I can still hear the eerie thundering of the organ echoing the loss of the Phantom in Andrew Lloyd Webber's "Phantom – The Las Vegas Spectacular." And those few crashing notes still bring tears to my eyes and a flash of the spectacular production I recently witnessed in Vegas.

Admittedly, I fell asleep during the Broadway version of the Phantom. With all the curtain calls and breaks including wine refreshers, and the stretch of several hours for one show, the Broadway version just seemed to take too long to get to the heartbroken Phantom ending. However, the Las Vegas version is a shortened, 95-minute, but no less gut-wrenching adaptation.

The Venetian Resort – Hotel & Casino premiered "Phantom – The Las Vegas Spectacular" in June 2006. The show includes a stunning recreation of the Parisian opera house where the story takes place, featuring music by London stage and Broadway wunderkind Andrew Lloyd Webber, creator of "Phantom of the Opera," the longest-running show in Broadway history.

The show begins at an auction at the Paris Opera House, an old man, Raoul, Vicomte de Chagny, bids for a musical box which seems to hold some special memory. The remnants of a chandelier are revealed, with a blast of cadence from the orchestra, you are swept back to the time of Raoul's youth, when the chandelier hung in splendor at the Opera House. Within minutes of the opening curtain, I was entranced and on the edge of my seat.

The reunion of Andrew Lloyd Webber, director Hal Prince, choreographer Gillian Lynne, and others from the show's original creative team is a match made in Vegas heaven. From the moment you enter the $40 million custom-built theatre, you find yourself surrounded by the famed Paris Opera House and enveloped by its Gothic ambiance.

Every song is included from the original production, which translates into a fast-paced, captivating, 95-minute production. The special effects and enhancements create a mood that invites you to step inside the Phantom's alluring mind in a way that helps you understand Christine's fascination to this charismatic dark character.

I invite you to experience Phantom – The Las Vegas Spectacular, a truly unique production, its familiar haunting lyrics, and cast of characters. Whether you are staying at the Venetian, on The Strip, or any other property in Vegas, you'll not be disappointed by Andrew Lloyd Webber's reinvention of the Phantom – The Las Vegas Spectacular.