Every building has a unique story that can span from decades to centuries. The small town of Minden is no stranger to that, with its historic opera house that has been operating since the 1800s.
The opera house is home to a multitude of events that help bring the community together.
“I said if I could have a dream job in this town, this would be it,” said Marcy Brandt, executive director of the Minden Opera House.” I’ve been incredibly blessed, and it has been great to see this building be the center of the community.”
In the beginning, Civil War veteran Wray Thorn built the opera house in 1891. It was just one of a few opera houses built in Nebraska between the 1880s to 1920s.
Other active opera houses include Clarkson Opera House, Red Cloud Opera House and Fremont Opera House.
The Minden Opera House held entertainment events during its heyday. Monday night dances and traveling bands stopped by to perform.
This ceased by the late 1940s, and the opera house was later remodeled from the ground up in 1997. The Kearney County Community Foundation saw potential, bought the opera house and began to form a renovation plan.
The community rallies together
The Kearney County Community Foundation’s goal was to help create an opportunity for connection with the community. The Foundation wanted to not only bring the performing arts back to the opera house, but to have a space for businesses, weddings and art galleries.
“It was important to have the community involved with the renovation,” said Todd Jensen, board member of the Kearney County Community Foundation. “Our hope was that excitement for the possibilities would start to grow in the community as it had with our board.”
The Minden Community Players, performers at the opera house, helped in the construction. The building eventually became the place they call home.
The opera house’s remodeling was finished with help from townsfolk’s donations. Support from the people of Minden and sponsors has allowed the building to keep running its operations.
“It’s about supporting the organization because you believe in what they do,” Brandt said. “The people of Minden know the shows we do to keep the doors open. They donate extra funds to help us keep going.”
Pride of the community
The opera house gives the people of Minden a sense of pride for being there. It is one of the central points in town that keeps the love of the arts alive.
“It provides a place for people to get together and host events,” said Cindy Ramsey, editor of The Minden Courier. “There has been a lot of support for that since the beginning.”
This historic building is not just the home for the small rural town, but rather home to all of Nebraska. The Minden Opera House staff has brought in people who have connections to the state to share their art, music or photography. John Prince, born and raised in Minden, had his work on display in the opera house until last spring.
The first floor of the Minden Opera House includes a receptionist desk, gift shop and event rooms. Its decor resembles a hotel lobby due to the lighting, structure and paint.
The second floor acts as a waiting room before entering the main stage for performances. The windows allow visitors to see a view of the Kearney County Courthouse and some of the businesses nearby.
Inside the opera hall, a mural covers the entirety of the ceiling, painted with bright colors that capture what rural Nebraska is like. The mural features references to town buildings, sandhill cranes and agriculture.
Battling the pandemic
The Minden Opera House continued to gain support during the COVID-19 pandemic. Those running the building had to change how things were done to provide some form of entertainment.
However, the pandemic couldn’t keep the staff from creating spaces for the community to enjoy.
“We closed for about three weeks, but we turned around quickly and created an online series,” Brandt said. “We had live streams and online donations to have something to keep us in people’s minds. We would play these trivia games once a week with our three hosts.”
The fear of being forgotten was on the minds of those running the Minden Opera House.
Kelli Suchsland, office administrator for the Minden Opera House, saw that as a possibility.
“It was challenging to think of things to keep people involved,” Suchsland said. “It was hard for a place to be a public event space.”
Just like those around the world, the people of Minden had to be careful with their spending. Donations for the Minden Opera House decreased during the pandemic.
“The Opera House is supported through grants and donations, and people attending events was a real fear for them,” Ramsey said. “A big portion of their funding comes from people attending events. If they can’t host those events, then they can’t get those funds. The numbers went down during that time, and they’re (the Minden Opera House staff) still working on getting those numbers back up.”
While not everyone was able to donate, many still wanted to support.
“People who continue to go to the shows and show support think art is an important thing in our community,” Ramsey said. “It’s a source of pride that the entire community wants to make sure it is there and that it stays there.”
For many, the opera house is the heart of Minden.
“I can’t imagine Minden without the Opera House,” Jensen said. “It has become a part of the community, creating memories that are treasured, from crowning homecoming queens, hosting summer children’s theatre or bringing people together for a show.”
