Mario Bava’s 1961 cult film Hercules in the Haunted World plays on the big screen while nine singers and a 26-piece orchestra perform a new operatic score live. That’s Hercules vs Vampires, and it arrives at the United Theater on Broadway (929 S. Broadway) on Friday, October 30, and Saturday, October 31, 2026, at 8pm. The venue itself adds to the ambiance; originally built in 1927 as the flagship movie palace for United Artists, its breathtaking Spanish Gothic design and intricate, vaulted ceilings serve as the perfect architectural backdrop for a cinematic journey to the underworld.
It’s a seductively spooky way to celebrate Halloween if you’re a bit too old for trick or treating, and there are plenty of other ways to celebrate too. Halloween Candlelight concerts in Los Angeles feature live, classical tributes to movie soundtracks by the flickering light of thousands of candles. These intimate performances typically feature string quartets playing haunting renditions of iconic themes in striking historical spaces.
A score written for the screen
The film stars former Mr. Universe Reg Park as Hercules and Christopher Lee as Lycos, a ruler obsessed with immortality. Park, a legendary bodybuilder who famously mentored a young Arnold Schwarzenegger, brings sheer physical prowess to the heroic role.
He is matched perfectly by horror icon Christopher Lee—renowned globally for his definitive portrayals of Dracula—who brings a chilling, aristocratic gravitas to the villain. Director Mario Bava, celebrated as a pioneering master of Italian horror and the giallo genre, utilizes vivid, hallucinatory lighting that makes the gloriously over-the-top monsters, sets, and costumes pop in full Technicolor.
Composer Patrick Morganelli wrote the music and adapted the film’s dialogue for live singers. Opera Theater Oregon commissioned the piece, which premiered there in 2010. Morganelli revised and reorchestrated it for LA Opera’s 2015 presentation, and North Carolina Opera, Arizona Opera and Nashville Opera have staged it since.
The unique format requires remarkable technical precision, as the live operatic vocalists must synchronize their singing directly with the lip movements of the actors projected on screen, effectively dubbing the 1960s sword-and-sandal epic with soaring contemporary opera.
Blair Salter, LA Opera’s Head of Music, makes her company conducting debut and leads members of the LA Opera Orchestra. Baritone Joel Balzun sings Hercules, soprano Alexis Seminario is Dianara and baritone Gabriel Manro is Lycos.
The cast also includes Roy Hage, Gabrielle Turgeon, Gretchen Krupp, James Hayden, Orson Van Gay II and Robert Norman.
The show is part of LA Opera’s Off Grand initiative, which takes adventurous works to venues across the city. This program is specifically designed to break down traditional barriers, experiment with multidisciplinary formats, and attract modern audiences who might not typically attend standard classical repertoire at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion.
Photo: Craig T. Mathew
Halloween night: afterparty and costume contest
The October 31 performance is followed by an afterparty and costume contest, both included with admission. An anonymous donor funds the prizes:
🥇First place: $10,000, two VIP tickets to an LA Opera performance of the winner’s choice and a private tour for two of the LA Opera Costume Shop.
🥈Second place: $2,500 and two VIP tickets.
🥉Third place: $500 and two VIP tickets.
VIP tickets depend on availability. Togas and fangs are welcome, as is anything else your imagination has come up with. Check the contest rules before you pick your outfit.
Tickets are on sale now on the LA Opera website, by phone at 213.972.8001, or in person at the box office at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion (135 N. Grand Avenue).
