When a vocal group decides to tackle the title track from Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom of the Opera, they are taking on decades of theatrical tradition. Orlando-based a cappella quintet VoicePlay met that challenge head-on by stripping away the heavy organs and rock guitars in favour of purely human sound. Bringing in Broadway performer Rachel Potter to deliver the iconic female lead, the ensemble transformed an operatic warhorse into a fresh vocal masterclass that caught the attention of theatre fans.
Potter arrived with serious stage pedigree, having previously performed as Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family on Broadway and played the Mistress in the 2012 revival of Evita. That musical theatre background gave her the vocal control and dramatic flair needed to navigate Lloyd Webber’s challenging melodies. In an intricate arrangement by group member Layne Stein, VoicePlay built a dense harmonic landscape around her voice, setting up a dark and theatrical showdown without touching a single musical instrument.
The collaboration, which received independent coverage in Playbill on the day of its video release, arrived after VoicePlay had already begun exploring musical theatre. The group, known for an appearance on NBC’s The Sing-Off, had featured “Phantom” in a Broadway medley just one year earlier. Audio engineer Ed Boyer gave the studio mix a polished finish, balancing layered vocal beats with theatrical choral harmonies to capture the weight of a full pit orchestra using the group’s voices and Potter’s soaring lead.
What really makes the performance click is the dramatic tension between the vocal registers. Potter handles the soaring high passages with clean operatic precision, while the lower harmonies anchor the track with room-shaking depth. Group member Geoff Castellucci provides rumbling bass textures, creating a thrilling contrast with the high notes. Visual staging hints at group member Tony Wakim stepping behind the Phantom mask, trading intense phrases with Potter as the musical duel races toward its frantic climax.Beyond musical theatre, the ensemble teamed up with Potter to record a vocal arrangement of Sia’s pop hit “Chandelier.”
Listeners responded warmly to the inventive vocal arrangement, helping the video cross seven million views on YouTube. Commenters especially celebrated the dynamic clash between high and low tones, with one fan observing that as Rachel goes higher, the bassline goes lower. The dramatic commitment also left theatre enthusiasts wanting even more from the cast. Another listener loved the chemistry so much that they said, “(I) Keep coming back to this one and have decided, I want a full stage a cappella production of Phantom with this cast.”
This release was far from an isolated experiment. VoicePlay and Potter had already demonstrated their musical chemistry on a popular cover of Sia’s “Chandelier” in 2014, and they would reunite years later for a Moana medley in 2017. By bridging the worlds of mainstream vocal arranging and legitimate Broadway technique, their take on The Phantom of the Opera stands as one of their most compelling creative partnerships.