The Opera Populaire I thought as I stood in front of the opera house.

At that time it wasn't as grand as it's now known, the façade was plain and the doors were old. Still, I could feel the magic in it.

"I know it's not much" an elderly gentleman claimed as he stood beside me, this was Monsieur Armand, current owner of the house and the man I was about to replace. "But I promise you this opera house is unlike any other"

As a longtime patron of said opera house, I knew that already. Yet, there was something more reassuring when it came from him.

"Monsieur Armand, good morning" I said confidently. "Good morning, you must be Monsieur Lefevre, with whom I'm about to entrust the opera house". Monsieur Armand's voice was calm and respectful; you simply had to agree with anything he said.

"Come with me, I'll show you around" he said as he held the door open.

"The foyer, a lovely place to hold a ball or two" he said, I was immediately drawn to the grand staircase in the middle of the room "We were just about to begin restoration on that. Believe it or not, but the staircase was the only part of the opera house to never be changed in the last 10 years"

He then showed me the stables, "We make sure the horses are well-fed and are handled delicately", the roof, "If you look to your left, you'll notice the new Pegasus statue we've installed just last week" and the manager's office.

"This opera house is your kingdom, and the office is your palace. I've made sure to have all the information you might need on your desk, feel free to redecorate a bit if you find it not to your liking". There wasn't much I'd change in the next years in that office, except for the drapes as time was showing on them.

Finally, Armand took me to see the auditorium, the place where the magic truly happens.

"Forgive me, it seems as though the company is rehearsing at the moment for tonight's performance". Armand turned to the gentleman standing at the piano at the side of the stage "Monsieur Reyer, may I have a few minutes of the company's time?"

"Of course, Monsieur Armand"

Monsieur Reyer was the opera's musical director and conductor; he was around my age and very dedicated to his profession. Still, you couldn't say no to Monsieur Armand.

Armand took to the stage, with me following behind, as Reyer was gathering the performers around. "As you may know, I shall be resigning my position today" Armand began, "And it is my pleasure to introduce Monsieur Gilbert Lefevre, the new owner and manager of the 'Opera Populaire'." The people applauded politely as I spoke. "Ever since the opera house opened, I would come in to watch a show. I'm proud to call myself an opera enthusiast and hope that under my management the opera house will maintain its high level of professionalism and hopefully even surpass it."

"Thank you Monsieur Lefevre for your kind words, I wish you and everyone the best, so long" and with that, Monsieur Armand has left the opera house.

At that moment, my life changed for better or worse.

Monsieur Armand passed a few months later due to health problems, which were also the reason for his retirement.

Me? I was about to discover that the opera had a lot more in store…