Cudia, Ford & Mills Headline 'Phantom' Chicago Engagement

Cameron Mackintosh/Really Useful Theatre Company, Inc. production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera, directed by Harold Prince, returning to Chicago at the Cadillac Palace Theatre (151 W. Randolph St.) for a limited ten-week holiday engagement running Wednesday, October 31 through Saturday, January 5, 2008.

Tickets range in price from $28 - $85 and are available at Broadway In Chicago Box Offices (151 W. Randolph St., 24 W. Randolph St. and 18 W. Monroe St.), by calling Ticketmaster at (312) 902-1400, or online at www.ticketmaster.com.

John Cudia heads the 36-member company as The Phantom.  Sara Jean Ford, a former original cast member from the Chicago company of Wicked, plays the young soprano, Christine, with Greg Mills as Raoul.  Also featured are Kim Stengel as Carlotta Giudicelli, Chicago-native D.C. Anderson as Monsieur André, Bruce Winant as Monsieur Firmin, Rebecca Judd as Madame Giry, John Whitney as Ubaldo Piangi and Polly Baird as Meg.  At certain performances, Sarah Lawrence plays the role of Christine.

For more than ten years, John has proudly been associated with the two longest running shows in Broadway history, Les Miserables and The Phantom of the Opera.  He made his Broadway debut in Les Miserables, going on to perform nearly every role in the show including the lead character Jean Valjean.  John began with Phantom as the Raoul understudy then later took over the role.  John played Raoul with both the touring and Broadway companies while understudying and performing the role of the Phantom.  In fact, John holds the distinct honor of being the first and only actor to have performed both roles, Jean Valjean and the Phantom, on Broadway.  Regional credits include Tony in West Side Story, Jesus in Jesus Christ Superstar, Freddy in My Fair Lady, Lt. Cable in South Pacific and tenor Tony Candolino in Master Class at such theatres as The Paper Mill Playhouse, St. Louis Rep., North Shore Music Theatre and Portland Stage. John is happily married to Broadway actress Kathy Voytko.

Sara Jean Ford most recently made her debut in both The Phantom of the Opera and "The BroadWAY" and is absolutely honored to be joining such a great company in the very first show she ever saw!  She made her New York debut as Luisa in the Off-Broadway revival of The Fantasticks where she starred along side such theatre legends as writer/director Tom Jones and the forever inspiring Leo Burmester.  Directly after graduating from Carnegie Mellon (BFA), Sara joined the original Chicago Company of Wicked (Glinda and Nessarose u/s).  This last year Sara has performed in numerous readings and workshops including Pride and Prejudice (Elizabeth Bennett), directed by Mark Lamos, Zhivago! (Yalenka), directed by Des McAnuff, and Prairie (Nellie Olson), directed by Francesca Zambello.  Favorite roles include Cunegonde in Candide, Babe in Crimes of the Heart, and The Baker's Wife in Into the Woods.

Greg Mills appeared in the Broadway production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Woman in White.  National Tours: Big (Josh Baskin).  Other New York and regional:  Evita (Che) at West Virginia Public, Jesus Christ Superstar (Jesus), Miss Saigon (Chris) and Aida (Radames) at Seaside Music Theater, After the Ball (Mr. Hopper) at The Irish Repertory Theatre and 2005 cast recording, Where's Charley? (Jack Chesney) at Goodspeed Opera House, Sweeney Todd (Anthony), Chess (Freddie), Camelot at The Paper Mill Playhouse and originated the roles of Danceny in the world premiere of The Game at Barrington Stage and Roman in Warsaw in NYC.  A proud graduate of Florida State University.  

Chicago's history with The Phantom of the Opera dates back to May 1990 when the Second National Tour opened and played a 39-week premiere engagement.  That production went on to tour the United States through October 1998 including return engagements to Chicago in December 1993 (29 weeks) and May 1998 (17 weeks).  Most recently, the Third National Tour played a six-week engagement in March and April 2004.

With worldwide box office sales of over $3 billion, The Phantom of the Opera is the most successful entertainment venture of the twentieth century, surpassing such blockbuster films as Titanic, E.T., and Lord of the Rings. The winner of seven 1988 Tony Awards, including Best Musical, The Phantom of the Opera has been seen by over 80 million people in 119 cities in 24 countries.  Worldwide, The Phantom of the Opera consistently plays to larger audiences and in longer engagements than any other musical in history.  On January 9, 2006, The Phantom of the Opera became the longest-running show in Broadway history surpassing Cats' record-holding run of 7,485 performances.  The show then celebrated its nineteenth anniversary on Broadway January 26, 2007.

"Based on the classic novel Le Fantôme de l'Opéra by Gaston Leroux, The Phantom of the Opera tells the story of a masked figure who lurks beneath the catacombs of the Paris Opera House, exercising a reign of terror over all who inhabit it.  He falls madly in love with an innocent young soprano, Christine, and devotes himself to creating a new star by nurturing her extraordinary talents and by employing all of the devious methods at his command," explain press notes.

The Phantom of the Opera will return to Chicago for a limited holiday engagement at the Cadillac Palace Theatre (151 West Randolph St.) from Wednesday, October 31, 2007 through Saturday, January 5, 2008.  The performance schedule is as follows:

October 31 - November 4: Wednesday 7:30PM, Thursday 2PM & 7:30PM, Friday 8PM, Saturday 2PM & 8Pm, Sunday 2PM & 7:30PM.

November 6 - January 5: Tuesday 7:30PM, Wednesday 2PM & 7:30PM, Thursday 7:30PM, Friday 8PM, Saturday 2PM & 8PM, Sunday 2PM.

Exceptions: Additional performances on Friday, November 22 at 2PM, Sunday, December 30 at 7:30PM, Monday, December 31 at 7:30PM, Friday, January 4 at 2PM.  No performances on Thursday, November 22 (Thanksgiving), Tuesday, December 25 (Christmas Day) or Tuesday, January 1 (New Year's Day).

Tickets for The Phantom of the Opera range in price from $28 to $85 and are available at all Broadway In Chicago Box Offices (151 W. Randolph St., 24 W. Randolph St. and 18 W. Monroe St.), by calling Ticketmaster at (312) 902-1400, online at www.ticketmaster.com, and at all Ticketmaster ticket centers (including Carson Pirie Scott stores, Hot Tix, select Coconuts and fye stores).  Groups of 20 or more may receive a discount by calling (312) 977-1710.

For more information, log onto www.broadwayinchicago.com or visit the official The Phantom of the Opera website at www.thephantomoftheopera.com.

Photos: John Cudia as The Phantom; John Cudia; Sara Jean Ford; Greg Mills