The Opera House is the grand ole lady of Main Street in Hayesville, Ohio.  She is sandwiched quietly as the second floor neighbor of the town's post office in the commercial block east of the village stop light.

She has been there since 1886 presenting stage acts, musicals, movies, graduation ceremonies and more than a few minstrel shows.

She may not be as glamorous as she once was but, she has hosted silent movies, then the ones that actually could talk.  She has outlived eight tracks, and dial telephones and carriages that were replaced with automobiles and their fancy new running boards.

And, she still is going strong.

In the top photo you can see the little valves that once controlled the gas that was burned to illuminate the entryway.  Today modern spiral bulbs reside in the antique fixtures.
 
Backstage in the smaller photo (top right) Dave Roepke tells Mark and Nancy Meinzer and Sue Brooks about the colorful, original stage sets hanging in the picture.  Six of them were painted in Chicago in 1886.  Four remain.

He also points out a gentle slope to the stage.  That was designed to help audience visibility since there was not room in the building to slope the seating floor.  That technique also gave rise to the theatrical phrases "Up Stage" and "Down Stage."
  
Dave still is going strong too.  He conducts the tours and sells the tickets and mans the concession stand and runs the projector.  Popcorn sells for a buck and bottled pop is 75 cents--quite a pleasant surprise if you are accustomed to the prices of those products in the modern cinema.

Tickets for this day's movie were 3 bucks a head.

A change of film reels results in a brief intermission which lasts as long as it takes for the last person to return from the restroom.

The opera house has struggled over the years as community awareness of her true value has waxed and waned.  After sitting idle for more than 30 years a group of 600 people from Ashland and surrounding counties formed a restoration committee in preparation for the 1976 bicentennial.

They raised more than $2000 for new wiring and interior decorating.  That same year the opera house became the first Ashland County building to be named to the National Register of Historic Places.

Restoration efforts slowed until 1994 when local folks launched another series of fund-raising efforts.  They replaced air conditioning, installed restrooms and, most recently in 2009, refurbished the wooden seating.

If you glance below the seats ahead of you, you will see a circular wire object.  They are the original holders for patron's hats.

Attendance ranges from what turned out to be our private screening of the movie "Contagion" to well over 100 folks at a recent musical event.

Here sits one of life's delightful bargains just a few miles and a phone call away.  Do yourself a favor.  
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Click here for a nice recent article on the Opera House by Courtney Albon of the Ashland Times-Gazette.
For a current schedule, call Dave at 567-203-3231.