“You will curse the day you did not do all that the phantom asked of you!”
The dramatic moment at the end of Act I of Andrew Llyod Webber’s Phantom of the Opera, in which the Phantom overhears Christine and Raoul declare their love for one another, is burned into the minds of thousands of theatre-goers. In the blink of an eye, the Phantom goes from grief and despair to goosebump-inducing fury, declaring revenge on the young couple and the entirety of the Paris Opera.
But before Webber’s stunning musical, which first premiered in London’s West End in 1986, there was Gaston Leroux's 1909 novel by the same name. And yet even before Leroux, there were a myriad of myths, legends, and partially true stories that surrounded the famed Paris Opera House, Palais Garnier. Leroux blended fact and fiction to create Phantom, the haunting and bewitching story of a mysterious and disfigured man who becomes obsessed with Christine Daaé, the young singer he both haunts and mentors.
Leroux had originally intended to become a lawyer, but he had gambled away his inheritance and was left in dire straits. To survive, he began working as a reporter for the French newspaper L'Écho de Paris. As a journalist, Leroux reviewed dramas, and he learned about the extensive mythology surrounding Palais Garnier, where both the book and stage production are set.
But before we delve into fiction, let’s establish some facts. In Leroux’s novel and Webber’s play, the Phantom establishes his lair in a lake beneath the opera house. This lake does actually exist. Construction on Palais Garnier had begun in 1861 and took nearly 15 years to complete. During construction, a man-made lake grew beneath the theatre as a result of redirecting existing wells and steam pump water away from the construction site.
And what about the famed chandelier that falls victim to gravity? While no chandelier has ever fallen in Palais Garnier, there was a similar incident that possibly inspired Leroux. On May 20, 1896, during a production of the opera Helle, a counterweight that was used to hold up the chandelier broke loose and fell through the ceiling. Tragically, one person was killed and seventeen people were injured. Forensic investigators determined that the incident was not ghostly subterfuge, but the result of an electrical cable overheating and melting the steel cable that held up the counterweight.
It is no wonder then that rumors circulated of a ghost that haunted Palais Garnier. These stories have many iterations. Some believe it is the spirit of an old woman, but most of the mythology centers around ill-fated lovers. When Palais Garnier first opened in 1875, the Paris Opera Company quickly moved in. They were eager for a home because their previous theatre, La Salle Le Peletier had burned down in a fire in 1873. This real fire had not only killed a ballerina but horribly disfigured her husband, the company pianist. Legend says the pianist followed the company to their new home and lived beneath Palais Garnier.
Final Irony
Final Irony comments on the human tendency to conceal our emotions. Hands cover the subjects' face, create an ambiguity that could indicate either great joy, sorrow, or rage. Both Victor and the Creature feel intense emotional extremes, and their ability or inability to conceal those emotions impact the trajectory of the work. What is a “true” indicator of emotion? And, in the case of this piece, is it the presence or absence of color?
Shop Now
Leroux, however, believed a different story, one that he tried ardently to prove. When Leroux couldn’t prove the historical origins of this myth, he fictionalized them. His story goes that the wealthy Vicomte de Chagny and his brother had both fallen in love with the same ballerina and dueled over her. The Vicomte won the duel but killed his brother, who lived on as the ghost of the opera house. Leroux would use the ballerina as the inspiration for Christine, the Vicomte as the inspiration for Raoul, and the ill-fated brother as of course, the Phantom.
While Leroux was never able to prove the reality of this story, there was a possible real-life love triangle that also took place at Palais Garnier. Nanine Dorival was a ballet dancer at the theatre who attracted the attention of a dancer named Boismaison. Boismaison tried to pursue a relationship with Dorival, but his efforts were undermined by a French Sergeant who had also fallen in love with Dorival. When Boismaison died, he requested his bones be kept in Palais Garnier. His wish was granted, and rumors circulated that his real bones had been used as props in some of the productions (although these were never substantiated). It is worth noting the similarities between the names Nanine and Christine as a possible source of inspiration.
Leroux deeply admired Edgar Allen Poe and perhaps let his imagination get the best of him. He insisted that a body had been discovered beneath the opera house, and while it is unlikely that it was the scorned brother of the Vicomte, it is possible that it was the body of a prisoner left over from when the French Revolutionary Government used the basement of the theatre as a holding cell.
Like all great mythology, the truth is likely a confusing blend of fact and fiction. What makes the story unique, however, is Leroux’s ability to adapt it into a cohesive narrative, one that would go on to inspire thousands of readers. Perhaps the most notable reader of all was Andrew Lloyd Webber, who set the story to music that would haunt and inspire listeners for generations and give new meaning to Lreoux’s iconic characters.
Still, if you find yourself at Palais Garnier and hear ghostly music echoing through the halls, we recommend resisting the urge to go looking for phantoms.
To learn more, check out…
