“Eureka Opera House, Eureka, Nevada” by Ken Lund is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0
Nicknamed “the friendliest town on the loneliest road,” Eureka is a small town with some very well known historic attractions, one of which is the Eureka Opera House. Eureka Opera House is an auditorium and convention center that opened in 1880 on Main Street. It hosted live entertainment shows, operas, concerts, masquerade balls, and community assemblies. Its official grand opening in January 1881 included the drama, “Forget Me Not.”
In 1915, it was renamed Eureka Theater as silent movies began to be shown there on a projection screen. Within a short period of time, films with sound also began playing at the theater, and it became a full-on movie house. Throughout the years that followed, Eureka Theater changed hands many times until it finally closed in 1958.
Eureka Theater/Opera House was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973, but the building remained in poor condition until Eureka County acquired it in 1990 and began working on a three-year, $2.5 million restoration project to bring it back to life. The building reopened in 1994 with its original purpose and original name, Eureka Opera House.
Eureka Opera House is a two-story brick building that stands over fifty feet high. The Grand Hall Auditorium can accommodate up to 300 people theater-style or 150 people seated at banquet tables. It includes a well-preserved chandelier and horseshoe balcony. The horseshoe balcony is only one of three horseshoe-shaped balconies in Nevada, and it can seat up to 64 people. Eureka Opera House also offers meeting rooms, which serve as the fine arts gallery.
Eureka Opera House is only one of two opera houses in Nevada that are currently in operation. The other is Piper’s Opera House in Virginia City.
Learn more about Eureka Opera House from Wally Cuchine, director of the Eureka Opera House:
“Eureka Opera House” by WondersoftheWest
If you are looking for a historic film-friendly opera house located in “the friendliest town on the loneliest road,” be sure to check out Eureka Opera House.
You can take a virtual tour of the Eureka Opera House at AllAroundNevada.com.
Bonus Video
Watch the video below to learn more about Eureka Opera House and other historic buildings in Eureka:
