The Phantom of the Opera

Phantom is one of my favorite musicals of all time.  I saw it as a high school student in London, then again while in college, and one more time since then.  It is absolutely enchanting...the music, the set, the lighting...

The Garnier Opera House in Paris is the inspiration for The Phantom of the Opera, and almost as enchanting as the show!  There actually is an underground water source (although you can't take a boat ride on it) and a piece of the chandelier actually fell, killing one person in the audience.

Directly inside of the main doors, this is what you see on your way to the theater!

That famous chandelier...

A reception hall, modeled after the hall of mirrors in Versailles.

View from the balcony on the front of the opera house.

Although Phantom has not actually been on stage at Opera Garnier, it is amazing to think of how many amazing operas and ballets have played in this very spot over the last century.  It is especially fun to imagine the opera house bustling before a show in the late 1800s...carriages pulling up front, and women in fine dresses on the arms of handsomely dressed men...how I would love to travel back in time just for a glimpse.