Masquerade Ball - Cultural References

Cultural References

• The picturesque quality of the masquerade ball has made it a favorite topic or setting in literature. Edgar Allan Poe's short story "The Masque of the Red Death" is based at a masquerade ball in which a central figure turns out to be his costume. Another ball in Zürich is featured in the novel Steppenwolf by Hermann Hesse.

• Masquerades appear in several operas. The musical and movie The Phantom of the Opera has a scene at a masked ball.

• In the play Romeo and Juliet by Shakespeare, Romeo meets Juliet at a masquerade ball.