Wilkinson, Webber’s first ‘Phantom’ — almost

Irish tenor sang ‘The Phantom of the Opera’s’ hit melodies long before anyone else

You probably don’t know it, but Colm Wilkinson was Andrew Lloyd Webber’s first choice for the Phantom.

When Sir Andrew was mentally casting “The Phantom of the Opera,” his biggest West End London hit, Wilkinson was the first name on his lips.

“I sang that role first, before anybody else ever did, in a Norman church on Webber’s Sydmonton estate in England. That was in 1985. I sang it opposite his then wife, Sarah Brightman. That was where the composer liked to try out all his new material. Talk about excitement. It was thrilling.”

Wilkinson did not ultimately open in the part. It went to comedian Michael Crawford, who surprised everyone with his spectacular singing voice.

“Of course, I wanted to play the part in London, but in the end I couldn’t. I was already committed to ‘Les Misérables.’ Talk about two big shows conflicting.”

Wilkinson opened in Les Misérables in the Barbican Theatre in London, Oct. 8, 1985. They might just as well have hung a big gold star on his dressing room door.

Sitting down with me in P.J. O’Brien’s Irish Pub in Toronto, in December 2015 Wilkinson obviously had kissed the blarney stone. He liked telling stories and the pub we were in was so Irish, it was the perfect place to have lunch with a son of the auld sod.

Very soon, we got around to the way life plays tricks on you.

“Here were two big roles, but I could only do one of them,” Wilkinson said.

Never mind, his triumph as Jean Valjean in London in “Les Misérables,” had audiences cheering the place down. Then in 1988, three years later, the same thing happened on Broadway.

Dapper in a black turtleneck sweater and slacks, Wilkinson was not only affable and Irish, he was a star.

Amazingly, in the end, he played both The Phantom and Jean Valjean on Broadway making it a onetwo punch.

“I’ve had some luck. I know that,” he said.

He shrugged when I asked him which show he liked best.

“Well, truth is, ‘Les Mis’ is my favourite, hands down.”

A leprechaun grin spread across his face and he looked to see what I was thinking.

I thought we should order lunch and avoid a contentious comparison. Wilkinson soon tucked into a full Irish breakfast, but he waved away coffee.

“Oh no, never,” he laughed. “It’s bad for the vocal chords.

“I was born on Margetson Road in Dublin, with an umbilical cord wrapped round my neck. That’s supposed to be lucky, if you believe in superstition,” he grins. ‘Well, I’ve been lucky all my life, so maybe it’s true.”

Wilkinson began singing with an Irish showband, belting out Chuck Berry and Little Richard rock tunes when he was a lad.

“They were great for dancing. Those guys were the best. The Black singers were the ones I admired most. They had soul.”

Coming to New York City in the 1960s Wilkinson sang in small clubs.

“Irish music was having its heyday, then,” he said. “For expats it was a touch of home, part of the Irish diaspora. My first real musical theatre role though was back home in Dublin playing Judas in ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’. I thought that was kind of blasphemous for a good Catholic.” Remembering the “Les Mis” opening in London, Wilkinson says, “The audience hit the roof. They brought the walls down. Next day the critics slammed it. It didn’t matter, there were lines round the block. The public made that show a hit, not the critics. Same thing in New York.

“My only regret, and it’s a big one, is that I missed time with my family. It’s tough when you’re in a big show. You have to take care of your voice. You need quiet time between performances. A role like Jean Valjean takes over your life.

“Those are heavy songs that I had to sing. You start singing in that show and you don’t stop. Eight shows a week was a tough go. It was about finding the energy and vocal strength to do it. And frankly, sometimes I was down to the wire. “

Wilkinson, in Canada since 1989, finally played “The Phantom of the Opera” for four-and-a-half years at Toronto’s Pantages Theatre.

“I’ve had a life’s career from those shows. I played my last Jean Valjean in Shanghai. Don’t ask the year.

“It’s hard to let go of that role,” he said. “I mean, ‘Bring Him Home’ was written for me. But you know I don’t own the role, I know that. There are hundreds of good Valjeans out there. The thing is, I have no big regrets in my life. You need passion and love to survive in this business. Maybe that’s all you’re finally left with. Me? I’ve hung in there. I’m a performer. That’s just what I do.”