christine confesses that Gustave is his son. The Phantom makes Christine promise to never tell Gustave that Raoul is not his real father. Christine gives her word and vows to sing for him once more, and then leaves him alone. Stunned by what has transpired, the Phantom declares that everything he creates and owns will be inherited by Gustave. An eavesdropping Madame Giry becomes enraged at the realization that all she and Meg have done for the Phantom over the years has been for nothing.

In a gloomy bar, Raoul contemplates his relationship with Christine. He is joined by Meg, who tells him she swims each day to wash away the stress of working. She tells Raoul that he must leave with Christine and Gustave and runs out of the bar. Raoul says he is not afraid of the Phantom. Suddenly, the Phantom reveals himself to Raoul and they make a bet that if Christine sings, the Phantom wins and if she doesn't, Raoul wins. If Raoul wins the bet, the Phantom will pay his debts and Raoul can leave with Christine and Gustave. However, if The Phantom wins, Christine and Gustave will remain in America with him and Raoul must return to Paris alone. The Phantom also leads Raoul to question Gustave's paternity. Fleck, Squelch and Gangle appear to advertise Christine's appearance at Phantasma. That night, Meg performs a strip-tease about her choice of swimming costumes. She successfully impresses the audience, but Madame Giry reveals to Meg that the Phantom did not watch the performance, saying it was for nothing.

In Christine's dressing room, Gustave helps his mother get ready for the show. Raoul arrives and Christine asks Gustave to wait for his father backstage. Raoul begs Christine not to sing, and to leave New York with him if she really loves him. Christine asks for some time and Raoul leaves. The Phantom enters and tells Christine that Raoul's love is not enough, and that she must sing for him and embrace her destiny. Christine recalls the events at the Opera where she had to decide between Raoul and the Phantom. Madame Giry, Raoul and the Phantom wonder whether Christine will sing. The curtain opens on Christine, with Raoul and the Phantom watching from the wings at either side. As the long musical intro comes to its end, Christine makes the decision to sing. Raoul leaves just before Christine finishes to thunderous applause. Backstage, Christine is greeted lovingly by the Phantom and the two share a kiss. She then finds a letter from Raoul informing her of his departure.

Suddenly realising that Gustave is missing, Christine recalls that she had asked him to wait backstage for Raoul, but she does not want to believe that Raoul may have taken the boy. Furious, the Phantom vows to kill the "drunken fool," but Squelch informs him that he saw the Vicomte leave alone. The Phantom then suspects Madame Giry, because of her attitude towards him before Christine's number, and proceeds to threaten Giry when she is brought to him by Squelch and Gangle. Madame Giry confesses that she knew about Gustave's true parentage, but denies abducting the boy. Fleck reports that she passed Meg's dressing room, where she saw that the mirror was shattered, and Meg is now nowhere to be found. Christine fears for her child's life, but Madame Giry assures her that Meg would never hurt Gustave. The Phantom believes he knows where Meg has gone.

At the pier, Meg prepares to drown Gustave, who cannot swim, when the others arrive to confront her. She reveals to the Phantom that the resources Madame Giry has afforded him came from Meg's working as a prostitute to influential men. She expresses her hurt and resentment that the Phantom never took any notice of her or appreciated her singing and dancing. After sharing her feelings, Meg decides to let Gustave live and releases him. She produces a gun and holds it to her head, intent on ending her misery. The Phantom tries to apologise and console her, but when he unthinkingly mentions Christine's name, Meg becomes agitated once again. When the Phantom tries to take the gun from her, Meg accidentally shoots Christine.

After Madame Giry and Meg are dispatched to find help, Christine reveals to Gustave that the Phantom is his real father and the shocked boy flees. Christine tells the Phantom that her love for him will never die, then they share a final kiss and she dies in his armsGustave returns with Raoul, who looks on silently and sadly, and Gustave lays his head on his mother's lap. The Phantom surrenders Christine's body to Raoul, then moves to the edge of the pier and collapses to his knees in grief. Gustave goes to the weeping Phantom, who sings a line from the song his mother just sang to console the boy, and Gustave embraces his real father for the first time. Gustave then removes the Phantom's mask and gently touches the Phantom's face in an act of acceptance. Gustave and the Phantom gaze at one another as the curtain falls.

Musical numbers

• "'Til I Hear You Sing" – The Phantom
• "Only for You" – Meg Giry, Fleck, Squelch, Gangle and Ensemble
• "Ten Long Years of Yearning" – Meg and Madame Giry
• "Christine Disembarks" – Raoul, Gustave and Ensemble
• "Are You Ready to Begin?" – Fleck, Gangle, Squelch, Raoul, Gustave and Ensemble
• "What a Dreadful Town!" – Raoul, Christine and Gustave
• "Look with Your Heart" – Christine and Gustave
• "Beneath a Moonless Sky" – Christine and The Phantom
• "Once Upon Another Time" – Christine and The Phantom
• "Mother Please, I'm Scared!" – The Phantom, Gustave and Christine
• "Ten Long Years of Yearning" (reprise) – The Phantom and Christine
• "Dear Old Friend" – Meg, Madame Giry, Christine, Raoul, Gustave and Ensemble
• "Beautiful" – Gustave, Fleck, Gangle, Squelch and The Phantom
• "The Beauty Underneath" – The Phantom and Gustave
• "Phantom Confronts Christine" – The Phantom, Christine and Madame Giry

Act II

• "Why Does She Love Me?" – Raoul, Meg and Ensemble
• "Devil Take the Hindmost" – Raoul and The Phantom
• "Invitation to the Concert" – Fleck, Gangle, Squelch and Ensemble
• "Bathing Beauty" – Meg, Fleck, Gangle, Squelch and Ensemble
• "Before the Performance" – Christine, Raoul, Gustave and The Phantom
• "Devil Take the Hindmost" (reprise) – Gustave, Raoul, The Phantom, Madame Giry and Meg
• "Love Never Dies" – Christine
• "Ah, Christine!" – The Phantom and Christine
• "Gustave! Gustave!" – Christine, The Phantom, Madame Giry, Fleck, Gangle and Squelch
• "Please Miss Giry, I Want to Go Back" – Gustave and Meg
• "Finale" – The Phantom and Christine