The Phantom of the Opera (1986 musical) and the 1988 Tony Award for Best Musical, and Michael Crawford (in the title role) won the Olivier and Tony Awards for Best Actor in a Musical. It is the longest running show in Broadway history by a wide margin, and celebrated its 10,000th Broadway performance on 11 February 2012, the first production ever to do so. It is the second longest-running West End musical, after "Les Misérables", and the third longest-running West End show overall, after "The Mousetrap". With total estimated worldwide gross receipts of over $5.6 billion and total Broadway gross of $845 million, "Phantom" was the most
Colm Wilkinson again, originating the role of the Phantom in "The Phantom of the Opera" at the Sydmonton workshop. Wilkinson was offered the role for the show's debut on the West End, but instead chose to play Jean Valjean in "Les Misérables". The London production of "Les Misérables" opened in October 1985, and transferred to Broadway in March 1987. Originally, the American Actors' Equity Association refused to allow Wilkinson to play the part of Valjean in New York, due to its policy of hiring only American actors unless an actor outside America was an international star. At this, producer Cameron Mackintosh refused