'Nine Lives'

A staging of a musical adaptation of the 2009 book Nine Lives: Mystery, Magic, Death and Life in New Orleans by Dan Baum took place in Dixon Hall on the Tulane uptown campus Tuesday (Sept. 11) night. The story follows the lives of nine New Orleanians over 40 years — a period bookended by hurricanes Betsy and Katrina. Baum's bestseller was chosen as this year's Tulane Reading Project for first-year students.

Star of stage and screen Bryan Batt portrays king of Carnival Billy Grace, one of nine characters who together comprise the complex cultural and social milieu of New Orleans. Batt, a Tulane alumnus, is perhaps best known for his role as Salvatore Romano on AMC's "Mad Men."

New Orleans musician and songwriter Paul Sanchez (pictured performing on Tuesday night) and Colman deKay cowrote the musical adaptation of Dan Baum's book. The album Nine Lives: A Musical Story of New Orleans was released last year.