Royal College of Music alumni success in the West End
Friday 25 August 2017
| Kelly Mathieson as Tomassina in the RCM International Opera School's 2014 production of La gazzetta |
A Royal College of Music graduate, Kelly Mathieson, has been cast as the lead role in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom of the Opera. Kelly will fulfil a childhood dream when she takes to the stage as Christine Daaé in her West End debut this September.
Kelly trained with Tim Evans-Jones and Andrew Robinson at the Royal College of Music, graduating in 2015. She took part in masterclasses with Roger Vignoles, Patricia McMahon and Justin Lavender and performed in several RCM International Opera School productions, including a ‘wonderful’ (Bachtrack) turn as Tomassina in Rossini's La gazzetta, directed by Donald Maxwell.
During a gruelling audition process, Kelly impressed Andrew Lloyd Webber to secure the role of Christine. She said, ‘I am a bit nervous, but mostly just overjoyed to have been given this opportunity […] I have lived in London for six years. It is my home, so I’m just delighted to be here and doing what I love.’
Kelly takes over the role from fellow RCM alumna Harriet Jones, who has played Christine since 2013 and recently starred as the Queen in Disney’s Beauty and the Beast alongside Emma Watson and Dan Stevens.
Amy Manford has also been cast as alternate Christine Daaé from September, performing 2 shows a week to Kelly’s 6. Amy graduated from the Royal College of Music with a Master’s of Performance in Vocal Performance in July this year, having studied with Janis Kelly and performed principal roles in the RCM International Opera School’s recent productions of Handel’s Faramondo and Poulenc’s Les mamelles de tirésias.
The Phantom of the Opera is one of the West End’s most popular and enduring musicals, now in its 31st year at Her Majesty’s Theatre. The Royal College of Music is proud to have three consecutive graduate stars cast in the challenging role of Christine. From musical theatre to film, Britain’s Got Talent to the BBC Proms, RCM alumni are enjoying successes across many diverse areas of the music industry.
