🍫 "Masquerade" is one of the most lavish ensemble numbers in The Phantom of the Opera, bringing nearly the entire company onstage in a sweeping choral spectacle. Every available performer joins in—principals, ensemble, and sometimes understudies—while the Phantom alone is absent, concealed until his shocking return as the Red Death at the climax.

👥 To enrich the sound, swings frequently contribute from backstage, singing offstage lines that boost the volume and density of the choral texture. This layering creates the illusion of an even larger company than the physical cast on stage.

🎭 The production amplifies the grandeur with mannequins placed along the grand staircase, dressed in Maria Bjornson’s costume designs and styled to resemble actual cast members. These figures extend the crowd visually, giving the illusion of a packed ballroom without requiring dozens more performers. Some of these mannequins date back to the show’s original London and Broadway productions, still in use decades later.

🌟 Together, the resonant choral harmonies, the opulent costumes, and the clever use of visual trickery make “Masquerade” one of musical theatre’s most iconic and logistically ambitious sequences—a masterclass in spectacle achieved through layered sound and illusion.