The historic Cheboygan Opera House, home of the city’s municipal offices as well, will soon be accessible to performers, audience members, and visitors of all ages and abilities, thanks to upgrades to remove barriers to the 582-seat theater space.
What’s happening: The
Cheboygan Area Arts Council has been awarded a $250,000 grant to upgrade the Cheboygan Opera House, with work to take place over the coming months, says Owen Goslin, executive director of the Cheboygan Area Arts Council. “Thanks to this funding, over the next year we plan to install a lift to make our stage and backstage areas handicap accessible, and upgrade our accessible seating areas,” among other improvements, he says.
Other existing barriers to accessibility include outdated theater carpeting that presents a walking hazard; a stage floor that is gouged and uneven; inadequate seating for people with disabilities; restrooms that are not fully ADA compliant; and steps to the auditorium seating and stage that are a barrier to persons with disabilities.
![]()
The opera house has been a center for the performing arts in the Straits region for decades.“This project will make our space more comfortable and fully accessible to our older patrons and those who rely on a wheelchair or walker,” Goslin says. “Our stage and dance studio will be fully accessible, enabling our organization to advance our mission of making the arts accessible to everyone in our community.”
While most of the improvements will be focused on the Victorian-era theater space, “we will be looking at improving every aspect of a patron’s visit, including entryways to the building,” he adds.
Why we care: The Cheboygan Opera House is one of only seven remaining opera houses in Michigan. It serves as a world-class arts, culture and resource facility for the northern Lower Peninsula.
“The current Opera House building has been the center of the performing arts in the Straits region since 1888, and we are excited to follow through on our mission of making the arts accessible to all of our community,” Goslin says.
During the last fiscal year, the Cheboygan Arts Council offered 72 public events at the venue. Its programs include:
- A year-round dance school that enrolls more than 100 students from a four-county region;
- A series of year-round concerts that bring world-class artists to Northern Michigan, with tickets at subsidized rates;
- Free concerts and workshops for students.
In addition, the auditorium provides a professional venue where school ensembles and community groups can perform. With 582 seats, it is one of the largest performing arts venues in Northern Michigan.
The back story: The original opera house was built of wood by Cheboygan’s city founders in 1877. After the building burned down a decade later, it was replaced by a brick structure; the roof and upper floor of that building burned in 1903. After that fire, the building was extensively renovated and the upper level was rebuilt in 1904.
![]()
A historic photos of the opera house, rebuilt after a fire in its first decade.The building at 403 N. Huron St. in downtown Cheboygan, west of the Cheboygan River, continued in use as a theater and community space until the mid-1960s, when it was condemned. “The building sat vacant from then, through the 1970s,” Gosling says, “while the city, which has always owned the building, raised the money to restore the building. It finally reopened in 1984, but since that time, few improvements have been made to the physical building to improve accessibility.”
The current Cheboygan Opera House is a modern building. Since its early days, the Opera House has been a multi-purpose facility. The city hall and offices are on the ground floor, along with the fire station and city police office. The theater space is on the upper level.
“This recent grant is a very important recognition for Cheboygan and its historic Opera House,” Goslin says. “As you can imagine, with an old theater it is a challenge to bring it up to modern standards.”
![]()
The opera house also is home to Cheboygan municipal offices. Who’s paying: The new grant, “a generous investment from the Consumers Energy Foundation,” Goslin says, fills a critical need. “We provide all of these services on a very tight budget,” he says. “The city of Cheboygan continues to struggle economically; more than half of our population is considered poor or working poor.”
According to the United Way’s ALICE report, 17 percent of city residents are under the federal poverty line and 39 percent are classified as “working poor.”
“That makes outside capital investments, such as this one, extremely important,” Goslin says.
The grant: The Consumers Energy Foundation grant is
part of the foundation’s annual Prosperity Awards.
“Bolstering economic development within a community isn’t only about strengthening small and local businesses; it is also about developing the resources, facilities and opportunities that attract people to visit, to spend their time and money, and even to move there,” says Brandon Hofmeister, president of the Consumers Energy Foundation.
The opera house project fits the concept of placemaking to facilitate community growth. “We’re looking forward to seeing the positive impact (the project) will provide for (the) region,” he adds.
The Consumers Energy Foundation is dedicated to ensuring Michigan businesses and communities are growing and have world-class cultural resources, says Tracy Wimmer, spokesperson for the Foundation.
“We’re deeply involved in community development efforts across the state, and among many grants given throughout the year our three signature grants — Planet, People and Prosperity Awards — focus on addressing issues to protect the planet, the people and the prosperity of our state.
“The Prosperity Awards, which the Cheboygan Area Arts Council was one of the grantees for, support our economic development priority to improve the welfare of whole communities, with a focus on funding projects with long-term benefits on Michigan’s economy.”
To read more: Coming soon, a
history of the Cheboygan Opera House between 1877 and 1927, written by Kathy King Johnson, a Hopwood Award-winning author from the University of Michigan. As former executive director of the Opera House, she became immersed in its history and the importance of the arts in rural America.
Rosemary Parker has worked as a writer and editor for more than 40 years. She is a regular contributor to Rural Innovation Exchange and other Issue Media Group publications.