ALTHOUGH currently in the midst of “packing up his whole life” before spending the next year travelling the world with The Phantom of the Opera’s international tour, Ballyclare actor Daniel Rivers is a man of many talents - including multitasking, as he still managed to find time to chat about his “most challenging role yet.”
“It all happened so quickly,” he says.
“With tours, they’re running on a really tight timeline to book people, then get the visas sorted, book hotels, flights – everything. Whereas auditioning for a theatre show can take a bit longer.”
Playing the role of maestro Mr Reyer, as well as covering the part of theatre owner Monsieur Andre in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s tragic tale of unrequited love, Daniel does not have long to perfect his performance.
“Essentially, I’m learning two separate roles in four weeks – which is a bit scary, but the challenge is so exciting.”
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From learning the violin to becoming the soloist in the school choir, music has always been Daniel’s métier.
“I remember my music teacher telling my mum I needed to go for singing lessons and it seemed to just escalate from there,” he recalls.
“I started doing stuff with Belfast Operatic, the Belvoir Players, dance and acting lessons, pretty much any amdram group or class I could get into.
“Every night after school, I’d be in the car and straight off to somewhere else, there’d never be a night where I’d just go home - I was always out doing something.”
Daniel’s evident passion and dedication went on to land him a place at London music and dance conservatoire Trinity Laban, where he was able to hone his craft.
“I moved to London when I was 18, which was quite the culture shock when you come from Ballyclare,” he laughs.
“But it was amazing. I did the musical theatre course and then I stayed on and did my master’s in classical voice and opera for two years, so I was like part of the furniture by that stage.”
Daniel explains that when he first started his master’s, his coaches and singing teachers encouraged him to “forget the three years of musical theatre training” in order to establish a new classical style. But Daniel had other ideas.
“I kind of went against that, because I wanted to do both.
“Sort of like a musical theatre classical crossover, where I could have the best of both worlds - I didn’t want to limit myself.”
Daniel’s decision appears to have paid off, as since graduating in 2022 he has been cast in both classical and musical theatre performances – back-to-back, in fact.
In September 2023, he performed as part of the chorus in Northern Ireland Opera’s production of Tosca, before going on to star as a ‘fabulous duckling’ (and one of the Three Little Pigs) in the MAC’s Christmas production The Night Before Christmas, which earned him praise from audiences and critics alike.
Although he believes it is all down to a “lovely run of serendipity.”
“If I hadn’t come home to do Tosca, I never would have reached out to the MAC and auditioned to be the fabulous duckling,” Daniel muses.
“And if I hadn’t done that, I wouldn’t have met my agent, because Nuala McGown who was in the show with me had asked her agent to come to the show.
“After that, I contacted her and ended up getting signed, and my first audition with the agency was the Phantom International Tour.
“It really feels like all the little jigsaw pieces really fell into place.”
The tour will start in China stopping in Shenzhen, Xi’an, Shanghai and Chengdu, with more dates to be announced.
“The furthest I’ve been from home is Turkey for a holiday so it’s quite a jaunt across the world,” laughs Daniel.
“But I think that’s the exciting thing about doing a tour because it’s a chance to do what you love but also see the world as well.
“And Phantom was always one of my dream shows – I even said in the audition room ‘I’ll literally be a tree at the back of the stage if means I get to be in it’.”
To date, The Phantom of the Opera is the longest-running show in Broadway history and is currently the third-highest grossing musical of all time behind the Lion King and Wicked.
It hasn’t taken long for Daniel to feel the effects of its colossal popularity.
“The show has such a universal reach,” he says.
“Funnily enough, shortly after I was cast I was working in a sports shop on Regent Street in London, and there was a girl in buying trainers for her dad who was flying home to China.
“I said, ‘aw no way, I’m going to China in a few weeks’. She asked where I was going and why, and I explained I was an actor going out to do Phantom of the Opera.
“Well, she let this yelp out of her – everyone was looking, and she was shaking my hand and going, ‘oh my word, I need to follow you on Instagram, I love that show, I’ll try and get tickets.’
“So, I feel like no matter where in the world you go, people know about it.”
He also admits to being surprised by the reaction from people here at home.
“The support I’ve received since announcing I was joining the show has been amazing. Everyone has been so lovely and encouraging, which has really helped with the nerves.
“To have so many brilliant people around me is a real privilege and I’m so grateful for all of them. Hopefully, I can make them proud.”
