Once upon a Time at the Opera House: Drama at Three Historic Michigan Theaters, 1882-1928

The importance of opera houses to the cultural and community life in nonmetropolitan areas of the country from the last quarter of the nineteenth century to the advent of motion pictures in the 1920s has seldom been documented. As both the civic and arts center for the community, the local opera house was a venue for community meetings, political rallies, concerts, lectures, and theatrical entertainment. The stories the reader will encounter here—related with a healthy dose of humor—are bas...