THE GRAND

Want to enjoy a blend of 19th century theatrical splendor with 21st century entertainment? Attend a performance or two at Galveston Island’s Grand Opera House. This fully-restored, one thousand seat opera house features a seventy-foot stage, two curving balconies, and twelve elegant boxes inside one of Galveston’s premier landmark buildings. Designed by New Orleans architect Frank Cox and constructed in 1894, the opera house joined commercial storefronts, a café, and the Grand Hotel in a four story structure composed to reflect a regional version of the popular Romanesque Revival style of the period. The main entrance, along the west end of the building, features a broad stone carved archway in Cox’s nod to the great architect of the period Louis Sullivan. The building has survived all of the hurricanes and tropical storms that have battered Galveston’s waterfront since its opening in 1895, including the devastating storm of 1900. Initially built for a little over sixty-seven thousand dollars, the Grand has seen additional funds spent on its restoration almost one hundred years later in excess of eight million dollars, a fair complement to the million dollar entertainment lineup that takes the stage each season. Once host to vaudeville and silent movies, then talking Hollywood fare, the Grand’s stage now presents performances familiar to audiences across the country featuring comedians, musical groups, and dramatic performers.