On stage, Christine's character, Aminta, sat awaiting her lover. She couldn't help her slight movement of surprise when she heard Erik's voice across the stage, singing of how she had come here "in pursuit of her deepest urge." Oh, no, surely they would recognize that it wasn't Signor Piangi singing!
She glanced over at Erik, and he put a finger to his lips again at the word "silent", reminding her to trust him. Raoul was in his box above, watching, and she mustn't make any movement that betrayed her Angel to him or to the police.
Don Juan sang magnificently on about how Aminta had dropped her defenses, and it mesmerized Christine as it had never done when she practiced with old Piangi. Erik's voice had a sensual quality that enthralled her, made her want to truly succumb to him, made fear take a back seat to desire. She approached him on stage, knowing as she did that she was truly "past the point of no return" and no longer acting a part. No more games of make believe….it was time to acknowledge her real feelings, to herself and to Erik and Raoul. No second thoughts!
It wasn't Don Juan and Aminta singing now, it was Christine and Erik, the audience forgotten as the pair gave in to long-suppressed emotions and poured their hearts into the music. His voice was exultant, and hers husky with feeling as she sang that she had "decided", meaning it with every fiber of her being. Her body was awake with unfamiliar passion, and she must pursue this, to find out who the man was behind the mask, this man who so intrigued her that she was risking her engagement for him. She deliberately allowed her gown to slip and bare her shoulders, as she had been directed to in practice, but now she had a private motive….she suddenly wanted to seduce this man, for him to find her desirable. As they sang of flames consuming them, she had never felt so alive!
They sang together as they climbed the stairway on opposite ends, announcing to the world and each other that they were "past the point of no return" as they met in the middle in a passionate embrace. There was a hush over the audience as it held its collective breath, waiting in suspense for what would come next. Raoul stood in the upper balcony, almost in tears as he watched his prized possession slipping away, making verbal love to the masked man.
Erik sang softly then, in a voice that melted her very soul, asking her to share with him one love, one lifetime, to save him from his solitude. His fingers swept across her body, stroked her neck, and then turned her toward him. She gazed enraptured at him, so under his spell that she was ready to accept what he was offering then and there.
As his voice swelled magnificently, "Anywhere you go let me go too! Christine, that's all I ask of you!" he looked at her and whispered "Trust me" once again. When she nodded, he kicked a lever to open a trap door that let them fall through the platform and below the actual stage, while the audience gasped and some screamed at the unexpected movement.
Raoul, realizing at that moment that the Phantom had his fiancee', shouted at the police to follow and headed for the stage, tripping over people in his haste! When he reached the spot where Christine had disappeared, there was no visible opening or means to follow in that manner, so he led the chase backstairs in the only direction he knew to go, in a futile night-long search which left all pursuers frustrated and never came near the Phantom's hiding place. Christine's stand-in was hastily dressed and pushed on stage to finish the performance, along with Signor Piangi, who was found bound and gagged but otherwise safe and sound backstage.
Meanwhile, Erik and Christine landed on a pile of old curtains he had earlier placed there to break their fall. He helped her to her feet, breathless but unharmed, and hurried her along hidden passageways to his home, leading her by the hand. He had left a pair of soft slippers there, too, knowing she would be barefoot in her role. She appeared slightly winded but not alarmed, and she followed him willingly. The next time he glanced back at her, he was surprised to see a smile on her face….the little vixen was actually enjoying this!
