Brad Little gives thumbs up for French musical 'Romeo and Juliette'

American musical theatre actor Brad Little (left) gives a thumbs up for French musical Romeo and Juliette. [Photo by Zhao Pingping/provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

American musical theatre actor Brad Little, famous for his starring role in the musical The Phantom of Opera, gave a thumbs up for French musical Romeo and Juliette in Beijing on Dec 13. 

The musical is a classic adaptation of William Shakespeare's play with lyrics and music by Gérard Presgurvic.

Little saw the musical on Nov 22 at the Guangzhou Opera House.

Commenting on the musical  in an interview, he said, "It's a brilliant, wonderful execution with the cast. The set is stunning. It's also massive, combined everything together. Presgurvic's music has got all the love and passion behind it. I'm a big fan of him. I love it. I love the show. It's a wonderful Class A-1 production."

Given the opportunity to act in the musical Romeo and Juliette, Brad Little said he would choose the role of "Prince" acted by Frederic Charter.

Brad Little was amazed by the style and voice of Frederic Charter. He also joked that he was too old for the role of Romeo.

The Phantom of Opera opened at Tianqiao Performing Arts Center on Nov 20, 2015. It was a major hit in the box office, reaching 70 million yuan or over one million US dollars in Beijing. Meanwhile, it won positive comments from all audiences.

Talking about characteristics of musicals from Broadway, West End and France, Brad Little said, "They are all different but yet they are all the same. We all tell stories. We love to move the people and change the way they feel from when they enter and exit the theater. I would say the major, if you would say. the difference is that Broadway and West End is slightly more subtle. Whereas the French, it’s more passionate. It's all out there. That would be the big difference that I would say. It's the truth."

On Chinese musicals, Brad Little sees progression. Brad Little admitted that he missed the days when he was on stage in Beijing and said Tianqiao Performing Arts Center is one of his favorite theaters in China as its Grand Theater was made for musicals and is very professional. Brad Little added that hopefully he would come back to Beijing in the near future to see another performance.