Opera Chapman gets spooky with ‘Fright Night’
Opera Chapman combines music and characters from Halloween classics such as “Hocus Pocus,” “Into the Woods” and “The Nightmare Before Christmas” with older famous operas in this modern take on the medium. Photos by EMILY PARIS, Photo Editor
Halloween is right around the corner, and Chapman University is taking “Spooky Season” very seriously, in an unexpected way.
Enter Fright Night — a performance being put on by Opera Chapman (OC). The show is directed by OC Artistic Director Marc Callahan and will be open to attendees the week before Halloween. What can students expect? Callahan has an easy answer.
“Imagine ‘The Rocky Horror Picture Show’ but a little more PG-rated,” Callahan said.
Callahan went on to describe the show as a “pastiche” because of how several popular musicals and operas are blended together within it. Fright Night revolves around a German opera called “Der Vampyr,” with songs featured in “Hocus Pocus,” “The Nightmare Before Christmas” and “Don Giovanni,” amongst other classics that fit the Halloween atmosphere.
“I’ve always loved Halloween, and the idea of the community coming together to celebrate it,” Callahan told The Panther. “Just as the veil between the living and the dead grows thin, so can the veil between audience and operatic performer.”
“I’ve always loved Halloween, and the idea of the community coming together to celebrate it. Just as the veil between the living and the dead grows thin, so can the veil between audience and operatic performer.”
The concept of Fright Night is essentially combining scenes from several older operas and morphing them with songs and characters from both operas and contemporary Halloween movies. One change from your typical opera though is that all the songs are in English.
Another unique aspect of the show is that the focus is as much on the guests as the performers themselves. The intention is to create a highly immersive experience.
“There’s going to be a lot of audience involvement,” Callahan told the Panther. “We’re gonna have a palm reader there in a fabulous ‘Bride of Frankenstein’ costume. We’re going to hand out candy. There is going to be a costume contest for the audience… There might even be a little sing-along at the end.”
Callahan hopes Fright Night introduces a whole new generation to the world of opera, and lets them see beyond any stereotypes or preconceived notions they may have in mind.
“I think a lot of people get worried about going to the opera performances because opera feels so stilted and inaccessible,” Callahan said. “This will be completely the opposite.”
“I think a lot of people get worried about going to the opera performances because opera feels so stilted and inaccessible. This will be completely the opposite.”
Dylan Mattingly, a junior psychology major and music minor who also serves as OC’s publicity co-chair, shares Callahan’s sentiment.
“People don’t realize that opera isn’t just standing there and singing and not knowing what someone’s saying and it’s boring,” Mattingly told The Panther. “It can all be modernized and have a fresh take.”
This year’s performance will have a lot of audience involvement, candy and a costume contest.
Beyond pushing the boundaries of what opera is, Mattingly has appreciated being able to make lots of creative decisions with her character and become closer with her fellow cast members.
“We get to have fun and be creative,” Mattingly said. “It’s refreshing to not have to be super serious all the time… I just feel like I’ve really enjoyed myself in rehearsals, and I feel like our cast has really gotten close. We’ve been able to bond with each other and have a lot of fun.”
Senior vocal performance major Evan Raymond gets to play a particularly fun part in the show and enjoys the balance of fun and melodrama.
“I’m the main bad guy; I’m the Vampire,” Raymond said. “It’s pretty cool how (Fright Night) develops. It starts off kind of silly with ‘This is Halloween,’ and then it goes to this more serious tone.”
Apart from the performance aspect, Raymond also got to assist with the writing process. If all this isn’t enough to entice students, he hopes to give them the final push.
“Chapman students, I think, should be excited to expand their boundaries, be able to listen to some opera in English and explore that avenue of music,” Raymond said.
Fright Night will have three shows: one on Oct. 20 at 7:30 p.m. and two on Oct. 21 at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available to the Chapman community on the ticketing website. All ages are welcome, and costumes are encouraged!
“We get to have fun and be creative. It’s refreshing to not have to be super serious all the time… I just feel like I’ve really enjoyed myself in rehearsals, and I feel like our cast has really gotten close. We’ve been able to bond with each other and have a lot of fun.”