Based on the chapter "In Which, for the First Time, Messrs. Debienne and Poligny Secretly Tell the New Directors of the Opera, Messrs. Armand Moncharmin and Firmin Richard, the True and Mysterious Reason for Their Departure from the National Academy of Music" or "The Mysterious Reason."
The scene changes to the manager's office, where we see Poligny and Debienne signing the final contracts with the new managers, Richard and Moncharmin. As the deal comes to close, Poligny and Debienne explain one last little detail to their successors.
THE OPERA HOUSE IS HAUNTED BY A GHOST: (To the tune of "Everybody Wants to be a Cat" from The Aristocats)
Debienne and Poligy:
The Opera house is haunted by a ghost,
And if you mess with this ghost,
You're gonna be toast.
In all the important matters he's got the final say,
And you'd better not try to get in his way.
And you see every month
We've got to pay him a bunch,
20 K, in fact;
And tho' it's bad for the biz,
Box 5 is all his.
It's in his contract.
Now, you might get the urge to disobey,
But our ghost's the kind of ghost
Who gets his own way.
If you wanna live,
You gotta give
And play the host,
Because the Opera's haunted by a ghost!
He walks through the walls,
And he stalks down the halls,
From here to there and back.
Those who didn't do what he said,
Well, they've all turned up dead,
And that's the end of that!
Oh, the Opera House is haunted by a ghost,
And if you mess with this ghost,
You're gonna be toast.
Tho' we sound mad, you've not been had; it ain't a hoax!
You better watch out for the Opera Ghost!
You better watch out for the Opera Ghost!