The Puritans Might Have Been Horrified, but Seattle’s New Opera House is Open
A new cultural landmark opens on Commercial Street, sparking a debate on whether theater remains a 'penal offense' or a sign of progress.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Seattle's Opera House is finished and now ready to be delivered to the proprietor. Mr. Bigelow, the contractor and builder, deserves great credit for the skill, care and attention he has devoted to the work. The building has a front of 90 feet on Commercial street, 80 feet deep and three stories high. On either side of the front entrance there are two rooms 80 by 210 feet handsomely finished for stores. The second story front is divided into suites of rooms for offices, and in the third story, in front of the theatre, is a fine large hall, suitable for lodge or lecture room. The theatre is both tasty and comfortable. It is 60 feet long, 48 feet wide and 26 feet high. The stage is nice and roomy, being 48 by 25 feet, giving plenty of room for any piece that might be produced. The comfort and convenience of the performers has also been considered in the erection of two nice dressing rooms for their accommodation. The seating capacity is about 584. Everything about the building exhibits rare taste in design. The ladies of the Congregational Church will open the new Opera House this Monday evening with popular music and tableaus. In this connection, we cannot help the reflection of the New England matron on hearing that Caleb Cushing had escorted Fanny Ellsler to the theater in Washington: 'Oh, Caleb! what would your mother say at your trapesing round with a play-acting gal?' What would the Puritan Fathers say at their lineal descendants dedicating a theatre with a public exhibition for the benefit of their society, and calling their meeting-house a church? Our own view of the matter is, that modern Congregationalists manifest much more common sense if they have less piety than their Puritan progenitors. The world moves.
“Our own view of the matter is, that the modern Congregationalists manifest much more common sense if they have less piety than their Puritan progenitors. The world moves.”
Just as the 1879 opening of the Opera House signaled Seattle's transition from a frontier town to an urban center with 'tasty and comfortable' cultural spaces, the city continues to navigate the tension between preserving its historical identity and its relentless drive for development. Today, the debate over how to define 'community' space—whether for the arts or the elite—remains as central to our city's politics as it was when the Congregationalists first held a performance in a secular theater.
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