Fife Opera House facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Fife Opera House
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Front and side of the opera house
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 Location in Illinois
Location in the United States
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| Location | 123-125 S. Main St., Palestine, Illinois |
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| Area | Less than 1 acre (0.40 ha) |
| Architectural style | Late 19th And Early 20th Century American Movements, Commercial Style |
| NRHP reference No. | 89002348 |
| Added to NRHP | January 26, 1990 |
The Fife Opera House is a historic theater located in Palestine, Illinois. This special building is found in Crawford County. It was officially added to the National Register of Historic Places on January 26, 1990. This means it is recognized as an important place in history.
History of the Opera House
Building a Dream
The construction of the David Fife Opera House began in 1898. It took a few years to complete, finally opening its doors in 1901. David Fife, the owner, also ran a hardware store on the ground floor of the building.
Inside the Theater
When it was finished, the opera house was quite large. It measured about 55 feet (16.7 meters) wide and 70 feet (21.3 meters) long. The theater could hold hundreds of people. The floor of the seating area was "raked," meaning it sloped upwards from the stage. This design helped everyone in the audience see the performance better. The seats themselves were comfortable, covered in red leather.
To keep audiences comfortable, the building had electric fans for cooling in the summer. In colder weather, a coal furnace provided warmth. The ceiling had two special light fixtures. These fixtures had mirrored collars that made the bright light bulbs shine even more. The stage was at the west end of the building. It had a wide opening, about 25 feet (7.6 meters) long and 15 feet (4.5 meters) high. The stage was lit by 25 lights.
Art and Special Features
A unique feature of the opera house was its hand-painted fire curtain. This large canvas curtain was painted by artists from Sosman and Landes, a company from Chicago. The curtain showed a beautiful scene of a canal in Venice. Around the stage, there were side and top panels. These panels were painted to look like draperies surrounding a river lined with trees.
More recently, other hidden painted scenes have been found inside the building. These include pictures of gardens, waterfalls, and a scene from the early 1900s. Interestingly, David Fife's mother once asked for one of the building's five interior art panels to be painted over. This panel featured cherubs, and she wanted their nakedness covered.
It is said that on the opera house's opening night, when David Fife turned on all the lights, the lights across the entire town of Palestine dimmed! This shows how much power the opera house lights used back then.
