Erik (The Phantom of the Opera) took roughly four hours per performance to put the prosthetics on in the original London productions. On Broadway, it was cut to roughly three, and over the years has been reduced to 45 minutes. More than one Phantom has described make-up disasters onstage. Michael Crawford recounts a story where he pulled away from the kiss at the end only to see that "[his] lower lip was now hanging off Sarah [Brightman]'s face!". To cover the flub, he pulled her back for another kiss and "took back the lips" and kept that side of his head turned away from the audience.
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