Though not technically a "concert", I figured I'd give my two cents on this musical performance anyway. Before now, I would've thought that anyone who wasn't living under a rock had seen or at least heard The Phantom of the Opera (in the 2004 film adaptation or otherwise). I would've been wrong. Of the seven people I talked to about the show here in Spokane, only three were familiar with the story. That presented a rather large barrier for them in enjoying the show, because much of the sung dialogue was near incomprehensible. And since this is a musical, most everything is sung. Now I don't know if that was a technical issue with the sound equipment or poor acoustics due to the venue (though I've heard and understood shows I'm far less familiar with before), or if it was just a matter of poor articulation (though I find that somewhat difficult to swallow being these actors are professionals), but nevertheless - every person I talked to about the show, across four different performances, confirmed the lyrics were difficult to hear. And if you don't know the storyline or the lyrics like the back of your hand, you're in trouble (in that case, I'd recommend renting the movie first).
Unintelligible lyrics aside, the performances were good overall. Of course, they're not Michael Crawford and Sarah Brightman or even Gerald Butler and Emmy Rossum (so don't expect that), but they are incredible performers in their own right. And the Phantom, played by Richard Todd Adams was especially vigorous and engaging in his performance. As expected, the sets and costumes were opulent and extravagant and well worth the price of admission (particularly those for the underground labyrinth and the masquerade). My selection of highlights for the show (in any of its iterations) are: "Angel of Music", "Masquerade" and "The Point of No Return". Perhaps, like Les Miserables, this is a show that anyone who likes musical theatre should see at least once.
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