Inspired by an earlier musical version of the same story by Ken Hill, Phantom began previews at Her Majesty's Theatre in London's West End on 27 September, 1986 and opened on 9 October under the direction of Hal Prince. The New York production alone has grossed US $715 million, making it the most financially successful Broadway show in history.

With total worldwide box office receipts of over £3.5bn ($5.1bn), Phantom is the highest-grossing entertainment event of all time. The show has been seen in 149 cities in 25 countries, and has played to over 100 million people. Phantom won the 1986 Olivier Award and the 1988 Tony Award for Best Musical, and Michael Crawford (as the phantom) won the 1986 Olivier and 1988 Tony for Best Performance by an Actor in a Musical. It is the longest-running musical in Broadway history, the second-longest-running West End musical, and arguably the world's most financially successful single entertainment project to date.

The Phantom of the Opera opened in the West End in 1986, and on Broadway in 1988.

The central plot revolves around a beautiful soprano, Christine Daaé, who becomes the obsession of a mysterious, disfigured musical genius. Alan Jay Lerner was an early collaborator, but he withdrew after completing work on a single song, Masquerade, and died shortly thereafter. Additional lyrics were written by Richard Stilgoe. The music was composed by Lloyd Webber, and most lyrics were written by Charles Hart. The Phantom of the Opera is a musical/opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on the French novel Le Fantôme de l'Opéra by Gaston Leroux.

Phantom of the opera lyrics