August 28th, 2024

written by Jim Marushin, Curator at Martin County Historical Society

Memories in the Spotlight: Reflecting on the Fairmont Opera House 

Earlier this summer my wife, daughter, and I attended Fairmont Area Community Theater’s wonderful rendition of Mary Poppins. We weren’t at the play’s usual venue, the Fairmont Opera House, but at the Fairmont High School’s Performing Arts Center due to the Opera House’s ongoing repair work. During and after the play – which was fantastic, by the way, kudos to all involved – I was reflecting on the future of the Opera House and my memories of the place, some of which I’d like to share.

One of my earlier memories of the Fairmont Opera House in the mid-to-late 90s was our grade going to watch the well-known acapella group Tonic Sol-fa and experiencing their musical talents. This was well before the days of the movie Pitch Perfect and the acapella craze hadn’t quite swept the nation, so many of us were in awe. They came back several times and performed often at the Opera House, doing events such as Holiday concerts.

Another early memory from those childhood days was getting to tour the place with then-director Michael Burgraff. Getting to see the backstage areas where the actors and musicians practiced and prepared was so much fun. Another interesting part was learning all about the different aspects that go into putting on any kind of show and how many people are necessary for them to be successful. My favorite part though was when Mr. Burgraff showed us the fake blood that was used for one of the performances!

In my adolescent years, I recall going to the Opera House to watch classic movies with my friends. The particular ones I remember seeing were Casablanca and Psycho. These iconic films weren’t likely the ones I’d pull off the shelves at Premiere Video or Mr. Movies, so it was great that the Opera House was offering these types of shows to the public at that time.

Another vivid high school-era memory was attending a punk rock concert there. It was great being able to dance, jump, and mosh pit – hopefully our rowdiness that night wasn’t a cause for these much-needed 2024 repairs. I remember one of the bands, Ever So Randy, featuring some of the upperclassmen  from the High School at that time and it was cool to see them up on stage. I still have the CD I bought that night somewhere in my basement! The headlining band, named Cellophane, was memorable as well due to their retrofitting of a rotary phone receiver to be used as a microphone.

In more recent years, the Opera House has become a wonderful place to make new memories with my wife and daughter. We’ve been there to see a wonderful Pete the Cat musical put on by a skilled theatre troupe, saw the Community Theatre do Shrek the Musical, watched the new (at that time) Clifford the Big Red Dog movie during the later stages of the Pandemic era, did Trick-or-Treating and Meet Santa events, and even were able to see a full-blown live action Ballet performance by the Mankato Ballet Company. I can’t predict the future but I am sure my daughter has made some core memories based on these experiences.

These are merely my personal memories but there is also a significant amount of history contained in the walls of Martin County’s beloved Opera House. We at the Historical Society are wishing the best for the noble campaign to save and restore it.