1. Andrew reveals that Michael Jackson wanted to play the Phantom
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Andrew reveals that Michael Jackson wanted to play the Phantom

3rd, July, 2009

Andrew reveals that Michael Jackson wanted to play the Phantom

Andrew recently spoke to the Sunday Telegraph about his personal recollections of Michael Jackson.

Andrew met Michael in 1988 when _The Phantom of the Opera_ was playing on Broadway. Michael came to see the show several times and loved the theatricality of the show.

Andrew said, “I think he had a connection with the lonely, tortured musician. He found the idea of somebody working through music and having a girl as a muse very intriguing – and he loved that there was illusion in the show.”

Michael approached Andrew about the idea of making a film of the musical, with himself as the Phantom. However, although an interesting concept Andrew felt at that time that it was too early to make the musical into a film.

Andrew went on to speak about Michael Jackson’s immense talent. “I saw him a couple of times in concert. Thriller was probably the best stage event Ive ever seen. From my musical-theatre perspective, I could see that he was bringing a completely new vision about dance to the stage. A tremendous amount of what he was doing then you see in musicals now.

“I would absolutely put him up there with the all-time greatest performers. I’ve seen most of the top rock acts – I saw Elvis several times – but with Michael’s concerts, his showmanship was consummate.”

To read the full article, visit The Telegraph Website