{"id":2500106,"date":"2026-07-13T13:12:50","date_gmt":"2026-07-13T13:12:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2500106"},"modified":"2026-07-13T13:12:50","modified_gmt":"2026-07-13T13:12:50","slug":"modestos-stolle-cast-in-unique-immersive-phantom-retelling","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/modestos-stolle-cast-in-unique-immersive-phantom-retelling\/","title":{"rendered":"Modesto\u2019s Stolle cast in unique immersive Phantom retelling"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Available now: Sign up here<\/a> for the best food, drink and entertainment coverage in Stanislaus County. <\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Modesto native, Broadway actor and singer Jeremy Stolle not only is in the cast of a six-story-high take on \u201cPhantom of the Opera,\u201d he was on the ground floor of its development.<\/p>\n

\u201cI got to help, you know, from the very roots of the show. I was there,\u201d Stolle said. \u201cI got to be kind of a consultant on certain things.\u201d<\/p>\n

More on that later. First, let\u2019s talk about the unique experience that is \u201cMasquerade,\u201d an off-Broadway, audience-immersive musical.<\/p>\n

According to a story on playbill.com<\/a>, the production is a reimagining of Andrew Lloyd Webber\u2019s iconic Tony Award-winning hit.<\/p>\n

Here, the musical tells its tale as the audience travels throughout the building where it\u2019s set. No seats assigned.<\/p>\n

\u201cModeled after the seminal immersive production \u2018Sleep No More,\u2019 \u2018Masquerade\u2019 seeks to plant audiences right into the plot of Gaston Leroux\u2019s \u2018The Phantom of the Opera\u2019 \u2013 of course, within the lens of Lloyd Webber\u2019s long-running 1986 West End-Broadway musical,\u201d according to the Playbill story.<\/p>\n

Stolle \u2014 a cast member of \u201cPhantom of the Opera\u201d during its Broadway run, including several performances in the title role \u2014 said he would describe \u201cMasquerade\u201d as a \u201c$30 million dollar haunted house.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you imagine going to a gala at the opera, and you\u2019re in a room, and there\u2019s tables, and there\u2019s people walking around, there\u2019s a piano in the middle of the room \u2014 you\u2019re in that room,\u201d Stolle said of the audience experience. \u201cAnd when you go down to the Phantom\u2019s lair, you\u2019re in the lair … (the Phantom) comes over and actually touches people and sings to them, and, you\u2019re just, you\u2019re in the scene.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Jeremy Stolle is pictured in 2012 during a rehearsal for a show at the Gallo Center for the Arts. The Modesto Bee<\/span> <\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

There are about 60 people in each audience \u2014 or \u201cpulse,\u201d as they\u2019re called \u2014 for the six shows held each night, as well as for its matin\u00e9es.<\/p>\n

Once the audience members go through the first two scenes, the next pulse files behind, Stolle said. \u201cSo at one point, there are six completely separate shows happening at the same time, and none of the people in the building know the others are there. Isn\u2019t that wild?\u201d<\/p>\n

Wild and more, according to a description on Broadwayworld.com:<\/a> \u201cMasquerade blurs the lines of reality, bringing audiences inside and closer than ever before to the strange affair of the Phantom of the Opera. …,\u201d it says. \u201cGuests will be invited to experience the music of the night more intimately than ever before.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s intimate for the cast, as well.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s very exciting because the people are there and … the no-fourth-wall is a lot of fun because we can change people\u2019s feelings … just by going up and having a connection with them,\u201d Stolle said. \u201cWhere it gets really weird is there is just instant feedback, and that\u2019s hard.\u201d<\/p>\n

On a traditional stage, actors don\u2019t see who is or isn\u2019t enjoying a show, he said. \u201cYou don\u2019t get to see that reaction in their face. But if somebody is displeased in this show, it\u2019s right there.\u201d<\/p>\n

