QUESTIONS
Dear Reader:
Please respond to these questions—I'd like to hear what everyone thinks ;-)
What would Erik do if Christine weren't beautiful? Minus a beautiful voice, a fleshy bosom, large doe eyes, and (for Kay-lovers) an uncanny resemblance to Erik's mother, she's just an empty, beautiful voice with no soul. If she had 300 extra pounds and a mustache, would Erik still carry her across the eerie lack and lustily whisper her name…"Christine?" And worse: what if her name was … Maria Consuella Tamika Arbaiza? What if there was no Raoul. What if there was a female version of Raoul, like say, Luciana, and she came back to find Erik again because she misses him—and since she was Erik's first love when they were teenagers…would Erik love her again? Could SHE be the one who lures Erik onto a roof (again) and begs him to leave Christine for her? What would Christine do? If Christine were so jealous of Ayesha because Erik was affectionate with a cat, imagine how she'd feel towards Luciana. It would be the catfight of the Century. 19th Century. J What if there was no music? What if Erik fell in love with Christine's soul and she despised the Opera? Who would Erik choose? The beauty or the music? Is there a difference? What if Raoul and Christine never had a history? What if she never had a first love and found Raoul AND Erik to be potential loves? Without the "red scarf" and the "Dark DARK stories of the North" yada yada, who would she choose? (Though many of us can never understand HOW she could possibly even consider Raoul over Erik, the real situation probably might make Christine think) What if Christine WAS you. What if his face was truly a skeleton's. I know you must think, oh, it can't be that bad. And in your head you always picture him with a white ivory mask and in a beautiful long black cape like a curtain of the night—but really…when that mask comes off, he removes his hat, the cape is on the floor, the tux is on the bed…and it's just…ERIK. What do you see? Can you truly, TRULY deal with the face? The lack thereof of the nose? Anyone who has seen "Vanilla Sky" that Tom Cruise without his face is nothing. His acting, no matter how convincing, and though his eyes are still there, the audience couldn't sit without squirming in the seats. No matter how perfect his body was—he wasn't beautiful. We never know what we don't experience. What would you really do? And can you sincerely promise to love him and hold that skull for the rest of your life? Think really really carefully. We are what we are. And no matter what…it's true…appearance matters too much. What if Christine wasn't a vestal virgin? What if she was a whore? What if she was just "open-minded" and a Carrie Bradshaw (Sex & the City) of the 19th Century? Would Erik still want her? Would Erik think beauty can come in "tainted" form? Would that make her allure more alluring or would that make her more relatable and a LOT less annoying? What if she were actually really really intelligent and got into heated arguments with Erik about Marxism and Shakespeare and Opera "politics". What if she challenged his thinking and was more of a woman than he'd ever expect her to be? Would that make Phantom too Jane Eyre? Or would it make it more interesting?