Cue the marching band: How the L.A. Phil will bring a little mayhem onstage for Bernstein’s ‘Mass’

For two words to describe Leonard Bernstein’s “Mass� as a work of musical theater, try “ambitious� and “sprawling.�

Composed in 1971, shortly after Bernstein left an 11-year stint as music director for the New York Philharmonic, his “piece for singers, players and dancers� is about a priest officiating a religious service, surrounded by choir singers and a “street chorus� of hippies as they all struggle with faith in the tumultuous era of the Vietnam War.

The Los Angeles Philharmonic will present four performances of “Mass� in Walt Disney Concert Hall beginning Thursday and calling upon a host of, yes, singers, players and dancers. The director is Elkhanah Pulitzer, who directed the L.A. Phil’s production of the John Adams opera “Nixon in China� last year.

Bernstein, a strong proponent of eclecticism, mingled avant-garde classical, rock, blues and, of course, his own Broadway-friendly style within the score. He also wrote most of the lyrics. To tackle this musical sprawl, “Mass� features an orchestra, multiple choirs and a marching band — and an excuse for us to look at the production, by the numbers:

Minutes of music: 100

Set pieces: 6

UCLA Wind Ensemble players: 29

L.A. Master Chorale singers: 64

L.A. Children’s Chorus performers: 36

Other human voices: 22

Total number of instruments: 100-plus

Dancers: 7

Props: 158

Total number of people on stage: 242

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‘Mass’

Where: Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 S. Grand Ave., L.A.

When: 8 p.m. Thursday-Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday

Tickets: $72-$225

Information: (323) 850-2000, www.laphil.com