"I just learned they call those 'tissues' in this show," she said.

Her husband, Tom Dean, and a stagehand were putting the finishing touches on the set and preparing the house for the preview performance of "La Belle Et La Bete." Zook, executive director of Oakland Opera Theater, was looking forward to seeing the show all the way through.

Zook wasn't the only one. Once you hear about the show, it's difficult to resist. It actually starts outside in a tent designed to be a French cafe, where performers and audience members mingle.

"At some point, the show will begin. Well at 8," Zook said.

Audience members will come into the theater, past a tiny fortuneteller (Zook and Dean's 8-year-old daughter, Natasha), a circus freak-show display, and find their seats. Acrobats, contortionists, stilt walkers, a pole climber who is also a hand balancer and the tissue performers will begin their acts. An eight-piece orchestra will accompany the singers.

The production is a staged version of Philip Glass' opera, based on the Jean Cocteau film. In Glass productions, singers appear in front of the running film.

"We weren't able to use the film because a Glass production is touring," Zook said. "But they have been very supportive of us. In the end it made us more creative because we're not relying on the film."

Without the film, the conductor was also able to slow the tempo a bit to make it more singable.

Much of the film's imagery is intact, including the human legs as table legs and the actual faces on top of the busts decorating the fireplace in the beast's lair.

"His castle is enchanted," Zook said. The piece is sung in French with English subtitles projected on a screen in the theater and on a monitor outside.

The show runs between 1 hour 45 minutes and 2 hours.

"We don't know yet how long it will take the audience to get in their seats," Dean said. "That's the variable."

If all of this sounds pretty unusual and not at all like opera you've seen or imagined, that's exactly the point. The Oakland Opera Theater's mission is to produce contemporary opera and reach people who may not think of themselves as opera lovers.

"We don't want people to think they have to put on pearls and furs to see opera," Zook said, pointing out that opera was originally a form of popular entertainment. "We want people to feel comfortable and have an engaging experience. We want them to be challenged by the material, but not by the economics. Opera is not just for the wealthy."

After a performance of Dean's "White Darkness" for Oakland high school students, the students were asked how many had never before seen a live theater performance.

"About 70 percent of the audience raised their hands. This one kid, in his big pants, raised his hand and said, 'Wow, that music was hella tight.' That's what we want."

Initially, the Oakland Opera Theater, established in 1989 as the Underworld Opera Company, produced a new piece written by Dean every two years. After moving into the Oakland Metro in 2001, Zook and Dean decided to produce two or three operas a year. Last year's "Akhnaten" was so popular — it completely sold out — the company produced it for a second run four months later.

"People were coming back night after night," Zook said. "They were trying to sneak in the back door when we told them we were sold out. It was like a (Grateful) Dead show."

Because of Oakland's diversity, Zook said it doesn't take that much effort to cast singers who reflect the city's population.

"Oakland is a vibrant place, with singers of all ethnicities. That's the community where we live. Oakland is a good place for us."

Oakland Opera Theater presents "La Belle Et La Bete," through Oct. 2, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, 8 p.m., Sunday, 2 p.m., Oakland Metro, 201 Broadway in Jack London Square, Oakland, $18 to $32. Performances may sell out. Advance tickets available online at http://www.oaklandopera.org, or by sending a check to 1734 Campbell St., Oakland, 94607 (include name, phone number and number of tickets.)

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