Prologue - The Stage Of Paris Opera House, 1905 (Live At The Royal Albert Hall, 2011)

Sold
Your number, sir?
Thank you

Lot six-six-three then, ladies and gentlemen, a poster
For this house's production of Hannibal by Chalumeau
Showing here, do I have ten francs?
Five then? Five?
I am bid six
Six, do I see seven? Seven
Against you, sir, seven, eight?
Eight, eight once, selling twice
Sold to Raoul, Vicomte de Chagny
Thank you very much

Lot six-six-four, ladies and gentlemen
A wooden pistol and three human skulls
From the 1831 production of Robert le diable by Meyerbeer
Ten francs for this, ten, thank you
Ten, I am bid, ten francs still
15, thank you, sir, 15, I am bid
Going for 15
Your number, sir? Thank you

Lot six-six-five, ladies and gentlemen
A papier-mâché musical box in the shape of a barrel organ
Attached, the figure of a monkey in Persian robes playing the cymbals
This item discovered in the vaults of the theater
Still in working order, ladies and gentlemen

Showing here
May I commence at 20 francs?
Oh, come, come, ladies and gentlemen, 15 then
15, I am bid, thank you very much
Yes, 20 from you, sir, thank you very much
(25) 25 on my right, thank you, madam
25, I am bid, 30? 30
Selling at 30 francs then, 30 once, 30 twice
Sold for 30 francs to the Vicomte de Chagny
Thank you very much, sir (boy)

A collector's piece indeed
Every detail exactly as she said
She often spoke of you, my friend
Your velvet lining and your figurine of lead
Will you still play when all the rest of us are dead?

Lot six-six-six then, a chandelier in pieces
Some of you may recall the strange affair of the Phantom of the Opera
A mystery never fully explained
We're told, ladies and gentlemen, that this is the very chandelier
That figures in that famous disaster
Our workshops have restored it and fitted parts of it
With wiring for the new electric light
So that we may get a hint of how it may look when reassembled
Perhaps we may even frighten away the ghost of so many years ago
With a little illumination, gentlemen!