The Tabor Opera House in Leadville, Colorado, has three distinct scenery collections. Scenic artists who delivered scenery to the venue include, Henry E. Burcky (1879), T. Frank Cox (1888), the Kansas City Scenic Co. (1902) and Sosman & Landis Scene Painting Studio of Chicago (1902). In 1901, the Elks purchased the Tabor Opera House that was built in 1879, remodeling the stage house and adding a fly loft. The original wing-and-shutter scenery was carefully tucked away in the attic, and new scenery purchased from Fred R. Megan, representing the Kansas City Scenic Co. By the way, Megan and Thomas G. Moses would later partner to establish Moses & Megan while they waited to purchase the Sosman & Landis name after the company closed in 1923. In regard to the Tabor Opera House, Kansas City Scenic Co. subcontracted some of their 1902 project to Sosman & Landis Studio.
Two months ago, I catalogued all of the scenery stored on the Tabor Opera House stage and have just finished creating conditions reports, replacement appraisals and a collections care management document for 105 pieces. I am heading back this fall to do the same for the scenery in the attic.
While I was in the midst of creating the documents for the scenery on stage, Kenneth Kurtz contacted me about a tray in his slide collection. Years back he visited the Tabor Opera house with his wife and photographed some of the scenery, especially a few shutters stored in the attic. I also photographed some of the scenery in the attic on my 49th birthday in 2018, and knew what treasures were tucked away up there. In a very generous move, Kurtz send his slides to me this month and I was able to photograph a few projections that I have included with this post. I still have to digitize the photos, but they have been incredibly helpful for me.
The Tabor Opera House scenery collection is remarkable because it shows the shift of scenic art over time, as well as major players in the North American theatrical manufacturing scene. It is a treasure trove of scenic art examples. The collection also depicts a shift in stage hardware from 1879 to 1888 (the flat sheaves used on wings to slide onstage). It also depicts the shift in wing, shutter and roll drop scenery to and fly scenery and realistic interior settings. This is a wonderful theater that should be preserved for future generations. To learn more about visit https://www.taboroperahouse.net/
Please consider donating to the preservation of this remarkable theatre collection. Here is the link to the Tabor Opera House Preservation Foundation: https://www.taboroperahouse.net/donate
This is great. So if I go Dayton, Ohio this weekend and want to drive by the old theatre with all mentioned in previous article…where would I start. Is there a registry of old theatres or would I have to go through local archives?
Look toward the League of Historic American Theatres as a start. They have a list of member theaters.