Above are pictures taken last week at the Grand Opera House in Meridian, which we got to go in and see even though it is still under renovation. The Opera House is actually on the second floor of the Marks-Rothenberg building (which was a department store in the late 19th and early 20th century), and to get to the opera house, you had to walk through the store. The store built the opera house, so this was a “marketing opportunity”. 🙂
In the picture above, you can see the stage, the fire curtain, and some of the boxes.
The Opera House was leased to Saenger Theatres in 1923 and closed by Saenger in 1928 when they built “The Temple” theater. Really, although some renovation efforts have been made over the years, the theater was mostly just as it was in 1928 with the added decay of 75 years or so.
Mississippi State is heading up the project with plans to renovate the entire M-R building (and other buildings on that block) for multi-use, including a MSU campus, a Meridian Community College campus, a conference center, space for other exhibits/museums, a parking garage, and performances at the restored Grand Opera House.
I can’t wait to go once it is reopened in March of 2006! Yay!