This is a rare program (playbill) from the National Tour of the KEN HILL musical "THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA" which kicked off August 29th, 1989 at the Warner Theatre in Washington, D.C. (The American premiere took place on March 18th, 1987 at the Repertory Theatre in St. Louis, Missouri. This tour followed the September 1988 San Francisco production at Theatre on the Square.) ..... Ken Hill's Phantom of the Opera premiered on July 26th, 1976 at the Duke's Playhouse in Lancaster, England with a book by KEN HILL and a modern score by IAN ARMIT. In 1984, Hill revised the show, discarding the modern score and writing original English lyrics backed by 18th, 19th and early 20th century opera arias, creating a musical that reflected the era in which the original novel was written. This updated version was first produced jointly in Newcastle, England and London in 1984 ..... The National Tour starred STEVE BLANCHARD in the title role, REBECCA BAXTER as "Christine Daae", ROBERT JENSEN as "Raoul" and WILIAM LINTON as "Richard" and featured KEVIN DAVIS, SUZANNE GRODNER, WAYNE HOFFMAN, JOHN-CHARLES KELLY, EILEEN McNAMARA, SERENA SOFFER, VINCE TRANI and LAURIE FRANKS ..... Side note: ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER, his wife SARAH BRIGHTMAN and producer CAMERON MACKINTOSH attended a performance of Ken Hill's Phantom of the Opera at London's Theatre Royal Stratford East in May 1984. Prompted by the good reviews, they approached Hill about the possibility of collaborating on a grand scale version of his Phantom of the Opera in the West End. But in the end, Lloyd Webber chose to pursue the musical on his own, and the rest is history ..... CREDITS: Book, Music and Lyrics by KEN HILL based on the original novel by GASTON LEROUX; Music by VERDI, GOUNOD, OFFENBACH, MOZART, WEBER and DONIZETTI; Sets and Costumes designed by SARAH-JANE McCLELLAND; Directed by KEN HILL; Produced by ALLEN SPIVAK and LARRY MAGID in association with JONATHAN REINIS, INC., BRAD KRASSNER and MAGIC PROMOTIONS ..... DETAILS: The twelve page playbill measures 5 3/4" X 8 5/8" inches and includes full production credits, cast list, musical numbers and bios of each of the leading actors and members of the creative team, but no cast photos ..... CONDITION: With the exception of light edge wear, this playbill is in excellent condition and will make a wonderful addition to the collection of any musical theatre aficionado or historian.