'The Phantom of the Opera': Thinking of a Spectacle Fondly
As the longest-running musical in Broadway history closes, Times critics with a lasting affection for the show take stock of its legacy.
Today is Wednesday, May 20, 2026 Broadway Baby Birthdays: Naturi Naughton Sierra Boggess Angela Goethals Busta Rhymes Lisa Kron Tony Goldwyn Bronson Pinchot Judy Kuhn Cher Kuhn Ted D'Arms Constance Towers Patrick Bedford Robert Hock David Hedison Edith Fellows Shelly Gross George Gobel Ralph Holmes Milton Gabler James Stewart Russell Hardie Carol Goodner Miklos Laszlo Virginia Sale Vivien Oakland Estelle Taylor Pauline Chase John L. Arthur Dorothea Baird Hubert Druce Eugene Redding David Proval Anthony Zerbe Timothy Olyphant Owen Teale Jane Weidlin Ingvar Ambjørnsen Alan Zweibel John Emery Honoré de Balzac