Written by theater director Brian Leahy Doyleand profusely illustrated by photographer Mark Fay, Encore is a reminder of a time when an opulent performing artscenter was considered a greater community asset than a sports arena. By far,the Pabst was the most elaborate opera house ever built in Wisconsin, befitting its location in a cityonce called the “German Athens.” The architect, Otto Strack, had previouslydesigned the Pabst Brewery and drew from the Teutonic-Italian Renaissance stylethat signified monumentality in German-speaking Europeduring the 19th century. No expense was spared to clad the foyer ingold Sienamarble and light the auditorium with a two-ton Austrian crystal chandelier.Fortunately, the Pabst escaped the officially sanctioned vandalism of the1960s, when many landmarks were lost to “urban renewal” and “progress.”
Wisconsin’ssecond best known theater of its kind, Oshkosh’sGrand Opera House (1883), has also been lovingly restored. It was the dream ofthe city’s prosperous lumber barons and the design of architect William Waters,who favored an eclectic Victorian blend of Baroque, Gothic and Classical. TheGrand Opera became the setting for many traveling theater productions (not allof them opera) that came to town by train.
More modest structures appeared in smallertowns, like the Copeland Opera House in Shullsburg, which owed its existence tothe mineral wealth of nearby zinc mines. Such smaller venues seldom if ever sawgrand opera, but hosted a variety of popular entertainment and lectures andserved as a focus of civic pride.
