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by Joan Upton
Hall
From:
GRAND OLD TEXAS THEATERS That Won't Quit
by Joan Upton Hall and Stacey Hasbrook
Publisher: Republic of Texas Press, 2002
"Along
with the whole Granbury Square, the Opera House is listed in the National
Register of Historic Places and is a charter member of the League
of Historic American Theatres." |
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I
had heard the Granbury Opera House was “good,” and when I first attended
it in 1998, I was hooked. Inside, period chandeliers and wall sconces
light the auditorium. Exposed stone walls, original doors, molding,
white-painted balcony rails, and authentic needlepoint seats evoke
the 1886 atmosphere of the theatre’s birth.
Charming, yes, but the smallness (only 303 seats) gave me pause. Could
the cast pull off such an ambitious undertaking as Lerner & Loewe’s
My Fair Lady? How could the stage possibly accommodate the sweeping
scenes of squalor in the streets and opulence at the embassy ball?
I was in for a surprise. Beautiful costuming, clever use of sets,
choreography, superb talent, and the overall skillful direction of
Managing Director Marty Van Kleek pulled it off admirably.
Along with the whole Granbury Square, the Opera House is listed in
the National Register of Historic Places and is a charter member of
the League of Historic American Theatres.
Carpetbaggers coming in after the Civil War made a law that a county
seat had to sell liquor, and before long, Granbury
had six saloons and seven bawdy houses. The same year the theatre
opened as the Kerr Opera House on the second floor of the building
it occupies today. It began as a stage for touring groups.
It is rumored that prevailing history errs about John Wilkes Booth
being chased down and shot to death after assassinating President
Lincoln. Evidence suggests he may have come to Granbury
as John St. Helen, and if so, he performed Shakespeare in the Opera
House. Various people working at the Opera House swear there is a
resident ghost, and Ms. Van Kleek said, “You can hear footsteps pacing
in the balcony. Those who have seen him say he wears a white shirt,
dark pants, and tall, heavy boots.”
Can it be…? |
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Granbury
Opera House
1905 photo courtesy of Granbury Opera House |
A 1900s vintage photo shows the Opera House sharing the building with
a saloon and, as the website says, “performed many forms of entertainment.”
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page
Published
with Permission from GRAND
OLD TEXAS THEATERS
by Joan Upton Hall and Stacey Hasbrook
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