Bringing the sound of a musical legend to Sheffield Cathedral

But for the actors and singers of Sheffield’s award-winning Easy Street Theatre Company, it’s a challenge their are more than happy to accept.

And music director Gareth Lloyd says that all his young stars have embraced the opportunity to find a new, more classical approach to performing some of the best loved songs in the musical repertoire.

The Phantom of the Opera comes to Sheffield Cathedral on May 2, 3, 4 and 6 in a production directed by Sallianne Foster-Major that promises to deliver all the spectacle and drama demanded of the classic Gothic blend of romance and thriller.

The celebrated story of the masked phantom and his obsession with beautiful young opera singer Christine Daae is the company’s most ambitious musical production to date and one that will take full advantage of Sheffield Cathedral’s setting to create a unique musical experience quite unlike anything the cathedral has seen before.

An essential part of the formula for success will be an orchestra of 24 professional musicians, playing under conductor Gareth.

“There are actually meant to be 27 musicians but we decided we could bring the seven violins down to five without anybody noticing,” Gareth says.

“The cathedral has great acoustics so there will definitely be that booming sound the audience expects.

“It needs to be like that because some of the music needs to sound truly operatic so we have to replicate the sound of a full symphony orchestra, which is what it was written for.”

That big sound, however, is something that the young cast have no previous experience of performing with.

“They’re all doing a remarkable job and I have been so impressed by their willingness to learn some of the more classical techniques a show like The Phantom of the Opera demands,” Gareth says.

“They don’t often hear that sort of sound and none of our female singers, for instance, normally sing in the higher register but they are all keen to try and they are making a really good sound.

“Our two young actors who are playing the Phantom and Raoul also have some technically difficult high notes to hit but they are singing brilliantly and they are both very exciting.”

“The ensemble are probably all around 15 or 16 years old for this show and again, they’re not used to performing with an orchestra but they are all prepared for what will happen and what to expect.”

Staging a show like The Phantom of the Opera is presenting the team with some technical issues - one of which must be where to actually place an orchestra of 25 in a venue that has none of the usual theatre fixtures.

“There’s definitely no orchestra pit for them to play in but they will be to the side of the stage, which means they will be on view all the time, which will actually add something special to this production” Gareth says.

“What I can definitely say is that our audience will not be disappointed - our cast have been working hard, they can make a big sound and the combination of their voices and our orchestra is going to sound great.”

The Phantom of the Opera will be at Sheffield Cathedral on May 2, 3, 4 and 6 and tickets ranging in price from £8 to £15 are now available via the Easy Street website at www.easystreettheatre.org or from Sheffield Cathedral.