"The Three Phantoms in Concert," with three leading men who have donned the iconic mask, will be staged as a Ballet Hawai'i fund-raiser in three performances — Thursday, and Jan. 28 and 29 — at the Hawai'i Theatre.

The show — featuring "Phantom" tunes and other prime Broadway music — plays tonight on Maui and moves to Hilo Saturday and Sunday.
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The three — Craig Schulman, Cris Groenendaal and Kevin Gray — were part of the Broadway hoopla on Jan. 9, when "Phantom" marked its 7,486th performance, surpassing "Cats" as the longest-running musical on the Great White Way.

"The whole thing was surreal," Groenendaal said about assembling 14 actors, including Michael Crawford, who originated the role, in the same place at the same time. "We spent the whole time saying, 'Omigod, haven't seen you in 18 years.' Some looked the same, some different."

In separate telephone interviews, the three Phantoms answered Five Questions, yielding 15 responses; and for this outing, you'll see them without the masks.

Question: You've been part of the "Phantom" tradition — why are people still fascinated by him and the production?

Schulman: "He's almost iconic, the high-water mark, as we enter the age of minimalist musical theater ('Sweeney Todd' has singers/actors doubling as musicians). 'Phantom' is the real deal, with full orchestra, a grandness you're going to see less and less on stage."

Groenendaal: "It's a classic love triangle, a wonderful Beauty & the Beast tale. The music is soaring, operatic, and you have the classic underdog. Despite the terrible things he does, the audience roots for him."

Gray: "It's an extraordinary romance. To me, it's got a powerful connection to a kind of loneliness that exists in the modern world — an emptiness you can't fill. 'Phantom' creates all kinds of manifestations — sadness, rage, loneliness — that people respond to."

Q: Once the Phantom is in your blood and in your psyche, is he easy to forget?

Schulman: " 'Phantom' is more interesting to me — a crazy person, a caricature, with depth. I love doing Valjean in 'Les Miz,' but 'Phantom,' in the body of my work, my career, is just wonderful."

Groenendaal: "I originated Andre and later played the Phantom for many more performances. Once you do him, you never forget. A couple of rehearsals and you can step in again."

Gray: "He never leaves you, though when you do these shows and are done, you move on. If you're lucky enough to repeat the part, the material comes back; he's in your body, in your memory, just like yesterday."

Q: How does his passion compare to other roles you've done?

Schulman: "He's bigger than life. At some point in our lives, we may have had feelings for someone who didn't return the feeling; the rejection is part of the appeal, to which you can identify."

Groenendaal: "It's much more intense than other roles I've done. I've made a career of playing sturdy, upright, optimistic types with hope, like Lt. Cable in 'South Pacific' and 'Candide.' I like the Phantom because he's dark, intense."

Gray: "I think it's one of the most passionate roles, and Andrew Lloyd Webber's score is responsible for that. He's not on stage long, not like The Engineer in 'Miss Saigon' (Gray originated that part in the Toronto debut of the musical); but when he's on, he percolates and stays in you — in an isolated and lonely place you live in. And for the last 20 minutes of the show, he comes roaring out of you, with such urgency ... there's a desperate need for you to contain yourself, because you're made to wait for so long for him to have that powerful connection."

Q: Your favorite Phantom moment?

Schulman: "It's when Christine leaves the lair at the end; the Phantom sobs and collapses next to the monkey, and sings a piece of 'Masquerade.' He's bereft; she comes back, slowly hands him back the ring."

Groenendaal: "I guess going on for the very first time. I was an understudy, and then thrown into the part."

Gray: "I have to admit, I have a deep connection. I met my wife (Dodie Pettit) there — first in a rehearsal, when she was across the stage, and initially she didn't think we'd spend our lives together. It didn't take that long to get married. As for the show, being on that angel, playing the Phantom, was unforgettable."

Q: What role do you still aspire to do?

Schulman: "Tateh in 'Ragtime.' Great music, great story, a believable character, somebody who came from nothing during difficult, turbulent times. And maybe Tevye, again, in 'Fiddler on the Roof.' "

Gronendaal: "I would have to say there isn't much more I need to do. Watching the show again, I was totally over it. The anger he has to spew out night after night — I'm so glad it's not me. If (director) Hal Prince asked me if I would want to go back in two years, maybe. But I'm not in the market."

Gray: "There are quite a few. I'd love to do Dracula. My wife and I have written a script and would like to produce (it). I would love to do two (Stephen) Sondheim shows, 'Sweeney Todd' and 'Sunday in the Park With George,' and maybe 'La Mancha,' too, though I may be too young (he's 47). And I would like to do the Phantom again, and maybe 'King and I' again. As I get older, there are issues of mortality and legacy, and the colors of everything change. When I was in my 20s, I guess I was in a white-wine stage; in my 30s, it was rose; in my 40s, I've been into burgundy — and beginning to move on to the port era."

Reach Wayne Harada at wharada@honoluluadvertiser.com.