News

Love Never Dies star Ramin Karimloo will play the role of the Phantom for the original show’s 25th Birthday Celebration Performance, due to be held in October 2011.

Although no details have yet been publically announced, the actor has been involved with a “Super Follow” Twitter auction that includes two tickets to the anniversary event as part of fundraising efforts for Comic Relief – Red Nose Day 2011.

Fantastic Phantom Raises Funds for Comic Relief

The ‘Super-Follow’ auction on e-bay commits Ramin to do the following things for the winning bidder:

1.    Follow the winner on Twitter for 90 days

2.    Retweet one of their tweets

3.    Send out a tweet including their Twitter @username

4.  Provide two great tickets to the Celebration of Phantom’s 25th Birthday in October 2011 - when Ramin will don the mask as the original Phantom one more time. The winner also gets to chat with the star afterwards.

The Super-Follow auction closed on Sunday 20 March 2011 with a winning bid of £1,850 going to Comic Relief. The ebay Super Follow auction page can be found here.

Canadian Singer Finds West End Fame

Although he was born in Iran, Ramin Karimloo began his performing career in his adopted hometown of Toronto, Canada, singing in various local rock bands. He began his musical theatre career with Airtours and P&O Cruises, before coming to the UK and working his way into some significant West End roles. Ramin has played both ‘Raoul’ and ‘The Phantom’ in The Phantom of the Opera at Her Majesty’s Theatre. He has also played ‘Enjolras’ in Les Misérables and ‘Christopher Scott’ in the UK Tour of ‘Miss Saigon’.

Epic Musical Celebrates 25 Years

Based on the 1909 novel Le Fantôme de l'Opéra, The Phantom of the Opera is billed as London’s Greatest Love Story, telling the epic tale of the beautiful Swedish singer Christine Daaé who becomes the obsession of the mysterious, deformed musical genius known as the Phantom of the Opera. Opening at Her Majesty’s Theatre in 1986 to unanimously enthusiastic reviews and a fantastic public reception, The Phantom of the Opera was an instant phenomenon.

The original London cast featured current Wizard of Oz star Michael Crawford as “The Phantom”. Crawford won numerous awards, including a 1987 Olivier Award, a 1988 Tony Award and an LA Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Actor in a Musical for his now legendary performance in the musical in the West End and subsequently on Broadway. The musical has now been seen by over 80 million people in 25 countries around the world. There are currently ten global productions, from London to Osaka, with worldwide takings estimated at over $5 billion (making The Phantom of the Opera the most successful entertainment event of all time!)

The Phantom of the Opera Tickets