What do you get when you put passion, intrigue, fire from someone’s finger tips and electrifying special effects in one room? You get Phantom, Ingersoll style.

Ever since The Phantom of the Opera was first published in France in 1910 and the United States in 1911, Gaston Leroux’s novel of love and terror stalking the Paris Opera from eaves to catacombs has captivated audiences world-wide.

The Ingersoll Dinner Theatre’s production of Phantom, the Iowa premiere of a musical written by Arthur Kopit and Maury Yeston, will run September 22 through October 29, with matinees falling on Sept. 27, Oct. 11, 25 and 29.

“First there was the book, then the movies and Webber’s show,” said Charles Carnes, producer of show. “Now there is Phantom.”

The cast is set with eleven “phantastic” Iowa actors and actresses ready to perform, as well as various technical people and set designers from Michigan and Colorado, hired especially for this production.

The elaborate period costumes for Phantom were shipped in from Illinois and should make for an exclusive evening, phantom style.

“The story for Phantom remains the same as Leroux’s book,” Carnes said. “The Phantom is not so much the archetypal villain, as he is a misunderstood anti-hero.”

Carnes said that because of the way the characters are portrayed in Kopit and Yeston’s Phantom as opposed to Webber’s Phantom, there is a lot more empathy with the audience.

“Instead of cheering when the Phantom dies,” Carnes said, “you cry. It’s a very touching story.”

Phantom presented the Ingersoll Dinner Theatre’s technical crew with a very unique set of challenges.

“We’ve done a lot of special effect work in the past, such as our 300-gallon rainstorm in Singin’ In The Rain, but nothing compares to this show.”

In the Ingersoll’s production, the Phantom appears and disappears in blasts of smoke, and he shoots fire from his fingertips.

In addition to these challenges, the crew had to devise a plan to drop a huge crystal chandelier from the center of the theater to the front of the stage, to do it safely, without the chandelier breaking into thousands of pieces, but to still make it swoop down fast enough to be shocking.

“We are going all-out on this production,” Carnes said. “Our team is literally transforming the theatre into a glittery opera house. It is absolutely fantastic.”

The doors open for dinner at 6 p.m. and food is served until 7:30 p.m., followed by the show at 8 p.m. For matinee showings, doors open at noon, and the meal is served until 1 p.m., with the show following at 1:30 p.m.

Tickets are $25 on Sundays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. Tickets are $29.50 on Saturdays. Ticket price includes dinner. Show-only tickets are available for $17.50. Desserts and alcoholic beverages will be available. For more information call 274-4686. Have a phantastic time.