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Plot summary
The Phantom of The Opera is a gothic novel, combining
romance, horror, mystery and tragedy, which is,
according to Leroux, based on a true story.
Leroux's original 1910 novel is set in late
19th-century Paris at the Opéra Garnier, which was built
between 1857 and 1874. During construction it became
necessary to pump underground water from the foundation
pit of the building, creating a huge subterranean river.
The employees claim that the opera house is haunted by a
mysterious ghost who wreaks chaos and destruction when
displeased. Erik, a horribly deformed musical genius
known as the "Opera Ghost", uses this facade to send the
managers of the Opera Garnier repeated threats of
catastrophe should they not pay him a monthly salary of
20,000 francs and perpetually reserve Box Five for him
at every show.
This arrangement, unbroken during the
many years of the managers' tenure, is abruptly
terminated when two new proprietors, Armand Moncharmin
and Firmin Richard, take over the opera house and refuse
to give in to what they view as the empty threats,
thinking that it is a practical joke by former managers.
The Phantom of the Opera - Christine Daaé
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