In the early 1900s, when copper was king in the Keweenaw Peninsula, the Calumet Theatre was the center of culture for a population that numbered over 50,000. Gentlemen in cutaways and white gloves, with their fur and jewel adorned ladies, would rub shoulders in the foyer with rough handed miners in their Sunday best. They would gather in the majestic new theatre to see performances by such artistic luminaries as Sarah Bernhardt, Houdini, Lillian Russell, Caruso, Madame Helena Modjeska, James O’Neil, Leslie Carter and Douglas Fairbanks.

The great auditorium was a wonder to residents of the Copper District. Rich furnishings and gilt architectural ornaments framed the proscenium stage and its heavy velvet curtains. The main floor and balcony were allotted to the mine company elite and community businessmen. For those with the wallet and desire to see as well as be seen, four box seats were available. Comfortable rattan arm chairs were provided along with a private entrance through the city office building next door. Meanwile, the working class would file up to the benches in the second gallery.

The theatre was born from a unique irony of the times. In 1898, the village council of Calumet faced the problem of what to do with a surplus of money from the boom economy the area had enjoyed for many years. Most of the village needs were provided by the Calumet and Hecla Mining Company. Indeed, Calumet was far above the average standard of similar sized communities of the day.

One of the councilmen, familiar with Eastern lifestyles like many of the more influential members of the Calumet hierarchy, suggested that Calumet needed a proper opera house. After all, this wasn’t some rowdy mine town in the Klondike. Up to this time, troupes of traveling players would perform in the ballroom above the village hall. It was time for the Copper Range to show the rest of the country it was a truly civilized corner of the world.

The council agreed to the plan and a Detroit architectural firm was contracted to design a superb theatre no matter the cost. Work began that year and on March 20, 1900, the new Calumet Theatre was opened with Reginald deKoven’s Broadway play “The Highwayman.”

Unfortunately, when the fortunes of the copper mines began to decline in the 1920s, so did activity at the theatre. During the Great Depression, the theatre was kept alive as a movie house and community center. Then, throughout the 1960s and 70s, live performances were held during the summers by local and traveling theater groups from around the Midwest. After all, the old theatre was a grand venue for any performer enchanted by its romance and history. Even then, it was not unusual for performers to work the stage without a microphone because of the superb acoustics in the theatre. To this day, whispers on stage can be clearly heard by someone sitting in the back of the balcony.

From 1971 to 1974, the community of Calumet received grant money and donations to renovate the old theater. After years of neglect, the gold gilt was again shiny, the red carpeting was warm and beckoning and the heavy velvet curtains once more hung from the fly galleries 30 feet above the stage floor. Work on the facade was completed in a second restoration project several years ago. Once again, the theatre is alive with performances. Throughout the year, both local players and professional performers from all over the country are booked in the impressive theatre.

Whether taking an afternoon tour or waiting expectantly for the curtains to rise on show night, you might hear the faint echoes of the great voices from long ago who enthralled so many people in an age of elegance — an elegance that, but for places like the Calumet Theatre, would be lost to our post industrial age. Tourists are welcome to visit the theatre during weekday hours. Tours are available through the theatre staff by calling 906-337-2610. Also visit the theatre website for ticket information and upcoming performances, www.calumettheatre.com.