I was always into classical music and opera because I played the piano as I went through school and was very interested in Andrew Lloyd Webber musicals and stuff like that. That changed into heavy metal at around the age of 14 or 13, and I dropped the piano and started to play the guitar.
I went to see 'Phantom of the Opera' with my grandma and my mom when I was very little. The stage, the voice, the music... Composer Andrew Lloyd Webber has been a massive inspiration to me for some time - the storytelling, that deliciously somber undertone in his music.
Mem'ry All alone in the moonlight I can smile at the old days Life was beautiful then.
Two songs I like are 'High Flying Adored' and 'Another Suitcase Another Hall,' both from 'Evita.'
We got to see Sondheim shows, 'Phantom of the Opera,' 'Cats' and all sorts of stuff. When you're 10 or 11 years old, it's just magnificent. The story-telling, the music - it lifts you out of your seat.
I was always a big fan of 'Pippin' and 'Godspell,' even before I heard 'Meadowlark.'
You know what I'm doing starting 1st November? Jesus Christ Superstar.
The only shows I saw as a kid were that holy trinity: 'Les Miz,' 'Cats,' 'Phantom.'
I was obsessed with 'Jesus Christ Superstar,' and I used to reenact it in my room when no one was home.
'Phantom of the Opera' started in my little 100-seater converted church in Britain with a stage where we did what we did. But it was the score itself was what made it.
I used to know all the lyrics to all the songs from 'The Phantom of the Opera.'
I do quite like that Andrew Lloyd Webber song from 'Cats.' What's it called? 'Memory?' Sends shivers up your spine.
I like musicals a lot. I think probably 'Jesus Christ Superstar' is my favorite. I love Andrew Lloyd Webber for the most part. It's rare that I'll find a musical that I don't like.
I thought 'Moulin Rouge' was inspirational, and 'Jesus Christ Superstar' I loved.
I love 'Jesus Christ Superstar.'
I had lunch with Andrew Lloyd Webber at the end of 2011 because my musical 'Matilda' is in one of the theatres that he owns in London.
You hear about Broadway your whole life, and I learned what it meant to work on Broadway in 'The Phantom of the Opera.'
The history of popular music is littered with great partnerships. Rodgers had his Hammerstein, Lennon had his McCartney, and Lloyd Webber had... his photocopier.
I often think how lucky we were with 'Jesus Christ Superstar.'
I always had an eye toward the stage for the story of Hamilton's life, but I began with the idea of a concept album, the way Andrew Lloyd Webber's 'Evita' and 'Jesus Christ Superstar' were albums before they were musicals.
It was a complete no-brainer. Literally, the call came through: Andrew Lloyd Webber wanting to offer you, with no audition, The Wicked Witch of the West at the London Palladium - I'm in!
People in Britain always think of 'Jesus Christ Superstar' as a musical - it wasn't.
'The Phantom of the Opera' is the biggest thing I've ever done, bigger even than 'Cats' which, in itself, I never thought we'd top.
What I can't tell is, I don't know if there's a subliminal resistance to the idea of a sequel to 'The Phantom of the Opera' anyway.
I do remember the tour of 'Cats' in Philadelphia. I was 12 and had a stomach bug.
