Atlanta Opera reimagines ‘La Belle et la Bête’ + ‘The Spook Who Sat by the Door’ returns in 4K

Two cinematic experiences are reshaping how Atlanta audiences engage with classic stories. The Atlanta Opera brings Philip Glass’s hypnotic score to Jean Cocteau’s 1946 film “La Belle et la Bête,” performed live at Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre. Meanwhile, the Atlanta Film Society honors a milestone of independent Black cinema with the 4K restoration of “The Spook Who Sat by the Door,” a 1973 film that remains politically charged and artistically daring as ever.

Atlanta Opera merges film and stage in ‘La Belle et la Bête’

When conductor Ryan McAdams lifts his baton at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre this Saturday, movie and music will move in lockstep. For one night only, the Atlanta Opera’s orchestra performs Philip Glass’s score to Jean Cocteau’s “La Belle et la Bête” live, fusing cinema and stage in real time. 

McAdams calls the music “a rhythmic undercurrent that keeps the story alive,” describing the performance as closer to an electronic pulse than traditional opera pacing. “It’s mesmerizing,” he says. “You lose yourself in it the way you would in a dance club.”