TABOR OPERA HOUSE, LEADVILLE, COLORADO: Nineteenth-century double-painted wing with practical opening.
This wing was discovered in the attic of the TaborOpera House; one of several wings that had been cut down and tacked to a wall in the attic.
Front side. A double-painted wing that was once nailed to an attic wall. Tabor Opera House, Leadville, Colorado.Back side. A double-painted wing that was once nailed to an attic wall. Tabor Opera House, Leadville, Colorado.
The original height of the wing was 16′-0″. During June 2018, I first visited the Tabor Opera House attic and uncovered some of the wings and shutters in a dusty pile.
Tabor Opera House attic, Leadville, Colorado, June 2018.Wings revealed behind the pile of dusty scene. Tabor Opera House attic, Leadville, Colorado, September 2020.
This was one of many pieces hidden under a vast pile of beautiful artwork. I returned to Leadville earlier this year (February 2020) to document the historic scenery contained on the stage of the Tabor Opera House. During a second trip to Leadville (Sept. 21-27, 2020) I led a group of local volunteers to document the attic scenery. The attic pieces received a preliminary cleaning before being lowered to the stage floor 40 feet below.
Double-painted wing after it was lowered to the stage floor.Double-painted wing after it was lowered to the stage floor.
This double painted wing is the only example that remains, depicting an exterior garden and rocky pass. For more information about the historic scenery collections at the Tabor Opera House, visit www.drypigment.net and keyword search “Tabor Opera House.”
Author: waszut_barrett@me.com
Wendy Rae Waszut-Barrett, PhD, is an author, artist, and historian, specializing in painted settings for opera houses, vaudeville theaters, social halls, cinemas, and other entertainment venues. For over thirty years, her passion has remained the preservation of theatrical heritage, restoration of historic backdrops, and the training of scenic artists in lost painting techniques. In addition to evaluating, restoring, and replicating historic scenes, Waszut-Barrett also writes about forgotten scenic art techniques and theatre manufacturers. Recent publications include the The Santa Fe Scottish Rite Temple: Freemasonry, Architecture and Theatre (Museum of New Mexico Press, 2018), as well as articles for Theatre Historical Society of America’s Marquee, InitiativeTheatre Museum Berlin’s Die Vierte Wand, and various Masonic publications such as Scottish Rite Journal, Heredom and Plumbline. Dr. Waszut-Barrett is the founder and president of Historic Stage Services, LLC, a company specializing in historic stages and how to make them work for today’s needs. Although her primary focus remains on the past, she continues to work as a contemporary scene designer for theatre and opera.
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