Syndicated with permission via Valiant News| Tom Pappert| 45th President Donald Trump and other fans of the opera are in for bad news: The legendary Phantom of the Opera is ending its run on Broadway after 35 years.
The news broke late last week, with the New York Times reporting that the longest running Broadway show in history is set to end its run in February of 2023.
Though noting that all musicals cease production at some point, and the show will continue in other cities, the Grey Lady suggested that small post-pandemic turnout combined with the higher cost of doing business in the current economy were part of the reason for the show’s closure.
Breaking News: "The Phantom of the Opera," the longest-running show in Broadway history, is set to close in February. https://t.co/WnUtH39quP
— The New York Times (@nytimes) September 16, 2022
It’s no secret that former-President Donald Trump has quite the playlist at his rallies. Trump loves songs from Broadway musicals such as The Phantom of the Opera and Les Misérables. He even likes the YMCA, which “that really gets people rocking.”
Described as an “icon of 1980s Broadway” by the New York Times, perhaps it’s fitting that music from Phantom of the Opera is among his favorite.
Trump’s love for Broadway musicals like Phantom of the Opera and Les Mis — and his contention here that a song that really gets people rocking is the YMCA — is something that always makes me laugh, not in a bad way. https://t.co/ges080Qb5s
— Jerry Dunleavy IV (@JerryDunleavy) March 10, 2022
Would you let Trump touch the AUX at a send? pic.twitter.com/I0alrFd4lY
— Full Send Podcast (@fullsendpodcast) March 9, 2022
Well, unless you’re a journal covering Trump’s rallies for the first time.
I’m covering the Trump rally in Pennsylvania and I was not expecting to hear Phantom of the Opera in the pre-rally playlist
I was NOT expecting to hear Les Miserables most of all
— Julio-César Chávez (@JulioCesrChavez) September 3, 2022
So…now we're waiting on President Trump to take the stage…and they're playing Phantom of the Opera.
I don't get it.
I mean, I dig the song…but…wut???
— Jeff Charles, Captain Conservatarian (@JeffOnTheRight) June 17, 2022
just not sure what to make of the number of Phantom of the Opera jams on this Trump event playlist
— Phil Mattingly (@Phil_Mattingly) January 3, 2016
Trump previously wrote in his 2004 book “Think Like a Billionaire” about Andrew Lloyd Webber’s hit, “My favorite Broadway show is Evita by Andrew Lloyd Webber, starring Patti LuPone. I saw it six times, mostly with Ivana. Evita is not on Broadway right now, but I’m hopeful that they’ll bring it back. Also, The Phantom of the Opera was great!”
Even an op-ed that ran on MSNBC’s website titled “Trump had ‘Cats’ and ‘Phantom of the Opera‘ played to soothe him, a new book claims” shows how much everyone knew about Trump’s love for Broadway.
Unfortunately, Broadway’s longest running performance — The Phantom of the Opera — is finally being yanked from the stage after 35 years of production.
'Phantom of the Opera' is closing on Broadway https://t.co/B8xcz4x36W
— Time Out New York (@TimeOutNewYork) September 16, 2022
The Phantom of the Opera opened on Broadway on January 26, 1988. Its last show will be at the Majestic Theatre in New York City on February 18, 2023. It will conclude with 13,925 performances. For reference, Broadway’s second-longest-running show, the revival of John Kander and Fred Ebb’s “Chicago,” ran for 25 years with over 10,000 performances.
As the renowned New York Times critic, Frank Rich, commented on the show in 1988, “It may be possible to have a terrible time at ‘The Phantom of the Opera,’ but you’ll have to work at it.” Although nothing lasts forever, 35 years was a good run.
