“I felt a majestic sense of space, accented by the vaulted arches of the ceiling. They seemed to draw my soul upward, a sense of height that evoked a feeling of a giant hand reaching down to pick me up.”— R.C. Sproul, The Holiness of God

Such is the feeling inside the Marigny Opera House, also known as the Church of the Arts, where the classic silent film “The Passion of Joan of Arc” screened. Invited by Art Span NOLA, W8ING4UFOS accompanied the film with a live score.

Originally a Catholic parish church known as Holy Trinity Catholic Church, the building was deconsecrated by the Archdiocese of New Orleans in 1997. Later, Hurricane Katrina severely damaged the structure, leaving it abandoned until it was purchased and lovingly renovated in 2011.

The space still nurtures a transcendent experience. Crossing the threshold, gauzy light spills from tall, frosted windows. Footfall pleasantly resonates off the polished tiles. And as in Sproul’s quote, one feels the palpable presence of space, as if space were a conductor in a resplendent symphony, directing our awareness to something much more profound.

It’s a perfect venue to screen “The Passion of Joan of Arc.” The 1928 silent film, directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer, is based on the original 15th-century interrogation transcripts chronicling Joan’s trial and execution.

Through expressionistic lighting (a noir staple in later years), striking framing, and unflinching close-ups, Dreyer delivers us into Joan’s final days as a 19-year-old martyr.

The tale unfolds through faces. The expressive Renée Falconetti embodies Joan’s purity and resolve, as well as her pain, fear, and ecstatic release. The twisted countenances of the jurists signal corruption and death, calling to mind the wicked masks in “Eyes Wide Shut.”

The picture is an intimate exploration of not what is said, but rather what is felt.

Live music has traditionally accompanied the film, but there is no evidence that Dreyer chose a definitive score for it.

The band that eventually became W8ING4UFOS first performed a live score for “The Passion of Joan of Arc” in 2009. Unnamed at the time, the group was made up of remnants from Atlanta bands Smoke and Hubcab City. From this performance, Smoke That City emerged, and from there, W8ING4UFOS was born.

On their own, W8ING4UFOS is a cinematic experience, a surreal carnival of characters comprised of the legendary Bill Taft, Brian Halloran, and Will Fratesi, along with Billy Fields, Aileen Loy, Katie Butler, and Sean Dunn.

Simple song structures and potent lyricism provide the backbone for the eerie orchestration. Bill’s lone trumpet calls the invocation. Katie’s viola warms Brian’s melancholy cello. Aileen sits cross-legged on the floor, her vocals a guttural throat singing — an ancient technique used to lure wild animals and summon shamanic spirits and Buddhist gods.

But that’s not all. With Will’s thoughtful drumming (he chains a tambourine to his foot), Billy’s genius keyboard playing, and Sean’s sparse yet brilliant guitar work, the entire troupe casts a powerful spell.

The band performed on the side stage, and my concentration drifted from the screen, to the beautiful surroundings, to the music. For a moment, I felt frustrated. As a film lover, I believed I should focus on the screen, but I surrendered to the entirety of the experience and allowed my attention to swerve, even closing my eyes and feeling the music charge the air.

The film ended, and something had changed. The audience’s quiet reserve transformed into a burst of gaiety. Together, we had witnessed something unique, something extraordinary.

It was less of a show and more of a ceremony.