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TIMELINE:

1889
Opera House built

1890
Inaugural performance

1934
First summer theatre in Chicago area

1947
Site of performances by Goodman School

1977
Restoration of House

1997
Built replica of original portico

2002
Expansion project

2003
West Wing Annex completed

Woodstock Opera House

The Woodstock Mozart Festival performs in the historic Woodstock Opera House located on the picturesque town square in Woodstock, Illinois, 90 minutes northwest of Chicago. Built in 1889 in the “Steamboat Gothic” style, it housed City Hall, the public library, the fire department and a second-floor auditorium that seats 412. The Opera House soon became McHenry County’s center for entertainment and hospitality with touring vaudeville, minstrel and dramatic companies.

When traveling circuits disappeared, the Opera House became the Chicago area’s first summer stock theatre and later evolved into a cultural center. Stage personalities have included Orson Welles, Paul Newman, Geraldine Page, Shelley Berman and Maya Angelou, to name a few.

Interior of Opera House The Woodstock Opera House underwent restoration in 1977 and again in 1997 when a replica portico was built to duplicate the original appearance of the front of the building. The latest Woodstock Opera House Annex Project expanded stage wing space and added storage, offices and kitchen facilities on the west side of the building.

National Register of Historic Places

Woodstock’s entire downtown business district, including one of the most beautiful historic squares in Illinois, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

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