Mobile Opera Romeo and Juliet, Wild Things Ball and Dracula Fill Downtown Oct. 23-25

MOBILE, Ala. — Downtown Mobile’s calendar is packed for the weekend of Oct. 23-25. Mobile Opera Romeo and Juliet performances open the company’s season at The Temple Downtown, the Alabama Contemporary Art Center throws its Wild Things Ball costume party, and Mobile Ballet premieres an all-new “Dracula” at the Saenger Theatre, all within a few blocks of one another.

For arts lovers, the hard part may be picking. Here is a guide to the weekend’s three biggest downtown events, with times, prices and what to expect.

Mobile Opera opens with Gounod’s ‘Romeo and Juliet’

Mobile Opera begins its season with Charles Gounod’s “Romeo and Juliet,” the French composer’s setting of Shakespeare’s tragedy of two young lovers from feuding families. The libretto is by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré. Performances are Friday, Oct. 23, at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 25, at 2:30 p.m. at The Temple Downtown, 351 St. Francis St.

Gounod turned to the story after his darker opera “Faust” won wide acclaim in 1859. His five-act “Roméo et Juliette” premiered in Paris in 1867 and soon moved on to London. It remains one of the most frequently staged French operas, known for its series of love duets and for Juliet’s bright waltz aria, “Je veux vivre.”

The opera is sung in French with English supertitles, which project a translation above the stage so audiences can follow the story line by line without knowing the language.

Meet the opera’s cast

Turkish-American soprano Oznur Tülüoğlu sings Juliet, a role she is performing for the first time. Mobile audiences may remember her from Mobile Opera’s “The Magic Flute.” She has also performed with the Inscape Chamber Orchestra, the Northeastern Pennsylvania Philharmonic and Bel Cantanti Opera, and she works as executive administrator of the Denyce Graves Foundation.

Tenor Charles Calotta, a native New Yorker who holds degrees from Vanderbilt University and the University of Maryland, plays Romeo. His credits span a wide range of operatic and contemporary work, including “Little Women,” “Salome,” “The Barber of Seville,” “The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat” and “A Streetcar Named Desire.”

Bass Johnnie Bankens plays Friar Laurent, the cleric who secretly marries the couple. A faculty member at Southeastern Louisiana University, Bankens has performed in the United States and Europe, including with the San Diego Opera, the Lied Society of Minneapolis and the Symphony Chorus of New Orleans. He has sung bass solos in major works by Beethoven, Brahms, Haydn and Handel and appeared in Mobile Opera’s 2024 “Rigoletto.”

The ensemble also includes Evan Fleming, Rachel Gibson, Peter Lake, Zachary Petrie, Patrick Jacobs, Ben Wiggins, Myles Garver, Richard Coarsey and Lori Guy. Stage director Paul Houghtaling will also step onstage as the Duke, and Gregory Buchalter conducts.

Tickets range from $10.99 to $63.

The Wild Things Ball goes ‘Neon Jungle’

Saturday night belongs to costumes. The Alabama Contemporary Art Center, known as ACAC, holds its fourth Wild Things Ball on Saturday, Oct. 24, from 7 to 11 p.m. The party is held in even-numbered years and doubles as a fundraiser for the art center, drawing some of the most inventive outfits of Mobile’s Halloween season.

This year’s ball has a new home. ACAC has left its former space on Cathedral Square for a smaller satellite location, so the party moves to Cedar Street Social Club, 4 N. Cedar St., using both the building and its large backyard.

Organizers promise festive entertainment, artist-made costumes and decor, cocktails, music, dance-offs, prizes and “general hilarity.” The theme is “Neon Jungle,” and the evening will feature artwork by Michelle Jones. Performers are to be announced.

Costumes do not have to be handmade, and guests who would rather not go spooky can opt for fancy dress. The event is for ages 21 and older.

ACAC is offering a membership deal tied to the ball: any new membership purchased before Oct. 24, starting at $35, includes Wild Things Ball tickets. Current members can buy tickets for less than $10.

Mobile Ballet’s ‘Dracula’ at the Saenger

A few blocks away, Mobile Ballet opens its 2026-2027 season the same night with an all-new “Dracula,” staged once only on Saturday, Oct. 24, at 7:30 p.m. at the Saenger Theatre, 6 S. Joachim St.

Inspired by Bram Stoker’s novel, the ballet follows the cursed count, his three brides and his struggle between good and evil. Daniel Benavides dances the title role alongside guest artists and the Mobile Ballet company. The choreographer is Raul Peinado, who danced Dracula with Mobile Ballet in 2014.

Individual tickets are $25 to $69, and season packages for all three of the company’s productions run $65 to $186.

New this year is Bite Before the Ballet, a VIP pre-show reception from 5:30 to 7 p.m. in the Mobile Arts Council’s Room 1927, next to the Saenger’s main entrance. Guests can meet the cast, the choreographer and the director, sample themed cocktails and gourmet bites, and enter a costume contest. Reception tickets are $75 per person, can be bought with performance tickets or separately, and are limited.

More to do that Saturday

Families can start Oct. 24 earlier in the day. The Mobile Museum of Art hosts a free family day for its new GATEWAY: From Graffiti to Gallery exhibition from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., with hands-on art activities, food trucks and gallery time for all ages. The museum is in Municipal Park in west Mobile, so it pairs well with an evening downtown.

Planning your weekend

All three downtown events are close together, but each draws its own crowd, and Saturday is the busiest night. A few tips:

• Buy early. “Dracula” has only one performance, and the Bite Before the Ballet reception has limited space.
• Allow time to park. The Saenger, The Temple Downtown and Cedar Street Social Club are all downtown, and Saturday traffic will be heavier than usual.
• Pick your costume. Both the Wild Things Ball and the ballet reception reward creative attire.
• Consider Sunday. The opera’s 2:30 p.m. Sunday matinee is a quieter way to close the weekend.

If you go

• Mobile Opera, “Romeo and Juliet”: Friday, Oct. 23, 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, Oct. 25, 2:30 p.m.; The Temple Downtown, 351 St. Francis St.; sung in French with English supertitles; tickets $10.99 to $63
• ACAC Wild Things Ball: Saturday, Oct. 24, 7 to 11 p.m.; Cedar Street Social Club, 4 N. Cedar St.; theme “Neon Jungle”; ages 21 and older; tickets included with new ACAC memberships (from $35) bought before Oct. 24, under $10 for current members
• Mobile Ballet, “Dracula”: Saturday, Oct. 24, 7:30 p.m.; Saenger Theatre, 6 S. Joachim St.; tickets $25 to $69; season packages $65 to $186
• Bite Before the Ballet: Saturday, Oct. 24, 5:30 to 7 p.m.; Room 1927, next to the Saenger; $75 per person
• GATEWAY Family Day: Saturday, Oct. 24, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.; Mobile Museum of Art; free