The Calumet Theatre is a historic theatre located at 340 Sixth Street in the town of Calumet, Michigan. It is also known as the Calumet Opera House or the Calumet Civic Auditorium. It is integral to, but a separate unit of, the Calumet municipal building. The structure was designated a

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

State Historic Site in 1971 and added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 1971. It is one of the 21

Heritage Sites A national heritage site is a heritage site having a value that has been registered by a governmental agency as being of national importance to the cultural heritage or history of that country. Usually such sites are listed in a heritage regist ...

which partners with the

Keweenaw National Historical Park Keweenaw National Historical Park is a unit of the U.S. National Park Service. Established in 1992, the park celebrates the life and history of the Keweenaw Peninsula in the Upper Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. As of 2009, it is a pa ...

. The theatre was the original home o
The Red Jacket Jamboree
an old-time radio variety show.

History

The village of Calumet was a prosperous community at the close of the nineteenth century, primarily due to the rich vein of

copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...

mined by the Calumet and Hecla Mining Company, located just south and east of the village. In 1898, the community decided that an

opera house An opera house is a theatre building used for performances of opera. It usually includes a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, and backstage facilities for costumes and building sets. While some venues are constructed specifically fo ...

was required to serve the people of Calumet.Theatre History
from the Calumet Theatre. Local architect Charles K. Shand was chosen to design the building, and

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

interior designer William Eckert developed a crimson, gold, and ivory color scheme for the interior.Calumet Theatre
from the state of Michigan The theatre opened on March 20, 1900, with the operetta ''The Highwayman'', by

Reginald De Koven Henry Louis Reginald De Koven (April 3, 1859January 16, 1920) was an American music critic and prolific composer, particularly of comic operas. Biography De Koven was born in Middletown, Connecticut, and moved to Europe in 1870, where he receive ...

and Harry B. Smith, on tour from

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

. The theatre was one of the first municipal theatres in the country. It soon attracted attention from America's finest actors, actresses, and other theatre greats, such as

Frank Morgan Francis Phillip Wuppermann (June 1, 1890 – September 18, 1949), known professionally as Frank Morgan, was an American character actor. He was best known for his appearances in films starting in the silent era in 1916, and then numerous sound ...

(later famous for his roles in ''The Wizard of Oz''),

Douglas Fairbanks, Sr. Douglas Elton Fairbanks Sr. (born Douglas Elton Thomas Ullman; May 23, 1883 – December 12, 1939) was an American actor, screenwriter, director, and producer. He was best known for his swashbuckler film, swashbuckling roles in silent films in ...

Lon Chaney, Sr. Leonidas Frank "Lon" Chaney (April 1, 1883 – August 26, 1930) was an American actor. He is regarded as one of the most versatile and powerful actors of cinema, renowned for his characterizations of tortured, often grotesque and affli ...

John Philip Sousa John Philip Sousa ( ; November 6, 1854 – March 6, 1932) was an American composer and conductor of the late Romantic era known primarily for American military marches. He is known as "The March King" or the "American March King", to dis ...

, Sarah Bernhardt, and Madame Helena Modjeska among others. As time wore on, the theatre began to lose popularity, due mostly to the decline of the local economy and the increasing popularity of movies. In the late 1920s, the theatre was converted to a motion-picture house, serving in this medium until the 1950s. Summer stock theatre was brought back to the Calumet Theater in 1958, and performed there every summer until 1968, and returned in 1972. In 1975, the auditorium was restored for the

centennial {{other uses, Centennial (disambiguation), Centenary (disambiguation) A centennial, or centenary in British English, is a 100th anniversary or otherwise relates to a century, a period of 100 years. Notable events Notable centennial events at ...

of Calumet. In 1988-89, the exterior of the theatre was restored. In 1983, the Calumet Theatre Company was incorporated as a

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

.About Us
from the Calumet Theatre In 2013, the theater began working on adding an elevator to improve accessibility for the second floor and balcony. The elevator was installed in 2018. Three staff members as well as volunteers help to operate the Theatre. Today, the Calumet Theatre is home to as many as 60 theatre-related events a year, with an estimated 18,000 people attending.

Description

The Calumet Theatre is a two-story

Renaissance revival Renaissance Revival architecture (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Renaissance") is a group of 19th century architectural revival styles which were neither Greek Revival nor Gothic Revival but which instead drew inspiration from a wide range o ...

structure constructed from yellowish-brown brick. The building sits on a

Jacobsville sandstone Jacobsville Sandstone is a red sandstone formation, marked with light-colored streaks and spots, primarily found in northern Upper Michigan, portions of Ontario, and under much of Lake Superior. Desired for its durability and aesthetics, the san ...

foundation, and has a copper roof with copper cornices. A porte-cochere covers one entrance, and a clock tower originally rising to include a bell) stands nearby. An illuminated marquee is at the Sixth Street entrance. The theatre itself originally held 1200 seats. With the closure of the 2nd balcony, and addition of the movie projection booth on the 1st balcony, the Theatre now holds 700 seats and features 5 fantastic murals on the proscenium arch.

Ghost stories

Some of the visitors to the Calumet Theatre hope to catch a glimpse of the reputed ghost of the theatre, Madame Helena Modjeska. The story of the ghost first emerged in 1958, when actress Adysse Lane claimed that the ghost of Madame Modjeska appeared to her during a performance when Lane had forgotten her lines. Since then, unexplainable happenings have occurred. Many people have heard music and felt cold air from nowhere. The Calumet Theatre was featured as a haunted location on the paranormal TV series ''

Most Terrifying Places Most or Möst or ''variation'', may refer to: Places * Most, Kardzhali Province, a village in Bulgaria * Most (city), a city in the Czech Republic ** Most District, a district surrounding the city ** Most Basin, a lowland named after the city ** ...

'' which aired on the

Travel Channel Travel Channel (stylized as Trvl Channel since 2018) is an American pay television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, which had previously owned the channel from 1997 to 2007. The channel is headquartered in New York, New York, United S ...

in 2019. The segment showed how the town and the theater are connected to the Italian Hall massacre that killed 73 people on Christmas Eve at the nearby Italian Society Hall in 1913.

References

External links

Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Calumet Theatre, The Theatres in Michigan Buildings and structures in Houghton County, Michigan Theatres on the National Register of Historic Places in Michigan Michigan State Historic Sites in Houghton County Tourist attractions in Houghton County, Michigan Theatres completed in 1900 Event venues established in 1900 Renaissance Revival architecture in Michigan National Register of Historic Places in Keweenaw National Historical Park National Register of Historic Places in Houghton County, Michigan Individually listed contributing properties to historic districts on the National Register in Michigan