Phantom of the Opera BTS
Today, after over six years and thousands of chandelier drops, the spectacular touring production of THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA comes to a close.
When I first was brought on to the launch of this show (only my second Cameron Macintosh production), I had just a handful of productions on my resume. And of those I’d worked on, I hadn’t had the chance to photograph most of them more than once or twice. So this tour quickly required me to face one of the biggest challenges of production photography: how do you photograph a show multiple times yet continue to see it with fresh eyes?
For me, this always comes down to balancing consistency with spontaneity. There’s almost always a new way to see a scene; even a slight angle shift can sometimes illuminate a new relationship between the characters and their surroundings.. I took the approach that if I zigged left last time, I’d zag right the next. Or, better yet, I’d try to get the shot that was consistent with the original approved image (as often if something was approved once, it will be easier to get approved again) and then quickly find a new way to see the scene and hopefully surprise the client.
I am so grateful to this show for providing me the space to challenge myself as a photographer over the course of our roughly 50 shoots throughout the run. But more than anything I’m thankful for the friendships it provided. So to the creative team, the cast and crew throughout the years who made me laugh, kept me safe when I was ducking and dodging set pieces backstage, and most of all indulged in my constant requests for #MoreHaze: thank you thank you thank you. And to Jenny Bates and Seth Sklar-Heyn, I can’t imagine what this would have been like without you. The past six years was beyond my wildest dreams (and at times…when in a cherry picker 40 feet up to get the shot, beyond my wildest nightmares, too).
Click below to check out some of my favorite photos from my time with the tour.