While less-than-positive reactions are uncommon, the Modesto High graduate said there can be an occasional tinge of disappointment.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s so funny, there\u2019s a part where … we walk over to people and we start dancing with them, and we grab them, and we go, \u2018Dance with me.\u2019 And, and if people say no, it totally hurts my feelings.\u201d<\/p>\n

His role \u2014 off and on stage<\/h2>\n

The production is an expansion of the original musical, Stolle said, with more backstory about the Phantom and some other characters.<\/p>\n

Stolle spent time playing Richard Firmin, co-owner of the Opera Populaire. But roles shift in \u201cMasquerade.\u201d<\/p>\n

Six actors are cast as the Phantom per show \u2013 one for each pulse. Stolle currently is number seven, which finds him filling in often, he said.<\/p>\n

When he isn\u2019t needed as the Phantom, he stands in for several other roles, making him a \u201cuniversal swing\u201d actor.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a revisiting of his time as the character on Broadway, but with an added element. Which brings us back to the above-mentioned in-on-the-ground-floor aspect.<\/p>\n

Stolle was among those tapped to explain the process of the original production. Then the director of \u201cMasquerade\u201d took that information and worked some of it into the new show.<\/p>\n

\u201cMasquerade\u201d came about after Andrew Lloyd Weber approached Diane Paulus and her husband, Randy Weiner (director and producer, respectively, of \u201cMasquerade\u201d), about creating a new version, Stolle said.<\/p>\n

Weiner was among the producers of \u201cSleep No More,\u201d the successful four-floor immersive version of \u201cMacbeth.\u201d The couple suggested the renowned composer go the same route, Stolle said.<\/p>\n

Once they found a building in New York City to stage the show, Stolle said, Paulus contacted a friend from \u201cPhantom of the Opera,\u201d Eryn LeCroy, who had played Christine.<\/p>\n

She told LeCroy they needed people from the original to go into the \u201cbuilding with us and play, and just experience the building and try to create scenes,\u201d Stolle said.<\/p>\n

LeCroy contacted Stolle and other past cast members including Paul Adam Schaefer, Hugh Panar and Kaley Ann Voorhees. \u201cThe five of us went for probably a year and a half, secretly, off and on, and started developing scenes and ideas,\u201d Stolle said. \u201cAndrew Lloyd Weber would come in every once in a while, and they would just start to map out ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\"The
The infamous chandelier returns in \u201cMasquerade.\u201d Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman MurphyMade<\/span> <\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

Mapping was key. The pulses move from room-to-room, with even some action taking place in hallways, he said.<\/p>\n

According to a New York Times story<\/a>, \u201cOverlapping groups of attendees navigate the more than 30 scenes, some unfolding simultaneously … To pull that off, the production enlisted a team of more than 100, including sound and lighting designers, a choreographer and dressers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Audience members aren\u2019t just part of the scenes, they\u2019re sort of in costume, as well. \u201cA black, white or silver mask is required for entry. Guests are encouraged to wear their own masquerade mask. If you don\u2019t have one, we\u2019ll provide a complimentary mask on arrival,\u201d says the the production\u2019s website.<\/a> Also, formal or elevated eveningwear is encouraged, though not required. \u201cAll guests\u2019 attire should be black, white, silver or any combination thereof.\u201d<\/p>\n

Two different worlds<\/h2>\n

So how does it compare, having been part of the Broadway mega-hit that was \u201cPhantom of the Opera\u201d to this different iteration?<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know, I really enjoy this version because of there being so much backstory,\u201d Stolle said.<\/p>\n

The original just hints that the Phantom had a horrible life, while in \u201cMasquerade,\u201d he said, \u201cyou see him as a boy, and you see the people who tortured him and made him angry. And then you get to see him escape, and then invent things, and you get to see him in his element and grow along with him.\u201d<\/p>\n

