Two cultural icons collided last night when Andrew Lloyd Webber challenged Normal People star Paul Mescal to a singalong on Twitter.
Before Marianne and Connell were even born, Lloyd Webber brought to life another intense couple driven by passion: Christine and the masked Phantom. (Admittedly, her main passion was singing.)
It turns out that the Irish actor, who plays Connell in the BBC Three adaptation of Sally Rooney’s novel, once played the role of the Phantom in Phantom of the Opera. Shaky video footage has emerged online of Mescal performing the big number in a school production, and word has clearly got round to the musical maestro himself.
Lloyd Webber tweeted Mescal last night to say: ‘Hi Paul! I heard that you are part of the Phantom alumni, fancy a singalong? - ALW’
Throughout the lockdown, Lloyd Webber has offered an array of ways to enjoy his back catalogue online, from live-streamed recordings of past productions to play-offs with stars from Lin-Manuel Miranda to Nile Rodgers. He has even been taking requests from fans.
Mescal seemed delighted by the message, replying ‘OMG is this a real thing’ with a heart-eyes emoji, but did not accept the challenge. Whether doing so would make Marianne fancy him more or less is open to debate.
