Special Event

Phantom of the Opera Masquerade Ball

One Night. One Mask. One Extraordinary Celebration of Talent.

Step beyond the curtain as Young Actors Theatre transforms The Moon into an immersive world inspired by The Phantom of the Opera. Enjoy an elegant, lively evening of live music, dramatic theatrical moments, fine dining, and unforgettable performances in support of arts education.

At the heart of the evening is the 2026 Zoli Awards, Young Actors Theatre’s annual Tony Awards-style celebration honoring the outstanding student performers, artists, technicians, and volunteers of the 2025–2026 season.

The celebration culminates with a special appearance by Broadway legend Norm Lewis, recipient of the inaugural Young Actors Theatre Artistic Legacy Award. A Tallahassee native, Lewis made Broadway history as the first African American actor to portray the Phantom on Broadway in The Phantom of the Opera and has starred in Les Misérables, The Little Mermaid, Sweeney Todd, The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess, and more. Following the award presentation, guests will enjoy an intimate Broadway concert performed by Mr. Lewis.

The evening concludes with a Fund-a-Need benefiting Young Actors Theatre, a spectacular student finale, and dancing at our masquerade dance-party.

Thursday, October 29, 2026
The Moon | Tallahassee, Florida | 6PM

Table Sponsorship Levels Below. To reserve your table, please email Sarah Roy at [email protected]

Single Tickets will go on sale at a later date. 

Norm Lewis

Emmy, Grammy, Tony, and SAG Award nominee, NORM LEWIS, was recently seen onstage starring in the critically acclaimed off-Broadway revival of “Ceremonies in Dark Old Men” by Lonnie Elder and the off-Broadway premiere of the musical “Monte Cristo.“  He recently starred in the national tour of the Tony Award-winning production of A Soldier’s Play and in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s West End Concert of “Love Never Dies.”  He starred in Spike Lee’s critically acclaimed, “Da 5 Bloods,” and in the groundbreaking FX series, Pose.  Additionally, Mr. Lewis can be seen starring opposite Hilary Swank in the feature “The Good Mother,” Amazon Prime’s newest series, Swarm, and Hulu’s, Up Here.  He was also seen as ‘Caiaphas’ in the award-winning NBC television special, “Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert!,” alongside John Legend, Sara Bareilles, and Alice Cooper.

Mr. Lewis returned to Broadway in the Fall of 2021, starring in Chicken and Biscuits at the Circle In The Square Theatre.  He previously appeared in the Broadway revival of Once on This Island and as Sweeney Todd in the Off-Broadway production of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street at the Barrow Street Theatre, receiving the AUDELCO Award for his performance.  In May of 2014, he made history as The Phantom of the Opera’s first African American Phantom on Broadway.

He has been seen on PBS in the Live From Lincoln Center productions of Showboat with Vanessa Williams, Norm Lewis: Who Am I?, New Year’s Eve: A Gershwin Celebration with Diane Reeves, as well as American Voices with Renée Fleming and the PBS Specials First You Dream – The Music of Kander & Ebb and Ella Wishes You A Swingin’ Christmas.  He can be seen recurring in the VH1 series, Daytime Divas, also alongside Vanessa Williams.  His additional television credits include Women of The Movement, Law & Order, Dr. Death, Mrs. America, Better Things, The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Bull, Chicago Med, Gotham, The Blacklist, and Blue Bloods, as well as in his recurring role as Senator Edison Davis on the hit drama Scandal.

Mr. Lewis is a proud, founding member of Black Theatre United, an organization which stands together to help protect Black people, Black talent and Black lives of all shapes and orientations in theatre and communities across the country. He received Tony, Drama Desk, Drama League, and Outer Critics Circle award nominations for his performance as Porgy in the Broadway production of The Gershwins’ Porgy & Bess. Other Broadway credits include Sondheim on Sondheim, The Little Mermaid, Les Misérables, Chicago, Amour, The Wild Party, Side Show, Miss Saigon, and The Who’s Tommy. In London’s West End he has appeared as Javert in Les Misérables and Les Misérables: The 25th Anniversary Concert, which aired on PBS.

Off-Broadway Mr. Lewis has performed in Dessa Rose (Drama Desk nomination, AUDELCO Award), Shakespeare in the Park’s The Tempest, The Two Gentlemen of Verona (Drama League nomination), Captains Courageous, and A New Brain. His regional credits include Porgy in The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess (A.R.T.), Ragtime, Dreamgirls (with Jennifer Holliday), First You Dream, Sweeney Todd, and The Fantasticks.

His additional film credits include Office Romance (starring Jennifer Lopez and Brett Goldstein), Christmas In Tune (starring opposite Reba McEntire), Magnum Opus, Winter’s Tale, Sex and the City 2, Confidences, and Preaching to the Choir.

Norm’s albums “The Norm Lewis Christmas Album” & “This is The Life” can be found on Amazon.com as well as cdbaby.com.

Photo Credit:Kevin McIntyre

Meet with our CEO

Sarah Doolin Roy

Chief Executive Officer

Sarah Roy comes to YAT from American Ballet Theatre (ABT), where she was Director of Marketing Communications & Strategic Partnerships. At ABT, Roy worked with Random House, American Express, LG, HBO, Lincoln Center, & more. In 2020, she was a Women in Power Fellow at the 92Y. Roy previously served as Communications Director at New American Economy, a bipartisan coalition of 500 CEOs and mayors for immigration reform. She was a Deputy Director of the Council on Foreign Relations, and is a current term member of the Think Tank. In 2013, she acted as Communications Director for a negotiation process to maintain peace in Northern Ireland. Roy holds an MPA from New York University’s School of Public Service and graduated summa cum laude from Marymount Manhattan College.

[email protected]