Mae Mai

New Albany Opera House

Yeah, you read the title correctly. While doing some local historical research I came across Ted Fulmore’s Our History in New Albany blog again (I hadn’t thought of it in some time) and immediately remembered his posts about New Albany’s Opera House (see here and here).

In the first link listed above, Ted posts some info about the interior of the Opera House from the New Albany Ledger (November 23, 1866):

The hall is on the second floor and is reached by a broad flight of steps of easy ascent. At the foot of the stairs on the north side is the ticket office, a neat and nicely organized room. Immediately at the head of the stairs is the entrance to the dress circle and parquette: while a flight of broad stairs on the right and left lead respectively to the family circle and gallery.

The dress circle and parquette are most elegantly and elaborately finished. They are supplied with spring cushion seats, covered in red damask, with green damask and stuffed backs. The seats in the dress circle are of the same kind of material. The parquette or orchestra boxes are separated from the dress circle by a beautiful iron railing in semi-circle form. The brackets that ornament the gas burners form a really magnificent ornament to the front and sides of the circle. A larger number of brackets add to the elegance of other parts of the house. The house was lighted by 150 gas burners.

I would love to find some of the old programs from productions at the New Albany Opera House–but what I would love more is to archive all the productions that took place at there.