Its cast-iron Second Empire facade marks the Grand Opera House, also known as The Grand, waiting for you here. This four-story, 1,208-seat theater was built in 1871 by the Delaware Grand Lodge of Masons to serve as a Masonic Temple and auditorium; construction cost $100,000. Designed in Second Empire style by Baltimore architect Thomas Dixon, its cast-iron facade folds Masonic symbolism into every detail — the central pediment even bears an Eye of Providence.
Over the decades the Grand hosted operas, symphonies, Victorian melodramas, minstrel shows, burlesque, vaudeville, and exhibitions, welcoming performers from Ethel Barrymore to "Buffalo Bill" Cody and "Texas Jack" Omohundro, and John Philip Sousa. For most of the twentieth century it operated exclusively as a movie theater, run by Warner Brothers from 1930 until it eventually closed in 1967. It was reopened four years later and shifted back toward classical music, partnering with the Delaware Symphony Orchestra, OperaDelaware, and the First State Ballet Theatre.
Picture Ethel Barrymore, Buffalo Bill Cody, and John Philip Sousa performing here, and follow the Eye of Providence set into the central pediment.