"Our lighting designers have never designed a show before but they were extremely willing to learn how," Carney says. "We didn't need someone who knew how to light a show, we needed someone who was willing," he added.

"The most rewarding part about working on the show was watching the cast enjoying performing, and the crew enjoying putting the show together," Carney says.

Carney, who recently produced a Gilbert and Sullivan production, The Gondoliers, on campus, says that although he likes producing shows, he doesn't intend to make the stage his career. "It's something I really enjoy, but I don't intend to use it as a career or go to Broadway recruiting."

While many members of the crew are from Lowell House and therefore are working close to home, some of the graduate students are from the New England Conservatory of Music. Some of these visitors say they find the time commitment and the setting of the show difficult to handle.

David Williams who portrays Mr. Ford says, "It took a lot time away from my work and school commitments."

And Frank Timmerman, who plays the role of Slender, says, "Gearing myself up to perform in a dining hall situation and getting used to the acoustics was difficult."

During its long history, the opera has become more than just another house show. "The opera acts as a kind of reunion for alums. Especially this year because the producers were very active in inviting alums," says Lowell House Master William H. Bossert '59.

Says one returning alumnus, Leonard Clark '59, who attended opening night, "I've been to the show a couple of times. I think they do a good job with the show because you feel you can relate to the show. It's almost like an Off-Broadway show."

The masters of Lowell House work hard to make the opera enjoyable for the returning alumni and other patrons of the show by hosting a traditional Patrons' Night reception following the opening night's performance. Cast and crew members also attend the black-tie event.

The opera also unifies the current undergraduates at Lowell House and provides them something in which they can take pride, says Bossert, who is also Arnold Professor of Science. "Every house has something, and the opera is something that has been a tradition. A lot of the students in the house take part in the show whether they're interested in music or not. It draws the house together."

Clark agrees, saying, the opera "acts as a symbol that people feel good about. It shows that students are interested in something beyond the daily class routine."

Although most of the opera's five-member chorus is made up of Lowell House people, Bossert says he wishes opera's cast had more students because it would bring the house together even more. "I would like to have more undergrads but I want to leave that to the musical society and the musical director," he says.