At the end, people care for the Phantom, while in the original, it was more vague, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy the end of the show, you really kind of feel for him, even though he\u2019s a murderer,\u201d Stolle continued. \u201cHe murders in front of you in the show … and still at the end, people are just inconsolable, sobbing.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\"Modesto
Modesto native Jeremy Stolle appeared in several performances in the title role in Broadway\u2019s \u201cPhantom of the Opera.\u201d Courtesy of Jeremy Stolle in 2019<\/span> <\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

Still, playing the Phantom on Broadway was an amazing experience.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, there\u2019s no bow, like it,\u201d Stolle said. \u201cI think … it\u2019s such an iconic part and something I\u2019ve loved my whole life … It was a highlight in life, I think. It\u2019s such a feeling of accomplishment.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s also where he met his partner \u2013 actress Elizabeth Welch, who spent time playing Christine.<\/p>\n

The couple have three children between them, from different relationships \u2013 Welch a 21-year-old daughter; Stolle a 14-year-old daughter and 17-year-old son.<\/p>\n

Stolle spoke to The Bee in June, the day after his 50th birthday. He had the night off to celebrate and see his son \u2013 following in his father\u2019s footsteps \u2014 in a production of \u201cCarousel.\u201d<\/p>\n

Family remains in Modesto<\/h2>\n

His parents and two sisters live in Modesto, and he returns \u201cquite often.\u201d He tries to book a performance in the area, he said. \u201cThat way I can spend some time and can budget for it, because taking my whole family across the U.S., it\u2019s expensive.\u201d<\/p>\n

His parents traveled to New York to see him in \u201cMasquerade.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t know if my parents were going to love it, and it turns out they really<\/i> loved it. I think they liked it more than the Broadway show,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, it was amazing,\u201d mom Georgia Stolle confirmed.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was definitely different … than watching (the original) because you\u2019re moving along a lot,\u201d his dad, Paul Stolle, said. He was among audience members who interacted with the cast. At one point, a character leaned on his shoulder. In another scene, he was handed a slip of paper from the opera ghost.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was kind of like, flabbergasted the whole time, it was just so, so different than when we sat in the theater watching him in \u2018Phantom of the Opera,\u2019\u201d Georgia Stolle said, adding they\u2019re hoping to go back to see \u201cMasquerade\u201d again.<\/p>\n

His parents said they admire how Jeremy always stays after shows to interact with audience members. Once, he spoke to a young woman who aspired to be a Broadway performer, Paul Stolle said, and the two sang outside the theater.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s the thing about Jeremy, he interacts with the people,\u201d his dad said. \u201cHe stays at that level where he\u2019s friendly with people.\u201d<\/p>\n

His parents said it was not an easy road when their son left Modesto for New York City in 2001 to pursue his career. They\u2019re proud of his accomplishments.<\/p>\n

\u201cAuditions are hard, rejections are hard,\u201d Georgia Stolle said. \u201cYou never know what they\u2019re looking for. He did this all by trial and error.\u201d<\/p>\n

He had no one to guide him, Paul Stolle added. \u201cHe persisted and got there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Musical\u2019s success continues<\/h2>\n

\u201cMasquerade\u201d debuted last fall. In June, it received its sixth extension, through Jan. 31, 2027, according to the Playbill story<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s growing and growing,\u201d Stolle said.<\/p>\n

On top of the show, the producers have added different events in the building, such as nighttime parties, cast parties, sing-along jazz nights and corporate entertainment gatherings, he said. \u201cThey\u2019re really maximizing the use of the building, and it\u2019s kind of awesome.\u201d<\/p>\n

But it\u2019s the distinctive production itself that\u2019s the must-see, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo matter what (people) think of \u2018Phantom,\u2019 whether they love it or hate it, they all still have to come see (\u2019Masquerade\u2019), and the reviews have been overwhelmingly positive on it,\u201d Stolle said. \u201cBecause it\u2019s such an experience, and there\u2019s (so much) detail, no stone left unturned.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\"The
The off-Broadway \u201cMasquerade\u201d is a retelling of \u201cPhantom of the Opera.\u201d Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman MurphyMade<\/span> <\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

\u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n

\u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.modbee.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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