UL Lafayette Opera Theatre presents “A Masked Ball”

Presenting opera performances during a pandemic has been quite a challenge for Shawn Roy, director of the UL Lafayette Opera Theatre.  Singing in masks and social distancing are a definite deterrent to producing Opera and Musical Theatre in a normal fashion.  Of course, this year has not been normal in any sense of the word.  This past year forced him to think outside of the box, and a viable option was doing a filmed version of an opera for the 2021 spring semester production.  Roy created a storyline based on the Cinderella story with other operas and a few musicals thrown in.  With music by Rossini, Massenet, Strauss, Sondheim, Coleman and Rodgers, “A Masked Ball” takes place in Cinderella’s home before the ball, then takes us to the ball itself where we meet a variety of characters singing in four different languages!  The production was filmed on location in the Alumni House and onstage in Angelle Hall, assisted by the Performing Arts Department with costumes and wigs.