HUNTSVILLE – Opera Huntsville is in rehearsal now for an adventurous performance to run during the week of Halloween.

“Bluebeard’s Castle” is a fully staged production of Bela Bartok’s brilliant one-act opera. Opera Huntsville will present performances on Oct. 28-30 at the Von Braun Center Playhouse, 700 Monroe St. SW in Huntsville.

Music Director Daniel Krenz is leading a chamber orchestra. Rebekah Alexander and David Ian Lee are handling director responsibilities for this psychological thriller. Huntsville favorite Terrence Brown will portray Bluebeard, and mezzo Thea Lobo will make her Alabama debut as Judith.

Others on the artistic team are David Kravitz (Bluebeard cover); Shannon Rose (Judith cover); Shan Kennedy, Assistant Music Director; and Sierra Hammond, Production Manager. Kenisha Hill Phillips is General Manager of Opera Huntsville.

Renowned as a masterpiece, “Bluebeard’s Castle” follows Judith as she explores the mysterious castle despite disturbing rumors. Judith insists that all doors be opened to allow light into the forbidding interior. Bluebeard refuses and says private places in the castle are not intended for exploration by others.

Exploring the castle, Judith encounters looming danger. The first door opens to a torture chamber, stained with blood. The second door has a storehouse of weapons. The third reveals a storehouse of riches. With Bluebeard’s prodding, Judith finds a secret garden behind the fourth. Behind the fifth door is a window opening to Bluebeard’s vast kingdom. (en.wikipedia.org)

The opera will be performed in Hungarian with English supertitles . . . with one exception. The Saturday matinee performance on Oct. 29 will be in English with piano accompaniment.

Performance dates will be Oct. 28, 7:30 p.m.; Oct. 29, 2 p.m., performed in English with piano accompaniment; Oct. 29, 7:30 p.m.; and Oct. 30, 3 p.m. Immediately following the show on Oct. 28, directors Alexander and Lee will lead an artist discussion at 8:45 p.m.

Tickets cost $32.50 with general admission. To buy tickets, visit operahuntsville.org.

Founded in 2018, Opera Huntsville (formerly Encore Opera Huntsville) functions purely for the love of singing and opera. For more information, call 229-869-7371 or visit operahuntsville.org.