It was the first such construction of its kind and was never dismantled, although in August 2014 the planned demolition of the stage (not the set itself) was announced as part of the expansion of the Universal Studios theme park.

The structural strength required to support thousands of extras (including a 15-year-old Carla Laemmle in a minor role as a ballerina) meant that UniversalвЂ™s Soundstage 28 was constructed with steel girders set in concrete. The famous two-colour Technicolor masque ball scene fromВ The Phantom of the Opera (Universal 1925)Дirectorial duties went to Rupert Julian, and the studio attempted to excel itself by this time building a replica of the world-famous musical institution. Lon Chaney was brought back to star as doomed Erik, the haunting title figure who slinks around in the shadows of the Paris Opera House in black cloak and white mask. He found inspiration in Gaston LerouxвЂ™s 1910 novel Le FantГґme de lвЂ™OpГ©ra, first published in English in 1911. ChaneyвЂ™s grotesque make-up for deformed Notre Dame bell-ringer Quasimodo had been a revelation, almost enough to rival the studioвЂ™s lavish stone-by-stone recreation of that Parisian cathedral itself.Д¬arl Laemmle needed a follow-up and once again, looked to Paris for material. Ok, when we see Christine for the first time (and by the way, I was speechless because of her beauty) and whenever she is wearing her stage wig is really 1920ish, but when Erik brings her in the cellar, her hair and dress are really well done.UniversalвЂ™s The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923) had proved immensely successful for both the Laemmles and its star, Lon Chaney. In the case of 1920вЂ™s movies, they didnвЂ™t even try, so it was pretty common to see an 1800вЂ™s woman with finger waves on her head. I donвЂ™t know if they filmed that again of if they kept the original scene, but if you look at the minutes 39:02 and 39:13 of the video linked below, you could believe this story.ДЎ) In historical plays,В as much as one can try to be faithful to that timeвЂ™s fashion, is inevitable to let your own timeвЂ™s fashion show. The poor scared girl fell backwards and screamed, and only then the actor stopped, asked her to forgive his behaviour and showed her her genuinely terrified face recorded on film. Unexpectedly,В Lon Chaney started yelling insults at a shocked Mary and rose his hand to hit her. Lon Chaney, who plays Erik, proposed to try again and everyone agreed.Д¬haney told the cameraman to go on filming whatever happened, and they adjusted their make-up by themselves. After many tries, he decided to call it a day and left. She managed to do wonders with skilled directors but, sadly, this wasnвЂ™t the case.Дuring the filming of the unmasking scene, Rupert Julian (the not-so-skilled director) wasnвЂ™t satisfied with MaryвЂ™s performance. I know the phantom is no Nathan Fillion, but he made you famous just as you wished! You should be grateful, for heavenвЂ™s sake!ДЄs I said before, Mary Philbin wasnвЂ™t a trained actress. Letter: Dear lover Raoul, letвЂ™s meet later, ok? xoxo Christine I mean, Mary Philbin is disarmingly beautiful and, in spite of her lack of acting skills (she never attended any recitation school) I think she managed to do a great job, but Christine is so irritating!Д®rik (the Phantom): DonвЂ™t touch my mask, ok?Д®rik: You must never see your lover again, ok? This means this is my very first approach with this story, and we all know that back then the accuracy of the adaptations was relative. I havenвЂ™t read the book, I know that a musical exists and heard a couple of songs but nothing more, I havenвЂ™t seen the adaptation with BulmaВ nor others.

The phantom of the opera 1925