Opera Houses of Iowa
Opera Houses of Iowa
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In case you don't know us, Richard Poole is Emeritus Professor of Theatre at Briar Cliff University in Sioux City, Iowa, while I (George Glenn) am Emeritus Professor of Theatre History at the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls, Iowa. We met through our membership in the Mid-America Theatre Conference (MATC) back in the 1970s and collaborated on preparing the "Iowa" chapter in MATC's 1988 monograph, ​Opera Houses of the Midwest.​ We did a pretty good job on that which inspired us to expand that chapter into our book, The Opera Houses of Iowa (Ames, IA: Iowa State University Press, 1993).
NOW
The Opera Houses of Iowa (2019)

Revised, updated, and expanded!

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Richard L, Poole
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George D. Glenn
 The first three chapters include a definition of the term "opera house," descriptions of opera house architectural styles, including single-story and upper-story houses as well as stage-oriented houses; descriptions of opera house scenery and machinery followed by a discussion of the many social functions the opera houses fulfilled in the period between 1860 and 1920. The final 162 pages consist of a descriptive and illustrated catalog of all the identified opera houses in Iowa, both extant (structure still standing as of 2019) and non-extant.

Although the examples cited are specific to Iowa it should be emphasized that what was true of the theatre in Iowa between 1860 and 1920 was also representative of the  theatre in the country as a whole.



Want a little more? OK -- Here's the table of contents.
Preface 
Acknowledgments                                              
 
Introduction.                                                                      
                Act I                                                                      
                Act II                                                                     
 
Chapter 1. Opera Houses in Iowa                
 
                Origin of the “Opera House” Euphemism 
                Opera House Categorization                        
                Single-Story Opera Houses                            
                Upper-Story Opera Houses                            
                Stage-Oriented Upper Story Opera Houses               
                “Grand” Opera Houses                                   
 
Chapter 2. Opera House Scenery and Machinery   
 
                Iowa-based Opera House Scenic Designers               
                                J. F. Briggs                                          
                                Louis Syberkrop                                
                                Jesse Cox                                              
                Standard Opera House Scenery    
                Front Room Settings                        
                Back Room Settings                          
                Timber Settings                                 
                Other Localized Settings                 
                Fancy Front Drops                          
                Advertising Front Drops                
                Lighting the Opera House             
 
Chapter 3. The Opera House as Social Space: Performers and Performances          
 
                Production Companies, Plays and Other Activities               
                Some Significant Iowa Troupes and Stars                                
                The Medicine Show           
                Musical Programs           
                Educational Programs    
                Miscellaneous Functions of the Opera House  
         

Chapter 4. A Descriptive Catalog of Iowa Opera Houses
 
               Introduction                                       
                Extant Opera Houses                     
                Non-Extant Opera Houses            
 
Appendix: Orphans.          
 
Glossary of Opera House Theatrical Terms, and Inflation Calculator           
 
References          
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