Grand Opera House (Macon, Georgia)
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Grand Opera House | |
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| Location | 651 Mulberry St., Macon, Georgia United States |
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| Coordinates | 32°50′20″N 83°37′42″W / 32.83884°N 83.62821°W |
| Built | 1884 |
| Architect | Alexander Blair; W.R. Gunn |
| Architectural style | Gothic |
| NRHP reference No. | 70000196[1][2] |
| Added to NRHP | June 22, 1970 |
The Grand Opera House, often called The Grand and originally known as the Academy of Music, is a historic opera house located in Macon, Georgia, United States. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1970, it is now the performing arts center of Mercer University.[3]
The Academy of Music was constructed in 1884 with the largest stage in the southeastern United States and seating for 2,418, almost one-fifth of Macon's population at the time.[4] The building was renovated in 1905; the present seven-story facade was added and the building reopened as the Grand Opera House.[4]
The Grand has had numerous historic uses; live horses and chariots appeared in a 1908 production of Ben-Hur and during World War I, actor Charlie Chaplin led the John Philip Sousa band for a fundraising effort. The theater has also hosted, among others, Sarah Bernhardt, Will Rogers, George Burns and Gracie Allen, Lionel Barrymore, Ethel Barrymore, Bob Hope, the Allman Brothers Band, and Ray Charles. The Allman Brothers Band, Wet Willie and The Marshall Tucker Band appeared at The Grand on an October 1973 episode of Don Kirshner's Rock Concert entitled "Saturday Night In Macon."[5]
Magician Harry Houdini was also a featured player at the Grand, leaving a well-known legacy: the stage sports a number of trap doors, one of which remains operational and is used occasionally today in performances such as annual production of The Nutcracker ballet. Local lore claims that the trap doors were installed specifically for Houdini.
In 1936, as the popularity of vaudeville waned, the Grand changed to a movie theater, hosting Macon's only Hollywood premiere, 1945's God is My Co-Pilot.
