Book description
Rumours that a ghost stalks the dark passages and cellars of the
Paris Opera House, wreaking havoc, have long been rife among staff and
performers. This Phantom also haunts the imagination of the beautiful
and talented singer Christine Daa , appearing to her as the 'Angel of
Music' - a disembodied voice, coaching her to sing as she never could
before. When Christine is courted by a handsome young Viscount, the
mysterious spectre, who resides in the murky depths of the building,
is consumed by jealousy and seeks revenge.
With its pervading atmosphere of menace, tinged with dark humour,
The Phantom of the Opera (1910) offers a unique mix of Gothic
horror and tragic romance that has inspired film, stage and literature
since its publication.
Gaston Leroux (1868-1927) was a prolific French journalist,
playwright and mystery novelist, best known for his Le Fant me de
l'op ra (1910).
Mireille Ribiere is a freelance author and translator. She holds a
PhD in twentieth-century French Literature from the University of
London and is a well-known specialist of the work of French writer
Georges Perec.
Jann Matlock is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of French at
UCL. She is the author of Scenes of Seduction: Prostitution,
Hysteria, and Reading Difference in Nineteenth-Century France
and has recently completed a book entitled Before the Voyeur:
Spectacles of the Body, Aesthetics, and Vision in Nineteenth-Century France.
